Mobile operators and broadband service providers everywhere are under pressure to offer better network performance to keep up with insatiable subscriber demand for bandwidth. But the implications are dire: the cost of transporting data is expected to outpace revenue, and a poor user experience resulting from network congestion will result in churn, one of the largest costs operators incur.
Wi-Fi presents an attractive option and complimentary technology for operators looking to scale capacity, efficiency and footprint of their existing macro networks. Leveraging patented Smart Wi-Fi technology that delivers unprecedented reliability within the unlicensed spectrum, the new Ruckus Mobile Internet solution was purpose-built for the stringent requirements of Tier 1 and Tier 2 operators.
Ruckus Mobile Internet solutions let service providers deliver reliable, indoor/outdoor, always-on, broadband services using Smart Wi-Fi technology at a fraction of the cost and complexity of conventional macro alternatives.
No spectrum licenses, long lead times or complex configuration. Using dual-band 802.11n technology, dynamic beamforming and smart, adaptive mesh networking, operators can now deploy a complete, end-to-end, managed wireless infrastructure that provides consistent broadband performance for a broad range of applications such as:
The vast majority of the world is still waiting for broadband service. In the well-populated parts of developed countries, existing wireline phone and cable TV infrastructure made broadband relatively easy to offer, and availability is now very high. Everywhere else, the high costs of current options, such as deploying new wireline infrastructure or large-scale macro-cellular wireless models like WiMAX, are big barriers to further broadband subscriber growth.
We’ve solved this problem. Our field-proven Smart Wi-Fi approach to wireless broadband access opens vast new segments of customers to broadband operators. We dramaticallyreduce the capital costs of broadband infrastructure (by factors of 5x or more), which in combination with build-as-you grow business models can deliver attractively short breakeven timelines even in very low-ARPU markets.
The Ruckus Smart Wi-Fi Broadband Access System is the industry’s first and only complete end-to-end solution for last-mile access based on 802.11n and adaptive beamforming. It includes customer premise equipment, meshed Wi-Fi access points, high-speed wireless backhaul, and comprehensive network-wide element and service management. The solution’s unrivaled performance in wireless broadband applications is driven by several factors:
Mobile network operators (MNOs) the world over are facing a common structural problem in their businesses. Traffic growth is outstripping the capacity of 3G network deployments in urban “hot zones”, making it difficult in some cases even to hold an uninterrupted mobile phone conversation during rush hour. In turn, operators are under pressure to offer faster data speeds to keep up with their customers’ insatiable demand for data intensive applications. But the implications are dire: the cost of transporting data is expected to outpace revenue, and a poor user experience resulting from network congestion will result in churn, one of the largest costs operators incur. Consequently, operators are planning to use every tool available to them. Smarter Wi-Fi systems are one essential tool.
A smarter approach to Wi-Fi that employs advanced interference rejection techniques and adaptive signal controls is required to provide the range and predictable performance expected by mobile operators. In addition, a seamless subscriber roaming experience, clean integration into the 3GPP network and a complete range of Wi-Fi form factors (from indoor access points to outdoor mesh access nodes, point-to-point/multipoint backhaul to comprehensive network management) are all essential elements of a next generation Wi-Fi solution for mobile operators.
Ruckus Wireless has developed a reference architecture and purpose-built Wi-Fi systems for providers that addresses many of the concerns faced with the integration of Wi-Fi within the large mobile operator infrastructure. This next generation reference architectures addresses areas such as:
With the majority of Wi-Fi connectivity occurring indoors, for services providers, extending branded broadband services into the enterprise is of major interest.
This interest comes from the opportunity to bundle a managed WLAN service with broadband access or through the integration of WLANs with existing managed or unmanaged wired LANs.
Vertical segments, such as retail, healthcare, manufacturing and public venue) view mobility within the organization’s facilities is an essential part of job performance, which makes them strong candidates for being "early adopters.
Such organizations are receptive to managed 802.11 services as WLAN deployments can be quite costly and complex. IT departments may simply not have the time or expertise to deal with issues such as proper antenna placement, channel selection and security. This creates an opportunity for carriers to bundle WLAN managed services with their existing connectivity services, particularly since many carriers already have customer premises equipment in place.
The best opportunity for providers, particularly those already offering managed access and LAN services, lie in offering reliable managed wireless LAN services that offer customers peace-of-mind with respective to performance, reliability and security. Because of this, the managed services market requires a more robust managed WLAN service offering.
Ruckus offers carriers the broadest portfolio of indoor and outdoor WLAN systems for managed services that delivers unique value such as:
As network operators continue to increase the coverage and capacity of their wireless deployments, they also increase the stress on their cell site backhaul connectivity. There are several situations where conventional point-to-point microwave, bonded copper, and fiber-based backhaul solutions are impractical or uneconomic — and where Wi-Fi can play an important role. We outline a couple of key examples here:
LTE Small-Cell Backhaul. Mobile operators are planning their LTE networks as a combination of macro cells and an ‘underlay’ network of smaller micro and picocells. In order to achieve the capacity density required by rapidly rising mobile Internet bandwidth demand, these small cells will need to be much larger in number in a given area than is the case in current cellular networks. As such they will represent a brand new and very significant backhaul challenge — because the mounting locations of these small cell nodes (such as utility poles or other street-level assets) will very rarely be a natural fit for fiber or microwave solutions. The concept of LTE self-backhaul or meshing is one possible solution, but as with early mesh Wi-Fi networks that attempted to provide access and meshing all within the same spectrum band, this approach rapidly consumes scarce (and expensive) LTE access-capable spectrum with backhaul traffic. The option of using a 5 GHz 802.11n point to point solution is a very attractive alternative here — easily delivering the more than 100 Mbps of backhaul capacity an LTE cell will need.
GSM Cellular Backhaul. As operators in developing markets continue to push out the coverage of GSM, their efforts sometimes extend beyond the reach of reliable sources of power. This can be addressed with solar-powered base station sites. These installations need to be engineered for lower power consumption than conventional sites, to minimize the cost of solar panels and battery backup. This can include taking advantage of the fact that a well-designed 802.11n point to point solution such as our ZoneFlex 7731 is much more power efficient, per bit delivered, than the typically watt-hungry microwave backhaul links that would otherwise be the default for remote GSM sites.
Wi-Fi for Wireless Broadband Access and 3G Offload. Delivering point-to-point and point-to-multipoint backhaul capacity to mesh Wi-Fi networks with the ZoneFlex 7731 is also an essential component of our complete wireless broadband access (WBA) and 3G offload solutions addressing concerns such as the need for:
To quickly and cost-effectively deploy triple-play services within subscriber homes, wireless is becoming an absolute necessity, especially when you throw in new multimedia services such as fixed mobile convergence. Trouble is, these higher definition services are quickly driving bandwidth requirements through the roof. These new multimedia services are more delay sensitive than plain vanilla data services, further complicating deployment.
That's why Ruckus Wireless has developed the first system explicitly for multimedia distribution. Installed by hundreds of carriers in hundreds of thousands of homes worldwide, this Smart Wi-Fi 802.11 system remains the de facto standard, with:
Our Smart Wi-Fi gives carriers faster time to revenue, by reducing the time to turn up subscribers. And it gives subscribers the freedom they want and expect, without the disruptive inflexibility of wires.
Just ask Belgacom, PCCW, Deutsche Telekom, Swisscom, SingTel, Telefonica, Telecom Austria, Telenor, and TeliaSonera.
