Enterprise first

Exclusive access to Real Wireless CEO Mark Keenan's report from the enterprise session at SCWS on behalf of Small Cell Forum.

When I was asked to moderate a closed session of major enterprises at SCWS World to discuss wireless connectivity challenges, the conversation ranged over a lot of scenarios. This is hardly surprising, given that the backgrounds of the various attendees differed a great deal. What they had in common was an interest in the potential of wireless for their businesses, customers and visitors — and an awareness that developing a wireless business case that works offers challenges. But it soon became clear that they are not always the same challenges. Read report here>

The customers are taking charge
Oliver Bosshard, COO, Real Wireless

Time was when operator requirements were all that really mattered. Today, the market is becoming increasingly dominated by requirements from enterprises, integrators, venue owners and regulators. The race to 5G has only intensified the demand for improved connectivity indoor and out. After spending the week immersed in small cells during SCWS World in London, the overriding message for Real Wireless is that the customers are taking charge.

Both our CEO Mark Keenan and CTO Simon Fletcher chaired sessions: on network densification and on monetising connectivity, as well as leading and speaking at the event’s first dedicated stadium summit. In every session it was clear that the entire stakeholder community needs a voice in how we’ll deliver connectivity in the future, whether under the 5G banner or not. We also noted that enterprises are beginning to understand the leading role they themselves can play in improving connectivity for their staff and customers.

These are interesting times and the conversation is changing. Investment in the 5G era requires evidence-based decision making and I know that Real Wireless remains best placed to deliver that. Get in touch>

Location, location and on location
at SCWS with Simon Fletcher

When we talk about network densification and small cells, most conversations boil down to where to put things.

The question of location came up many times during my sessions at SCWS, revealing some exciting new projects underway. Ordnance Survey revealed its latest mapping project to gather data that will help us more accurately plan and deliver Smart Cities here in the UK. The mapping will take into account all the 'other' significant bits of information needed to plan digital cities, such as the material used for buildings or the backhaul needed to make the densification agenda work. Find out more about our own Smart Cities work here>

Meanwhile in the US, Blue Wireless is trialling the use of millimetre wave technology to ensure rapid coverage, looking at location and use cases, including the trade-off between rapid coverage and the cost of ownership. Fixed mobile convergence is indeed happening at the edge. Once again, it’s a bit more than just having the right place to put things.

Real Wireless has developed a suite of modelling tools and capabilities to help mobile operators, city operators, asset owners and neutral hosts optimise small cell deployments. We used this expertise recently to help CTIL win a 15 year small cell focussed concession in the City of London, read about that project here>

Business models to monetise connectivity

The SCWS session on developing business models for monetising connectivity showed that there are many opportunities but companies are still unsure of where to invest. Vendors have a strong understanding of technologies but want to get into the verticals. Enterprises are becoming more aware of the potential to improve connectivity in sites they own, but lack the technical knowledge and contacts to do so. It’s also clear that the transition from indoor to outdoor is an important one, and one in which companies are willing to invest if they can be assured that it will bring benefits. What’s clear is that infrastructure owners should be part of any business model and that independent expertise is key.

If you want to develop a business model to help inform investment decisions, get in touch. We speak the language that operators, vendors and other players in the wireless industry speak. But we are also independent and informed.

Using wireless to deliver the ultimate customer experience

Congratulations to SCWS World on hosting its first stadium summit event. It was a successful day bringing out a lot of the common challenges we face, no matter where in the world your stadium or venue is. The complexity of what’s needed at a large venue never fails to surprise even those in the industry.

When we work with venue owners we provide strategy and expertise around all of their wireless needs (and indeed, some fixed). For many venues the experience before and after an event is becoming more and more important as we heard on the day.

AEG owns venues across Europe and has been investing in Wi-Fi to help support digital signage and mobile apps for use across its network. The Swedish Football League, in partnership with their Norwegian counterparts, is working on enhancing the customer experience before, during and after the arena event. For them it’s about more bums on seats and using technology as a way to get people in and to make sure they come back. Interestingly they’re creating a system of their own, sitting outside the MNOs by investing in an app platform to reach customer touch points, either OTT or wirelessly.

For multipurpose venues, such as our client Wembley Stadium, where you have people coming in for different events or you need to attract more tenants, you need to have the infrastructure in place to do so.

New stadia can benefit greatly from early engagement with Real Wireless – capturing the requirements for all wireless needs, preparing high level designs and detailed specifications for inclusion in the tender documents. Find out more here>