Closing The Digital Divide With 5G FWA

Sponsored Feature Adoption of 5G Fixed Wireless Access (5G FWA) is surging, partly thanks to its power to enable affordable high quality broadband access in locations where wired solutions don't reach.

By deploying a simple on-premise device, businesses and consumers in out of the way places can enjoy robust, high-speed internet connectivity. Along with 5G mobile broadband (MBB), where no added device is involved, 5G FWA is bringing areas without traditional wired infrastructure onto the grid, and in the process helping governments and network operators in many different parts of the world to widen broadband inclusivity and bridge the digital divide.

5G FWA is proving popular with operators seeking a highly practical solution to delivering reasonably-priced high-speed internet access to hard-to-reach customers, using 5G technology to provide services that can perform every bit as well as those based on traditional fiber and cable connections. It's an attractive choice for many, not least because 5G FWA usually doesn't demand any of the complicated and costly groundwork associated with fixed fiber optic networks.

Zhou Jinxing, Vice President of ZTE Corporation, General Manager of Mobile Internet, ZTE Mobile Devices, identifies a number of the factors driving increased operator interest: "5G FWA offers cost-effective, quick deployment by replacing fiber with wireless technology," he states. "This makes it particularly suited for rural, remote and emerging markets, significantly reducing infrastructure costs and time. With its high bandwidth and low latency, 5G FWA supports gigabit speeds and millisecond latency, making it ideal for high-demand scenarios like home and business video streaming and cloud services."

By providing a fresh growth opportunity as traditional mobile business growth slows down, 5G FWA can also appeal by offering operators a new or additional revenue stream. "It enables operators to tap into the rapidly expanding home broadband market with lower CAPEX investments," adds Zhou Jinxing. "And it complements mobile broadband which faces capacity limitations in densely populated areas. With its use of CPE devices, FWA optimizes resource allocation for a more stable experience. While mobile broadband focuses on mobility, FWA is designed for fixed locations like homes, offering complementary but non-replaceable services."

It's for these reasons that ZTE forecasts a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) for 5G FWA components which is actually expected to surpass that of 4G FWA, fiber optic and DSL counterparts in the future.

"In the coming years, 5G FWA's development will bring entry-level FWA prices closer to LTE-Advanced products, prompting most operators to fully upgrade to 5G FWA," predicts Zhou Jinxing. "Moreover, with the rapid integration of AI into 5G FWA, both performance and user-friendliness will improve, leading to even better customer feedback."

Where global telecoms operators see value

ZTE is recognized as a major player in the 5G FWA and MBB space, according to findings from independent market research organization ABI Research. The company's latest Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) CPE Vendor Competitive Assessment report highlights many pioneering technological advancements over the past four years. ABI evaluates 10 different 5G FWA customer premise equipment (CPE) manufacturers based on innovation and implementation criteria, with ZTE taking top place in both categories.

These are distinctions which aren't lost on the telecommunications community either. In the last few years ZTE has also partnered with over 130 telecoms operators in more than 100 countries, accounting for around 80 percent of the world's 5G FWA service providers. Some of the products that have enabled the company to achieve and maintain that strong market presence include:

- The ZTE G5 Ultra, is billed as the world's first AI-powered 5G-Advanced FWA device. With tri-band Wi-Fi 7, a 13dBi smart beam-switching antenna, AI-driven antenna systems, intelligent QoS management, and built-in AI voice control it was built to satisfy the performance demands of applications such as gaming, streaming and remote work

- ZTE AI FWA Solution was the industry's first full-stack AI-powered FWA solution with six core AI-driven features, according to ZTE. They are AI Multi-Scenario Application, AI QoS Management, AI Voice Control, AI Application Recognition, AI Children Protection, and real-time AI Network Optimization. These all act to enhance the user experience as well as network security, establishing new standards for intelligent networking, says the company.

- The GIS Product Concept (Green, artificial Intelligence, Security) is behind AI-powered solutions which were designed to enhance usability, energy efficiency and security. ZTE's latest AI-powered GIS concept for example, aims to transform AI into a key driver of home network efficiency. The AI-powered energy-saving capabilities built into the ZTE AI Platform are able to learn from user habits to optimize power consumption, while simultaneously improving network slicing and improved bandwidth efficiency.

How AI is the future of 5G FWA

AI has already played a big part in making 5G FWA systems easier to use while helping to improve network performance. For its part, ZTE recognizes that this trend will continue to accelerate, and the company has built further AI capabilities into its product portfolio.

"At ZTE we believe AI is important to 5G FWA in a number of ways," says Zhou Jinxing: "For example, there's Wi-Fi network optimization. AI analyzes user habits and uses deep learning to identify over 4,000 applications, improving bandwidth utilization by 20 percent and reducing network congestion by 30 percent."

He also points to improved 5G signal stability: "Our AI-powered Super Antenna, using ZTE's self-developed phase-variable technology, improves network speeds by 20 percent in weak signal scenarios," he explains. "And for network security, AI can detect illegal data, viruses, and cyberattacks, providing proactive security measures. For example, our Child Guardianship feature ensures comprehensive protection for children's online activity, managing screen time and controlling app access."

ZTE's AI-powered Smart Cloud Platform (SCP) is also designed to support the efficient management of multiple FWA and MBB devices, which should lead to a reduction in the need for on-site maintenance and even enhance the end user experience. And by enabling smart QoS management by dynamically allocating bandwidth for different applications, AI can also help to minimize buffering, predict device failures, and trigger maintenance proactively to minimize network and service downtime.

"AI will drive the future of FWA, and ZTE aims to offer a unique competitive edge in the FWA market by combining our full-stack technological capabilities with AI-driven innovation," concludes Zhou Jinxing. "Our solutions not only allow operators to expand their home and business markets at low cost but also enhance end-user experiences through intelligent networking. As global 5G coverage deepens, our FWA solutions will continue to be a key enabler in operators' digital transformation, delivering smoother, smarter, and more user-friendly networks while driving operator profitability."

To that end, ZTE is set to introduce two new FWA products at this year's Mobile World Congress 25 event in Barcelona. The company says the ZTE G5 Max Wi-Fi is the world's first 30dBi Wi-Fi 7 mmWave FWA device, supporting both sub-6GHz and mmWave carrier aggregation with peak speeds of up to 10Gbit/s. Featuring a 30dBi ultra-high-gain antenna design, it has been built to deliver stable signal reception with a 6km coverage in outdoor environments. It offers a 200 percent increase in downlink speed, and a 500 percent boost in uplink speed, compared to previous versions, as well as 70 percent less power consumption.

The ZTE U60 Pro is billed by its manufacturer as the world's fastest Wi-Fi 7 5G Mobile Wi-Fi access point, capable of delivering peak speeds of 3.6Gbit/s. It comes with a 10,000mAh battery, enabling up to 16 hours of operation and extended connectivity. With dual-band Wi-Fi 7, fast charging, and reverse charging capabilities, it can provide convenient power-sharing for other mobile devices. Featuring a touchscreen interface and NFC-enabled quick Wi-Fi connection, the ZTE U60 Pro is also built to enhance user convenience with an intelligent and user-friendly design.

On the FWA horizon

Governments worldwide are recognizing the potential of 5G FWA to enable their digital inclusion goals – one reason why we are seeing them launch policies aimed at promoting the adoption of 5G technology, backed by financial incentives and subsidies to encourage telecom operators to invest in FWA infrastructure. Regulatory frameworks that support the 5G FWA deployment process are helping to accelerate market growth, as are private and public sector organizations busy overcoming 5G FWA deployment challenges to establish appropriate environments for its widespread adoption.

But it's telecoms operators themselves that have the biggest part to play, and much depends on their continued collaboration with technology providers, equipment manufacturers and government bodies to help speed up 5G FWA deployment and adoption. Identifying fresh business models to support this expansion - such as subscription-based services and flexible pricing plan - to attract the widest possible customer base will be key.

In this context, it is easy to understand why analyst firm Research and Markets is forecasting the market for 5G FWA equipment to grow at a CAGR of 39.5 percent per annum in the run up to 2032, expected to reach a value of around $594 billion by that date. As long as ZTE continues to focus on developing differentiated technologies to meet diverse operator and end user needs, we can expect the company to maintain a prime position in this market for some time to come.

For more information on the ZTE 5G Ultra, click here.

Sponsored by ZTE.