From fostering equitable access to enhancing the classroom experience, private cellular networks are transforming K-12 education. With the rise of digital learning tools, the need for continuous, reliable wireless connectivity has never been more important. In this changing educational landscape, can private 5G networks serve as the infrastructure backbone to support various on-campus and remote educational activities? Do school districts understand how best to leverage the transformat...

Private mobile networks are becoming a critical utility for businesses to streamline operations, reduce costs, and improve safety and security. The deployments are growing steadily; however, a patchwork of available wireless solutions makes it challenging for many enterprises to have a standardized approach to address the connectivity needs of diverse use cases. There are stiff technical and commercial challenges to their widespread adoption, demanding both service providers and vendors to ri...

With advancements in connectivity, the widespread adoption of the Internet of Things, and the exponential growth of mobile devices, traditional network infrastructure has found it challenging to meet the surging demand for secure and efficient communication solutions. Some enterprises are now turning to private cellular networks as a compelling connectivity platform to materialize their digital vision. While these networks promise to provide a dedicated, reliable, and secure wireless in...

The lack of access to broadband internet can significantly hinder economic growth, education, and healthcare, making it difficult for communities to compete in the modern world. Bringing reliable, high-speed connectivity to remote and underserved areas in the US is a complex challenge that requires a unique set of solutions. Can private LTE and fixed-wireless access networks help close the digital divide and empower rural and tribal communities through technology? And even if it can, are loc...

4G and 5G cellular networks are becoming increasingly popular amongst enterprises as more organizations look for ways to accelerate their digital strategy. However, many challenges come with private cellular networks, such as finding the right solution that meets business application needs, its cost-effectiveness, security, reliability, and scalability. How do those challenges differ across verticals and use cases and what are the critical success factors for the day-1 and, more importantly, ...

Wireless communications are constantly growing in complexity with new protocols, new devices, and new spectrum options. Ensuring all possible combinations work dependably at their peak performance has always been critical for guaranteeing network readiness. But the era of Private 5G and industrial applications adds new dynamics to ensuring the safety and readiness of wireless networks. How can enterprise IT teams ensure that working next to a mobile robot in a factory is safe? How can we be s...

The Internet of Things promises to bring us amazing efficiencies. It’s projected to have billions of connected devices helping us monitor environmental conditions, enhance public safety, automate industrial processes, and fulfill the vision of self-driving cars. But have the outcomes justified the hype? Do enterprises have clarity on the most viable connectivity option for their IoT applications? Should they use Wi-Fi, BLE, Zigbee, LoRA, cellular LPWAN solutions, or the new kid in the block –...

Telecommunication networks never stop evolving, moving in less than 15 years from 3G to LTE to 5G, and having our data move from on-site to the cloud and to the edge. But what does this mean for the security of our data? With the rising adoption of connected devices & applications, enterprises are at a greater risk of data breaches, ransomware, and new types of attacks. How should CIOs rethink security, and what choices do they have? Let’s find out. Our guest for today’s podcast is Nancy...

The networking needs of a digital enterprise are shifting to ensure anytime, anywhere connectivity to reliably and securely interconnect their people, places, and things. The notion of a universal wireless network for enterprise blurs the lines between historical local area and wide area network boundaries. But can the highly vouched 5G cellular network – public or private - truly replace LAN and WAN solutions used by enterprises for decades? Even if it is, are CIOs prepared to make a s...

The widespread use of digital devices and applications raises the need for pervasive cellular coverage. However, the existing private cellular networks are not sufficiently scalable and economical to extend in dynamically changing indoor and outdoor enterprise environments. New network architectures are needed to deal with unique enterprise use cases and increase coverage and capacity without dependency on the underlying infrastructure. Are cellular mesh networks the answer to this challenge?...

Private networks have blazed a whole new trail for enterprise innovation with the ability to customize their design and control operations. The pace of adoption, however, has slowed due to the complexity and the high costs of customization of networks. With the emergence of 5G, the choice of vendors expands, the operation complexity increases with disaggregated open networks, and the cost increases with greater recourse to system integrators and other experts. Enterprises need a simpler way t...

GSMA rightfully said that 5G denotes a new era in which connectivity will be tailored precisely to the needs of the business applications. The proliferation of 5G is expected to dramatically grow the market for private wireless networks, but what do IT leaders need to know before jumping on the private 5G bandwagon? Which enterprise applications are already taking advantage of this revolutionary technology, and what are the barriers to its mass-market adoption? Let’s find out. Our guest for ...

In a short span of five years, private 4G and 5G networks have stirred much excitement. But do the outcomes justify the hype? Enterprises wrestle with choices between Do-It-Yourself, managed services, and public operator network slices. How do neutral hosts and system integrators help? What are the most viable technologies for private wireless? Private network deployments are generally customized for the client, and it is hard to compare the costs and benefits. So do CIOs know how to evaluate...

AI Ops is a natural fit in the 5G era with software-defined networks that are increasingly programmable. Human supervision of 5G networks is a bit like trying to hop onto an electric train after it has left the station. AI-assisted automation is the holy grail for network managers rattled by a catastrophe precipitated by human errors. While early trials of AI Ops in private and public 5G networks are promising, data capture in network labyrinths is forbidding due to many silos, emergent data ...

IoT is a lynchpin to digitizing smart manufacturing, smart cities, and many other industrial enterprises. However, its adoption is often plagued by security concerns. The 5G enhancements that support 1 million devices per square kilometer also increase the attack surface for cybercriminals. An entire business network can be compromised due to vulnerabilities in a connected surveillance camera or even smart bulbs. Though private LTE and 5G networks are theoretically designed for highly secure ...

The edge has become the playground for some of the most innovative technology companies launching specialized private 5G applications. Advancements like Open RAN, programmable networks, intent-based network slicing, and AI-driven automation are promising new level of efficiencies in processing humongous data volumes with ultra-low latencies at the distributed network edge. However, the industry continues to struggle on a common understanding of the necessary steps required to make multi-acces...

The Internet of Things suffered several setbacks during its long hype cycle in coping with complex deployments. Having overcome the daunting challenges in the initial stages of IoT development, the industry is poised to take advantage of the massive deployment of IoT devices in the 5G era. Private cellular networks are envisioned to create a secure environment for remote monitoring, analytics, and control of automation, using data generated by pervasive sensors. But has the ecosystem evolved ...

Telecom Service Providers have long sought to graduate beyond commoditized connectivity to business models centered around premium digital services. Telco Cloud Platform, in collaboration with Hyperscalers, is a new tack for operators to earn premiums from services delivered at the edge. But do service providers understand the service models that will help them monetize new digital services from customization for micro-segments of customers and enable premium experiences? Let’s find out. ...

The mid-band CBRS spectrum has been an extraordinary boon to private networks and digital innovation in the US. Enterprises across verticals are investing in automation, taking advantage of the security of private LTE networks and the control of the quality of service. Some verticals like manufacturing have entered the adoption stage, and others like utilities have overcome the initial barriers to adoption. As the usage of shared spectrum bands booms, will we soon see mass commercialization o...

Open Radio Area Networks have democratized networks for small-and-medium scale companies. The CBRS spectrum freed the enterprise and other organizations of the chokehold of public communication service providers and helped them build private networks for their IT solutions. Companies, as big as Honeywell, however, have still been unserved. Will the new generation of vendors and MSPs that are using Open RAN overcome the limitation of size and bring inexpensive private networks to smaller organ...