When the FCC held the first auction of CBRS (Citizens Band Radio Service), it raised hopes that novel neutral host models will emerge that improve the economics of indoor cellular networks and bring some of the promise of 5G into venues of all sizes. What is the neutral host opportunity presented by CBRS and what are the economic considerations for the business of establishing and running a neutral host network.
neXt Curve is joined by Alex Besen, Founder & CEO at The Besen Group, LLC to explore the following topics:
- What is CBRS and what makes it interesting? – In July of 2020, the FCC began the auction of the long-awaited CBRS spectrum. A tremendous amount of fanfare preceded the first round as US operators upped the demand for midband spectrum. We discuss the hope and excitement that shrouds CBRS today.
- What is a neutral host (NH) and the CBRS NH opportunity? – Share spectrum presents and opportunity for service providers to provide neutral host solutions that have the potential to dramatically improve the economics of in-door connectivity for mobile network operators who are investing billions in their 5G transformation. We discuss the neutral host opportunity that is CBRS.
- What are the neutral host business and deployment models? – We go over the archetypical deployment models and the associated business model considerations for running a neutral host network.
- How do you size your neutral host opportunity and TCO? – Alex Besen outlines the taxonomy for sizing your neutral host opportunity and the key inputs into determining the total cost of ownership of a neutral host network based on an estimation framework and tool developed by The Besen Group, LLC.

If you are interested in licensing The Besen Group’s CBRS TCO Tool for Neutral Host Networks, send your request by email to tool@thebesengroup.com.
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