InvestorsHub Logo
Followers 129
Posts 3807
Boards Moderated 0
Alias Born 07/12/2003

Re: None

Thursday, 07/28/2022 9:43:49 PM

Thursday, July 28, 2022 9:43:49 PM

Post# of 15150
Small cells are widely becoming a necessary component of wireless densification and new 5G networks, particularly in densely populated areas. Over the past decade, small cell deployments have grown almost 400% across U.S. markets, with plans to deploy tens of thousands of new small cells every year. Recent industry reports project small cell deployment to grow by 800% over the next decade.

But the reality tells a much different story of current deployments. Altman Solon’s internal research – which consisted of collecting and mapping small cell locations and permits from many U.S. cities – reveals that small cell growth has been much slower historically than what industry reports have projected due to the regulatory climate, lack of neutral hosts, and limited backhaul. In addition, all of these factors are occurring amid the COVID-19 pandemic, which has created construction availability shortfalls across the wireless communications industry.

While the drivers vary by city and region, our research suggests that regulation and fiber backhaul are the greatest constraints in the market today. Nevertheless, we believe that these barriers will shrink in the future, but likely at a very localized level (i.e., easier permitting in a specific city/state or fiber provider expanding their network).

Dense urban areas, small cell vendors still drive market

Based on our analysis, approximately 70% of all identified small cell nodes are in dense urban and urban areas where data demands are concentrated and most 5G deployments have started. Unsurprisingly, Crown Castle appears to be the leader in third-party small cell deployments. In fact, small cell vendors, like Crown Castle, are registered as the owner/deployer on about 50% of small cells identified, followed by Mobile Network Operators (MNO), which account for approximately 35%.
There is no “one size fits all” small cell regulation

Regulatory challenges continue to be a roadblock to accelerating the small cell activity. While a 2018 Federal Communications Commission’s order attempted to reduce regulatory requirements for small wireless facilities (“90-day-build and 60-day-colocation procedural shot clocks”), local municipalities continue to hold authority over small cell deployment. As of last year, more than one-third of the United States, including many with major markets, had not yet enacted this small cell legislation.

Small cells are popping up outside of urban areas

Optimistic forecasts currently assume small cells proliferate in regions with the “largest number of potential customers.” This would imply a continued focus on deployments in dense urban and urban areas, due to existing infrastructure and high impact to coverage.

While the majority of small cells still exist in dense urban and urban regions, according to Altman Solon analysis, morphologically suburban1 areas are seeing almost equal small cell deployments to dense urban areas. In fact, 2019 and 2020 saw the highest small cell deployment to date in suburban areas.

Still, deployment patterns across markets are largely erratic. Over time, small cell installations have a “lumpiness,” or develop multiple peaks and valleys in the pace of deployment following a lag of regulatory changes that typically follow existing process changes and/or new process implementations.

Small cell markets across the U.S. can be segmented by their current stage of deployment:

Populous metropolitan cities such as New York, Boston, and Chicago have had small cells deployed for at least 4 to 5 years, established franchise agreements with major carriers, and tend to be dense urban or urban populations. These are typically the leaders in small cell growth in the U.S.

Growth locations such as Boulder or Fort Worth – mid-size population densities often with deployments in a “Central Business District” – also have a few (3-5) years of small cell history though currently established processes and are continuing to evolve and mature.

Early-stage areas of suburbia, where small cells and outdoor Distributed Antenna Systems (DAS) are proliferating, such as Montgomery County, MD.

https://www.altmansolon.com/insights/the-suburban-migration-new-mapping-analysis-reveals-surprising-u-s-small-cell-growth/#:~:text=Over%20the%20past%20decade%2C%20small,800%25%20over%20the%20next%20decade.
Volume:
Day Range:
Bid:
Ask:
Last Trade Time:
Total Trades:
  • 1D
  • 1M
  • 3M
  • 6M
  • 1Y
  • 5Y
Recent DLOC News