The 2020 Mobile Experts In-Building Wireless Report was just released, containing insights into the future of In-Building Wireless (IBW) in a COVID-affected market.
The report shows In-Building Wireless (defined as indoor cellular and public safety systems) continuing to expand as operators and enterprises extend mobile infrastructure coverage from the top end of the market in large public venues (stadiums, etc.) to mid-market enterprise spaces across vertical industries.
The report shows the IBW market will drop over 10 percent this year due to COVID-19, but the market will bounce back, rising to over $5.4 billion in 2025—a 5 percent annualized growth from 2019 to 2025.
“There’s a shift occurring for In-Building Wireless from Distributed Antenna Systems to Small Cells,” commented the report’s Principal Analyst Kyung Mun. “While DAS will remain a big part of shared infrastructure at high-density venues, infrastructure spending on DAS will be slightly down in absolute dollar terms. Meanwhile, Small Cells share will increase steadily during that period. Flexible architectural choices based on Open RAN are enabling ‘distributed’ to ‘all-in-one’ small cell solutions to target different capacity and coverage requirements.”
Annual DAS node shipments will be relatively flat. Meanwhile, Small Cell radio unit shipments will expand at a healthy rate along with booster/repeater shipments, which are expected to double by 2025.
“The 5G technology transition and expanding spectrum coverage across higher bands, i.e. CBRS, C-band, and the millimeter wave, will drive growth across in-building wireless infrastructure solutions. Overall spending will increase—we’re looking at a healthy market, despite a global pandemic,” commented Principal Analyst Kyung Mun.
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