The quick refresher is Citizen Band Radio Service, [CBRS] deployed in an unregulated environment, which enables cellular devices to communicate on the network. Gee, what a great idea: Low capital costs to deploy, minimal monthly recurring expenses, and no monthly equipment fees. Why is this not a thing?

Because in most every case, adoption of a technology is rarely about the efficiency or performance of the bits and bytes. Acceptance of a new tool set, or service, is predicated on the business model and acceptance of the complementary components of the ecosystem. Disruptive technologies must wait until business models are defined and ecosystems evolve.

THE LARVAL PHASE

To quote Michael Lewis’ book, Liar’s Poker, most technology sits in a “disgusting larval phase” where it matures incrementally until it eventually becomes useful. Wi-Fi, for example sat in this space from the early 1990s to the early 2000s before becoming the ubiquitous service we know today. The ecosystem is made up of several components provided by various vendors. In simple terms it looks like this: User/client device, building infrastructure, software for management and security, connectivity, and service provider to make all the parts work together.

To continue the Wi-Fi example, wireless devices were available, waiting on deployment of Wi-Fi access points. As more devices became Wi-Fi enabled [anyone remember Intel’s ‘Centrino inside’?] demand for access points grew. Management and connectivity tools for security followed and service providers arose to meet growing demand. Now we see this mature technology incorporated throughout the hospitality industry servicing guests, staff, and devices.

THE GROWING DEMAND FOR CELL SERVICE

When it comes to cellular services, the same model has been around for quite some time. Carriers provide towers directly or through third parties. Smartphones are pretty much everywhere. And a growing list of devices connect via 3G/4G/LTE/5G including cars, robots, and sensors, etc. reliant on this same infrastructure.

Guest demand for reliable cell service in hotels is growing. There’s also an emerging need for improved staff communications, operations, and building automation. Building automation systems include support for device-to-device communications, internet of things (IoT) sensors, staff alert systems, etc. The cost for carriers to build out the networks is increasing. Carriers also face internal competition for demands on their capital, cash and other resources.

TECHNICAL CHALLENGES

Moreover, there are the technical challenges for delivering a cell signal into a building. LEED certified deployments and other protective barriers disrupt services. The faster a wave moves, the more susceptible it becomes to interference.

As a result, the number of hotels that will attract a carrier investment for distributed antenna systems (DAS) to improve cellular coverage gets closer and closer to zero at the exact time we see growing demand and requirements for such services.

We must consider network capacity. Most of us think of cell coverage as signal strength. The number of bars on our phone tells us if we have coverage. What we don’t see —and can’t know —is the number of other users accessing the same services at the same time. Too many subscribers at one time creates saturation, which is now a primary concern for carriers.

Saturation is the reason calls get dropped calls or connections time out, even though we may see all four signal bars on the phone. Most smart phones offer WiFi assist calling, and it can provide some value. But the saturation issue is just as challenging if you rely on Wi-Fi to boost cellular traffic.

Keep in mind, while signal strength is typically static, saturation occurs dynamically as the number of devices change. In a 168-hour week, peak demand may be spread over 25 hours. Hotel performance, conference events, and guest satisfaction ratings are also measured during these same 25 hours. For all these reasons, owners and operators must find a way to solve this issue for themselves.

Before we go on, a quick disclaimer: There is a lot of technology that will be simplified for brevity. Time to revisit the citizens band and check in on the evolutionary process.

Since 2019 most (Google, Apple, Samsung) smart phones have included embedded support for CBRS. The technical term is Band 48. It’s been in use in other countries for some time now for various purposes. You may also see CBRS referred as Private LTE or by the industry trade alliance name, OnGo. Several name brand companies now produced CBRS radios. They’re deployed similarly to Wi-Fi access points and connected either wired or wirelessly in existing or new ethernet network infrastructure. They broadcast and receive LTE/4G traffic across the local area network.

The mechanism to move this traffic between the private CBRS LTE network and the publicly available carrier provided network is the missing link. For several years now, this chasm between public and private cell services has restrained adoption of CBRS in hotels. And as we all know, the answer to most any technical problem is most often a new acronym. In this case, if you aren’t already familiar with it, please meet MOCN (pronounced: MOCK-‘n), which stands for multi-operator core network.

This service, which has also been around for a while, allows users to access cellular services regardless of their carrier. MOCN was the bridge for T-Mobile and Sprint subscribers to access cell services during their network integration. Currently two mobile network operators support MOCN for their customers. The third is expected to share services in the not-too-distant future.

Here’s a simplified view of what’s happening —the functionality resides between a radio access network (RAN) and the core network that enables MOCN. The traffic is interrogated and then routed to the proper core. Once properly routed, the software platform simply requires connections to each core and handles the heavy lifting of routing of the traffic properly. As a result, each core network manages its users as if they’re on the home network.

Now we have all the required elements for cost effective technology to morph into a fully managed service for hoteliers, guests, and associates. Client devices are already widely available and in use, CBRS radios can be easily deployed on new or existing ethernet infrastructure and MOCN, the bridge between private and public LTE, opens a full communications channel. Most important, there’s an emerging CBRS/Private LTE service provider community offering full, turnkey deployments and support by capital purchase or “as a service” model.

This fully integrated solution offers hotels flexibility and a growing list of applications ready to take advantage. Hotels can cost effectively target specific areas of the property such as underground parking, back of house, or convention areas. The service can be deployed in whole or in part within a hotel where coverage or capacity is an issue.

Having Private LTE services greatly enhances the hotel’s ability to implement location-based services. These uses include wayfinding and tracking movable assets such as cribs, rollaway beds, or carts. The number of smart sensors using LTE is growing. Operators are finding significant value in automating manual tasks, thresholds, alarms, and other notifications, all which can rely on Private LTE. Hotels now have a low cost, property owned infrastructure to support secure subscriber identity module (SIM) based cellular services.

Like most all other overnight successes, there’s a lot of work being done out of sight. A lengthy incubation period allows for discovery of missing pieces, iterations of acceptable business models, and creating demand in the marketplace. Private LTE may now be poised to emerge from the larval phase into a full turn-key solution for the travel industry.