Exploring Telco Enterprise Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) Services

The rising cost of deploying fiber, and a growing list of benefits available with fixed wireless access (FWA), are fueling the emergence of enterprise FWA nationwide services. 

Service providers are finding FWA a better match in many multisite use cases, and that's provided strong tailwinds for the emerging enterprise broadband access alternative. 

We have seen the enterprise FWA offerings of all three major mobile providers—AT&T, Verizon, and T-Mobile—as they strike partnerships with equipment suppliers, such as Cisco/Meraki and Ericsson/Cradlepoint, for enterprise branch routers and gateways to connect remote office locations with business-class services. 

Many enterprise use cases are emerging.

Single point of contact

Many multisite enterprises should find emerging FWA appealing. This presents an opportunity for FWA to capture customers that might have previously been waiting on fiber.

“One of the biggest selling points of FWA for businesses with many branch offices—think fast food chains, banks, retail stores—all places that need connectivity for point-of-sale machines and Wi-Fi, is that they can have a single mobile provider across all those locations, assuming FWA is offered in all those locations,” explains Jeff Heynen, vice president of broadband access and home networking for the Dell’Oro Group, a global market research and analysis firm. 

Related:Is 5G Fixed Wireless Access the New ISDN?

“On the business side, we're seeing new use cases that we didn’t see before, all the way from coffee shops replacing cable with fixed wireless access to large enterprises actually replacing with fixed wireless access as well for different use cases,” said Hans Vestberg, CEO of Verizon, during the company’s most recent earnings call. 

Consolidated billing

Managing that single relationship as opposed to separate ISPs at each location increases efficiency and opportunities for cost savings through bulk data purchasing, SD-WAN, and SASE, says Heynen. (SASE is pronounced “sassy.”) 

Robust Security

Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) combines WAN edge services with Secure Service Edge tools and services to securely connect remote users and sites to data, cloud services, and the enterprise. 

An example of what you get 

2024 got off to a fast start, with T-Mobile announcing its Connected Workplace service, a nationwide service based on the company’s 5G network for multi-location medium-sized businesses. It’s offered in an as-a-service model with monthly charges per device. 

Its managed services feature includes: Design and onsite installation included 

AT&T, a bit of a late comer to enterprise FWA, has also partnered with Cisco, but claims to see a bright future for the business. 

FWA makes sense, “especially when you start to think about those companies that have a convergence of both fixed and mobility needs. It’s a natural in those cases,” said AT&T CEO John Stankey said during the carrier’s recent earnings call. “I’d like to participate in that market aggressively and I will go after it as aggressively as my competitors and pick up any of those business customers that I can on a national basis.” 

The bottom line on FWA 

With service providers who have pulled out of fiber deployments because of capex, labor, time, and permitting costs, the opportunity for FWA is growing larger as part of funded federal broadband projects and at the behest of retailers and other enterprises. What’s still to be determined is how FWA, with 4G and 5G speeds as well as advanced gateways and routers, will fare against cable with small and large businesses. 

Waiting for 6GHz 

FWA backers are anxiously waiting for the opening of spectrum in the 6GHz band for the use of unlicensed band, as we reported in April. The FCC appears to be in favor of the move if interference between potential users can be avoided.