OPTIMIZE YOUR FWA NETWORK EXPERIENCE AND MAXIMIZE PROFITABILITY
FWA market opportunity for fixed and mobile CSPs Author: David Tulis, Chief Revenue Officer
Operators, both fixed and mobile, have been delivering Fixed Wireless Access (FWA) services around the world for many years. What began as services associated with mobile phones, dongles and MiFi hotspot devices, are now wireless services for business and residential customers for whom it is their primary broadband connection and
FWA is currently capturing more than 90% of the fixed broadband net adds in the US.
accessed through mains-powered FWA CPE devices. In a relatively short time, FWA broadband has become a mainstream service offer for CSPs, with GSA reporting that as of the end of 2023, 554 operators in 187 countries and territories were selling 4G or 5G-based FWA services. 1 The increased throughput and capacity provided by 5G means FWA is now a feasible substitute for fixed broadband from both an end- user performance, and an operator business case, point of view. This is creating new growth and CSP revenue opportunities for FWA. According to CCS Insight, fixed wireless access generated $29.5 billion in revenue for mobile network operators in 2023 – and forecast to grow to $67.3 billion by 2027. 2
Source: Ericsson, 2024
Ericsson in its recent FWA Insights report predicts that by 2029, FWA connections will grow by 200 million and account for 30% of all mobile network data traffic. 3 The growth in FWA services and subscriptions is making a tangible difference to CSPs’ bottom lines. In the US, T-Mobile consistently added around half a million FWA customers to its network every quarter over a two-year period and is forecast to reach its goal of 7-8 million total FWA customers by 2025. 4 Meanwhile, Verizon has passed over 3 million FWA subscriptions, across both consumer (1.86 million) and business (1.2 million) customers. 5
1. GSA: Fixed Mobile Access: Global Status Update (November 2023), p.3 2. CCS Insight, Fixed Wireless Access Forecast to Create Revenue of $67 Billion by 2027 (31 January 2024)
3. Ericsson, Fixed Wireless Access Insights 2024, p.4 4. Mike Dano, “Why T-Mobile’s FWA growth will slow” (Light Reading: 26 January 2024 5. Jeff Baumgartner , “Verizon’s FWA base crosses 3M mark” (Light Reading: 23 January 2024)
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