Vertical: Hospitality
Application: Improved communications
Ecosystem: AT&T, Ballast Networks, Airspan, Druid
Private Network: CBRS
The Sound Hotel Seattle Belltown has deployed a CBRS-based private network with the help of Ballast Networks. Paul Kooiker, the co-founder of Ballast, played a crucial role in deploying a CBRS-based private network for The Sound Hotel Seattle Belltown, now serving commercial traffic to AT&T’s customers. Kooiker emphasized that their solution offers the ease of Wi-Fi deployment with the quality of a distributed antenna system (DAS).
Conventionally, hotels, sports stadiums, and airports rely on costly and time-consuming DAS networks to bring cellular connections indoors, requiring bulky equipment. In contrast, Ballast’s new network operates in the lightly licensed 3.5GHz CBRS spectrum band, is compatible with major US carriers, and needs only a few computer servers. This cost-effectiveness makes it ideal for smaller hotels to purchase and install.
The successful installation of this private wireless network at The Sound Hotel Seattle Belltown validated Kooiker’s belief in the sector’s maturation. Covering the first two floors of the upscale hotel across approximately 10,000 square feet, the network utilizes Airspan radios and a core from Druid Software.
Ballast envisions offering its private wireless network setup to venues where DAS installations are impractical due to size limitations. Such venues may desire their own networks to ensure continuous phone connectivity for visitors, and the private networks can also facilitate environmental monitoring, employee communications, and video surveillance.
MOCN (Multiple Operator Core Network) technology, along with operator support, has become instrumental in the private wireless landscape. MOCN acts as a bridge between commercial and private wireless networks, allowing guests at venues like The Sound Hotel to utilize the network while still serving commercial traffic. This collaboration involved Ballast and AT&T’s networking technicians, ensuring seamless transitions for Sound Hotel guests as they moved beyond AT&T’s cell sites.
Ballast faced the challenge of 911 routing for guests to ensure emergency calls could reach responders while connected to the hotel’s network. Successfully resolving the 911 routing issue, Ballast plans to implement a similar MOCN and 911 routing process with T-Mobile and Verizon.
While Ballast’s approach won’t replace DAS in high-traffic locations like sports stadiums, it presents an attractive option for smaller venues like The Sound Hotel. Other companies, like Meta, are also exploring MOCN for private wireless networking purposes.
Source: Light Reading
