September 17, 2013 — Las Vegas, NV – Today, Competitive Carriers Association announced that two of its members will offer Femtocell as a Service (FaaS) to CCA carrier members. Cellcom began offering femtocells to their customers early this year and has agreed to share its small cell core through a hosted solution for other CDMA operators. ClearSky commenced its Small Cell as a Service (SCaaS) operation in mid-2012 and is hosting a femtocell solution for GSM carriers. CCA’s Business Innovation Group identified the need for FaaS to address CCA carrier members’ most immediate needs, and Cellcom and ClearSky Technologies will offer their respective solutions to CCA members.
Today’s wireless customers expect consistent, high-quality coverage in exchange for their loyalty. Macro cellular networks alone cannot fulfill this expectation, so carriers across the world are turning to small cells to deliver ubiquitous coverage and avoid losing valuable customers. FaaS solutions will allow carriers to fill coverage gaps in their own markets in a cost effective way and enable operators to expand network capacity, reduce roaming costs, extend the battery life of devices and decrease capital expenditures.
“I am delighted CCA members will benefit from these FaaS solutions,” said Steven K. Berry, President & CEO of CCA. “Cellcom is providing solutions for other CDMA carriers, while ClearSky Technologies will host a solution for GSM carriers. Both Cellcom and ClearSky are long-time CCA members, and their respective innovative services will help smaller competitive carriers find solutions to their network capacity challenges. CCA’s goal is to ensure a competitive mobile ecosystem, and I am glad to see real progress being made to meet our carriers’ every day challenges as a result of the work of our Business Innovation Group.”
“Network demand will require all carriers to rollout small cells targeted to high use and underserved areas,” said Robert H. Riordan, Executive Vice President of Cellcom. “Sharing our switching core will allow all regional and small CDMA carriers to benefit from the economies of scale that our large counterparts take for granted. Sharing the core, staff, training and marketing expertise will not only make it possible for all CDMA carriers to provide the basic services needed but also build a platform for advanced services for our customer, their homes and their enterprises.”
“Tier 1 carriers around the world have turned away from repeaters and bi-directional amplifiers, and have embraced small cells to increase coverage and capacity for situations ranging from single family homes to large office buildings and public spaces such as airports and shopping centers,” said Bill Poellmitz, ClearSky CEO. “We have assembled a wide range of in-building devices and the gateway infrastructure that enables regional GSM carriers to deploy the exact same technology as national carriers at a fraction of the cost and effort. Moreover, our femtocell gateway is in production, which expedites time-to-market”
