Ruckus Wireless Shares Vision for the Future of In-Building Cellular

SUNNYVALE, Calif., Feb. 18, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- Ruckus Wireless, Inc. (NYSE: RKUS) today announced its intention to address the challenge of in-building cellular coverage and capacity through the introduction of OpenG™ technology. OpenG technology combines coordinated shared spectrum, such as 3.5 GHz in the U.S., with neutral host-capable small cells to enable cost-effective, ubiquitous in-building cellular coverage. Ruckus plans to drive the adoption of OpenG technology—which addresses a global market with an annual TAM of over $2 billion*—by leveraging its extensive enterprise channels, service provider, public venue and enterprise customer base, and its portfolio of differentiated technologies. Ruckus plans to unveil specific products and offerings throughout 2016. As part of this announcement, Ruckus is demonstrating OpenG technology in collaboration with Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. (a subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated) during Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2016 in Barcelona. Ruckus will also demonstrate its Wi-Fi calling solution during the show which, in combination with OpenG technology, showcases the future of the all-wireless enterprise.

The industry is in the midst of a dramatic shift as cellular and Wi-Fi technologies converge through a number of technical and standards developments, including license assisted access (LAA), LTE Wi-Fi link aggregation (LWA), Hotspot 2.0 and Wi-Fi calling. This is driven by spectrum pressures, 5 GHz support on devices becoming ubiquitous and agnostic over-the-top (OTT) applications enabled by a common IP foundation. In addition, new spectrum sharing options outside of the traditional licensed and unlicensed models are emerging, exemplified by the new coordinated shared spectrum 3.5 GHz model adopted by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the U.S. Ultimately, the biggest driver is the need to ensure consistent coverage and quality-of-experience for mobile users regardless of the underlying wireless technology. 

While enterprises have largely adopted Wi-Fi for in-building wireless data connectivity, they also need to provide employees and visitors ubiquitous cellular coverage for voice, e-911 and LTE-data. The widespread outside-in approach to in-building cellular connectivity is increasingly challenged by new building materials that weaken wireless signals, undependable macro reach to high floors, and spotty connectivity due to street-level shadowing. Enterprises and service providers are seeking in-building cellular solutions that are easy to deploy and provide an attractive total cost of ownership (TCO) while improving coverage and performance. Furthermore, enterprises need a simple solution that can support subscribers of different mobile networks. While distributed antenna systems (DAS) and traditional small cells can address some of these issues, their economics and deployment complexity limit their application.

Ruckus' OpenG technology offers a significantly less expensive, easier-to-deploy, mobile network-neutral alternative. Ruckus believes OpenG technology will be ideal for fixed and mobile service providers to offer managed services to businesses while improving their customers' cellular service experience everywhere, even deep inside buildings where mobile operators previously were unable to reach due to access and economics.

According to Joe Madden, principal analyst at Mobile Experts, enterprises and service providers are looking for lower cost alternatives to solve the in-building cellular challenge. "In multiple surveys, we have found that people are hungry for neutral-host solutions, but they are finicky eaters. Multi-operator radio access networks (MORANs) and multi-operator core networks (MOCN) are not preferred by many mobile operators, due to concerns about impact in their existing radio access networks (RANs). Solutions in the 3.5 GHz band that are truly neutral are now creating interesting new possibilities. We see exciting opportunities for companies like Ruckus, with a large installed base of enterprise customers."

"Ruckus is particularly well-positioned to offer enterprises and service providers a solution to in-building cellular challenges by making it easy to deploy like Wi-Fi," said Dan Rabinovitsj, chief operating officer, Ruckus Wireless, Inc. "We believe Ruckus OpenG technology will provide a disruptive TCO scenario, making it ripe for adoption on a global scale at a fraction of the cost of DAS."

The OpenG 3.5 GHz demonstrations at MWC are based on Ruckus access points utilizing Qualcomm Technologies' 28nm FSM99xx™ system-on-chip, which integrates an industry-leading LTE modem with LTE-advanced capabilities. To see demonstrations of OpenG technology at MWC, visit the Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. booth at Exhibit Hall 3 #3E10. To see a demonstration of Wi-Fi calling, visit the Ruckus booth at Exhibit Hall 5 #5E41 to arrange an appointment.

*Source: Mobile Experts

ABOUT RUCKUS WIRELESS
Ruckus Wireless, Inc. (NYSE: RKUS) delivers simply better wireless for more than 65,300 enterprise, service provider, government and small business customers worldwide. The company is focused on technology innovation, partner ecosystems and customer service—yielding the best possible wireless experience for the most challenging indoor and outdoor environments. Its Smart Wi-Fi platform delivers scalable, high-performance Wi-Fi with simplified control and management for on-premise and cloud-based Wi-Fi deployments, along with new services for secure on-boarding, policy management, location services and analytics that enable new business opportunities. 

Ruckus, Ruckus Wireless and OpenG are trademarks of Ruckus Wireless, Inc. in the United States and other countries. FSM is a trademark of Qualcomm Incorporated, registered in the United States and other countries. All other product or company names may be trademarks of their respective owners.

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SOURCE Ruckus Wireless, Inc.

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