ATT Wireless Affiliate Operators turn to Memorylink for Backhaul

September 2008

ATT Wireless Affiliate Operators turn to Memorylink for Backhaul.

One of the major challenges in delivering ubiquitous mobile coverage with a terrestrial based network is the cost to reach people in sparsely populated areas.  The dilemma of how to build base stations and deliver links back to switching centers at a minimal cost, recognizing that low-population-density areas will generate relatively small amounts of revenue from retail customers, remains an issue most network planners must carefully consider.

While the bigger carriers quite understandably focus on the more condensed markets, where they can make more money more quickly, they also want to offer coverage to their subscribers in more and more areas.  Enter the affiliates who build out networks in underserved areas.  Their primary revenue comes from roaming traffic from the major carrier’s customers, and they count on a relatively low number of retail home users almost more as a supplement to the roaming component.

In order to be successful financially, the challenge for these carriers is to minimize their expense to build-out and operate these sites, and one of the biggest cost components is backhaul.  At the same time, they need to meet rigid reliability requirements expected of them as an affiliate of a major carrier.  Recently, a group of ATT Wireless affiliates in the Midwest found just the right solution for their needs.

A group of these ATT Wireless affiliated carriers, stretched across five Midwestern states set out to design and adopt a suite of technologies that would allow them to deliver wireless service at the lowest possible cost per minute on their GSM networks.  At the same time, they were committed to not compromising network reliability.  They carefully researched, evaluated, and selected the best base station and switching equipment for their needs.  And then it came time to consider backhaul, which for many carriers is the most expensive recurring operating expense in their networks.

Most backhaul circuits in North America are either leased T1 lines through the phone company or in some cases licensed microwave radios.  Leased circuits represent a perpetual recurring expense, and oftentimes in rural areas are quite costly.  In some places they are simply unavailable.  As an alternative, licensed microwave solutions represent a big outlay of capital up front, oftentimes exceeding $20,000, and the process to get a link in place is often a lengthy and expensive undertaking.

This group of carriers are thankful they discovered a couple of  Midwest-based companies that presented the right solution.  One, an innovative Wisconsin-based maker of wireless broadband equipment, and the other a well-known communications giant.  They discovered that Memorylink makes a family of multiplexers that convert T1 to IP, and that when combined with Motorola’s Ethernet radios, they deliver unparalleled value for wireless backhaul links.  “This really is ‘Smart Backhaul’ in every sense”, according to Memorylink’s VP of Sales and Marketing, Steve Erickson.  “We can deliver a T1 using a license-free link and our mux for about $4,000.  What’s more it can be installed in a day, not weeks or months.  And it’s a proven, reliable alternative, with hundreds of links in place across most major platforms, including GSM and CDMA, and with most major equipment vendor’s gear.”

In addition to the cost justification, users find the solution both quick and easy to install.  One such user is David Lund, Technology Manager for Northeast Iowa Telephone who says, “We utilize the Flanger to tunnel our T1 traffic to our cell sites that use Motorola Canopy systems. The out-of-box configuration allows them to be easily installed by the field crew while allowing us to be more cost effective for lower-traffic rural cell sites.”

As the quest continues to reliably cover more and more areas of North America, carriers are now presented with the option of a new technology to accomplish their goals.  Memorylink’s Flanger product, along with an ethernet radio link, presents a smart alternative to the more costly, time-consuming traditional circuits.