Amid 6GHz debate, Nextlink places 'significant order' with Cambium

Fixed wireless Internet provider Nextlink is planning to purchase a "significant" amount of 6GHz equipment from vendor Cambium Networks, the company announced.

"This investment in Cambium Networks solutions will significantly expand gigabit fixed wireless availability for hundreds of thousands of rural and suburban residents across the American heartland," said Claude Aiken, Nextlink's chief strategy officer, in a statement.

The move isn't a surprise. Nextlink said in March it would offer 1-Gig speeds over the unlicensed 6GHz band after testing Cambium access points outfitted with Qualcomm silicon. The company promised an eventual rollout across a significant portion of its fixed wireless footprint that covers parts of Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and Illinois.

Other options

But Cambium isn't Nextlink's only option. The company has also tested equipment from rival Tarana Wireless, which is the vendor Cox Communications is using to test transmissions in 6GHz.

"We're planning on using all the tools in the toolkit to get rural Americans connected. Cambium offers great cost to performance in 6GHz, and we've tested the solution extensively, so it is our out-of-the gate solution in the band," Aiken explained. "We plan on continuing to use Tarana where it makes sense, as well as fiber where it makes sense too. Still awaiting AFC approval from the FCC, but we're ready to turn on widespread gigabit fixed wireless service when that happens."

The 6GHz band is widely expected to support outdoor applications, including fixed wireless access (FWA), when the FCC authorizes Automated Frequency Coordination (AFC) systems for 6GHz. Such systems are intended to coordinate 6GHz spectrum among multiple users, including existing 6GHz users that are already using the band for cell site backhaul or radio astronomy.

Other vendors including Airspan and Cambium have eyed the 6GHz band for FWA applications. Cambium CEO Morgan Kurk said recently that the company counts more than 100 tests of its FWA equipment in the 6GHz band around the country. He said he expects sales of such equipment to ramp up "rather significantly" starting next year, pending regulatory approvals.

But there's a debate brewing over the 6GHz band. Big 5G network operators want at least a portion of the band devoted to licensed services like 5G. While that pitch doesn't appear to be gaining traction among regulators in the US, it might be finding an audience internationally.

According to Disruptive Wireless analyst Dean Bubley, regulators in parts of Asia, the Middle East and Africa may set aside part of the 6GHz band for 5G. Indeed, Vodafone recently tested 5G in the 6GHz band, proclaiming the band as an important component of preventing a "capacity crunch."