The continuing demand for greater bandwidth and more pervasive connectivity is driving the communications industry to a crossroads. Even as mobile network traffic has grown nearly 130 percent, mobile network operators’ (MNOs) average revenue per user (ARPU) remains mostly flat.
With billions of dollars invested in 5G that MNOs have yet to recoup, many industry players plan to offer new differentiated services in the hopes they can increase return on investment (ROI). Alternatively, others are focusing more on ways to decrease both operational expenditures (OpEx) and capital expenditures (CapEx) whenever possible.
So, how will these disparate movements across the MNO landscape impact in-building distributed antenna system (DAS) market trends in 2025?
Cost Cutting Focus
Hyper-connected mobile subscribers expect seamless, always-on communications everywhere. For building owners, venues, and enterprises, that means providing reliable in-building connectivity for employees, tenants, visitors, and event attendees. Yet, with shrinking profit margins due to sluggish ARPU, MNOs may be less willing to spend capital for expanded in-building coverage. Moreover, third-party operators (3POs) are also not interested in risking capital to build out DAS coverage without financial commitments from the MNOs.
This stalemate between network operators and 3POs stifled many big projects throughout 2024, often leaving enterprises and building owners to foot the bill themselves for expanded in-building coverage. Given that many legacy enterprise coverage solutions only cover a portion of the current 5G radio frequency (RF) bands, future demand will quickly outpace the initial capacity of these systems. Therefore, having a neutral-host DAS platform with modular upgrade capabilities is increasingly vital to enable pay-as-you-grow scalability and sustainability.
One exception to this situation will be connectivity provision for high-capacity venues. The opportunity for increased revenue from sports and music fans means that MNOs will continue to pay to build out improved coverage in large stadiums and event venues, but with a reduced scope to keep costs under control.
Spectrum on Sale
Another approach to increase ROI that some MNOs are pursuing is the sale of RF spectrum, such as T-Mobile divesting its 3.45 GHz upper mid-band spectrum licenses to a private equity firm. Likewise, ongoing market consolidation is leading to sales of additional spectrum assets. Most notably, after having sold some spectrum to the Tier One MNOs last year, US Cellular is now offloading more assets to regional players as well. In fact, T-Mobile has announced plans to acquire US Cellular’s wireless operations in addition to 30 percent of the company’s spectrum, subject to regulatory approval expected this year.
Another entity that may be looking to sell spectrum licenses in the near future is the U.S. government — that is, assuming that Congress reinstates the Federal Communications Commission’s auction authority. However, whether or not this actually happens this year, it may be a few years before we see any meaningful impact. Spectrum auctions take time to plan and implement; MNOs require time to plan; and, of course, mobile devices need to be created to support the new frequency bands. At this point, it’s most likely that any new spectrum auctioned off will be intended for 6G use cases.
Throwback to 4G
Despite a great deal of hype around the private network market over the past few years, private 5G adoption by enterprises has been much slower than anticipated. In fact, for some smaller enterprises that don’t require the high speeds and low latency of 5G, private 4G in-building coverage is sufficient.
To meet the needs of these applications, a growing number of ‘off-air’ solutions will be available during the next year. These passive DAS solutions use an exterior antenna to obtain signals from the nearest cell site for in-building DAS coverage that works with all Tier One public networks. This type of DAS solution is well-suited to provide cost-effective connectivity for buildings less than 200,000 square feet.
Open to Open RAN
A focus on affordable scalability throughout the mobile communications industry is steadily driving forward advancements in Open RAN technology. But O-RAN is not just for macro public networks. When used in combination with DAS technology, O-RAN enables low-cost, low-power, signal sources to further simplify and streamline DAS deployments. This trend is expected to continue gaining momentum in 2025 and beyond.
Sharing Ramps Up
Ultimately, we will see a growing number of different solutions available for indoor connectivity provision, as MNOs, third-party operators, and building owners alike seek the most affordable, accessible, scalable options to meet their unique needs. Central among these solutions will be those that increase RAN sharing, such as multi-operator RAN (MORAN) or multi-operator core network (MOCN) architecture, in order to achieve maximum cost efficiency.
At SOLiD, we will continue to innovate to offer trusted, industry-leading solutions designed for longevity and upgradeability tailored to the world’s most challenging venues, from our established modular ALLIANCE 5G DAS platform to the latest Open RAN technologies. To learn more, visit: solid.com/us/industries.