FWA Uses More Than Half of Mobile Network Capacity: Analysis

"Internet delivered through fixed wireless access (FWA) may account for a majority of traffic on the nation's biggest mobile networks, but analysts say revenue from these subscriptions makes up a tiny percentage of revenues. FWA makes up around 6% of revenues at T-Mobile and around 3% of revenues at Verizon, according to the new report from the analysts at MoffettNathanson Research. Nevertheless, FWA may use more than half of all traffic on the Verizon network and more than two-thirds of traffic on the T-Mobile network (including traffic from mobile virtual network operators)."

"On average, each FWA customer uses about 635 GB of data per month, the analysts estimated. They used data from the networks themselves and from the data analytics firm OpenVault. That puts FWA data usage on par with usage from cable internet customers. Meanwhile, mobile users eat through about 17.2 GB per month, according to data from the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association (CTIA)."

Fixed wireless access (FWA) consumes a disproportionate share of mobile-network data while providing a small share of carrier revenues. FWA represents about 6% of revenues at T-Mobile and about 3% at Verizon, yet may carry over half of Verizon's network traffic and over two-thirds of T-Mobile's (including MVNO traffic). Average FWA customers use roughly 635 GB per month, similar to cable internet, while mobile users average about 17.2 GB per month. Concerns remain about FWA network capacity and whether FWA represents merely fallow capacity. Forecasts project strong global FWA growth and rising data-market value.

Read at Telecompetitor