Introduction

Hema Kadia: Welcome, Tommy. Let’s start with a brief introduction about yourself before we discuss Private Networks and Indoor Mobile Connectivity.

Tommy Ljunggren: Okay, so I’m Tommy Ljunggren. I’m an independent consultant, senior advisor, and board member of several different companies. I’ve been working for 35 years in the mobile or telecom industries, mostly with operators, the Telia group, and the VimpelCom group. But nowadays, I run as an independent consultant.

Private Networks

Key Drivers of Private Networks in Modern Industries

Hema Kadia: Thank you, Tommy, for the brief introduction. Let’s start our conversation with private networks. What are some of the key drivers that you see for private networks?

Tommy Ljunggren: Well, the key drivers are, of course, the digitalization of the industry – that is one clear driver. So if you go to production companies and so on, they have been relying on either cable or Wi-Fi for quite a while, and many of them running Wi-Fi have realized that maybe if I have moving objects, if I’m outdoors, Wi-Fi isn’t really fit for the game. There are limits in robustness, and it’s also subject to interference from the outdoor world or from other users, which you can avoid with 5G. But then there are, of course, many other use cases like airports where you have an operation of some kind where you want to keep that secret and separate from the public networks. You can still combine them in the same network with a neutral host, but still, the private network part of this, you want to keep your network, your data links, and everything like that so you can keep the data local and secure.

Public MNOs: Crucial Roles and Limitations in Private Networks

Hema Kadia: Absolutely, so what do you think should be the role of public MNOs, or what should be the area they should focus on, and what are the areas that are not relevant for the public MNOs as far as private networks are concerned?

Tommy Ljunggren: The public MNOs really have a role when it comes to organizations and businesses that have a need for roaming – not in the strict sense, but roaming around. If your users are moving from one location to another and need to communicate in between, then you’re heading towards a public-private network, like a network slice or something like that. But if you have discrete and local geographies where your operation is supposed to operate, then that’s more for the private networks. And then, of course, there is everything in between as well. Some users might need to roam, but you could use dual SIM or something. You don’t need to implement a proper roaming service as long as your terminal or SIM card can roam, which is very easy, even on iOS 17. Apple included that as a possibility so you can mix private and public networks in your phone.

Addressing Roaming Challenges in Private Networks

Hema Kadia: Since you mentioned roaming, are there any additional solutions in the market that address this aspect in private networks?

Tommy Ljunggren: Yes, you can start with roaming SIMs where you have both the profile of your private network and a profile of a public network. If there is a private network, you can connect to that one. You can have dual SIM in the terminal, so you have two SIMs. However, making roaming agreements with public networks will be cumbersome because public networks cannot have thousands of private networks with separate agreements. Today’s roaming agreements are bidirectional, with a one-to-one agreement with each operator. There could be roaming hubs, which exist in public networks, but we have yet to see much of that for private networks.

Comparing On-Premise and Cloud-Based Private Networks

Hema Kadia: What’s your view on having private networks on-premise vs. cloud-based private networks?

Tommy Ljunggren: Most companies want to keep their data private and not exposed to the internet, making it hard to have a Cloud solution. They prefer on-prem solutions, especially with poor internet connectivity. For example, in Brazil, farms far out in rural areas need excellent communication on the farm but have poor internet connectivity. They run the operation locally on an on-prem core network. However, you might look for a Cloud solution if you have many small installations in different geographies. The core network for private 5G can be very small, even run on a laptop.

Real-World Success Stories in Private Network Deployments

Hema Kadia: Absolutely, Tommy. Can you highlight some other success stories?

Tommy Ljunggren: I mainly work with RADTONICS as their advisor. One of their strongest cases is the Fiskarheden Sawmill in the middle of Sweden. They started with one use case for trucks to keep track of each other, avoiding collisions. They also use AI to recognize truck number plates and connect temporary offices. They use cameras with AI to check the quality of logs and products. A 5G network is excellent for moving cameras around with low latency and good capacity. They run this on an on-prem network because they have tons of daily data. The IT department runs the rest of the IT and OT networks and also runs the radio network, showing how easy it can be for a private 5G network to be managed by the IT department.

Overcoming IT and OT Integration Challenges in Private Networks

Hema Kadia: Continuing on that particular use case, what were some of the challenges when they moved to deploy private networks, especially regarding IT and OT integration?

Tommy Ljunggren: The biggest challenge for industrial 5G is the OT and IT integration. The 3GPP 5G standard doesn’t fit all OT and IT protocols. Some machinery might be old, working with a modern 5G network. Protocol conversions and network segmentation in the OT environment are challenging. Most challenges in private network projects are around OT and IT integration, not the radio part, which is quite easy nowadays.

Indoor Mobile Connectivity

The Increasing Demand for High-Capacity Indoor Mobile Networks

Hema Kadia: Thank you, Tommy. Let’s move on to indoor mobile connectivity. What is the need for high-capacity indoor networks?

Tommy Ljunggren: After the pandemic, we realized that we started to work in a different way, using Teams meetings even if we were in the same room. The capacity of Wi-Fi networks was not enough, causing lag. Looking into the future, we might use AR and VR, which need high capacity. Mobile connectivity is easier for this than Wi-Fi. The need for speed and low delay is increasing in crowded spaces like offices or arenas. It’s cheaper for companies to go mobile-first with 5G laptops than to build a medium-sized Wi-Fi network.

Financing Indoor Mobile Connectivity: Real Estate’s Role

Hema Kadia: In the ecosystem of indoor networks, who should pay for them?

Tommy Ljunggren: The real estate industry should pay for the connectivity. They benefit the most from having good connectivity in their buildings, allowing them to increase rent. If they don’t have good connectivity, companies will choose different offices, leading to vacancies. Real estate owners look at connectivity like electricity and water and are prepared to pay for it.

Collaboration between Real Estate Owners and Neutral Hosts for Connectivity

Hema Kadia: You mentioned real estate owners and neutral hosts. Can you explain the different roles they play?

Tommy Ljunggren: Real estate owners should focus on real estate and making tenants happy. They usually need to gain the skills to run mobile networks, so a third party, like a neutral host, takes that role. The neutral host gathers all operators in one network in the building and connects private networks if needed. Proptivity, the company I work for, sells this as a service per square meter. The real estate owner decides the speed and capacity needed. Operators connect for free, and the transaction is between the neutral host and the real estate owner. The mobile operator delivers the end-user services.

Enhancing Indoor Connectivity with Advanced Technologies

Hema Kadia: What are some ways that neutral host vendors or technology vendors can optimize indoor connectivity?

Tommy Ljunggren: The old way of building neutral host networks with distributed antenna systems is less efficient than using small cells. Small cells provide better capacity, indoor positioning, and energy efficiency. Each access point in a small cell system contributes to the building’s capacity. Small cell systems are more energy-efficient than high-power base stations used in distributed antenna systems.

Hema Kadia: Thanks so much, Tommy, for this input on private networks and indoor connectivity.