Recap: Paving the Road to 5G with Fiber
This Tuesday, the Fiber Broadband Association brought together a panel of industry experts at the Verizon Technology and Public Policy Center to mark the release of “The Road to 5G is Paved with Fiber,” a groundbreaking white paper on fiber and 5G and to discuss the question on everyone’s mind: how do we actually make 5G happen?
The panel was moderated by Ellen Satterwhite, Vice President at the Glen Echo Group, and featured Mark Boxer, Applications Engineering Manager at OFS; Heather Burnett Gold, President and CEO of the Fiber Broadband Association, Gregg Logan, Vice President of Engineering at Telapex, Inc.; Kevin Morgan, Chief Marketing Officer at Clearfield, David E. Young, Vice President of Public Policy at Verizon.
It turns out that fiber broadband is the key to functional 5G. Essentially, a significant amount of fiber cable will be necessary to connect the dense network of 5G small cells and handle skyrocketing data needs.
Laying down more fiber infrastructure is a necessary first step to making sure that 5G can be deployed at scale and start delivering on its magnificent potential. “You’re going to need a lot more fiber deployed everywhere,” said Heather Burnett Gold. “It makes a difference.”
The panelists also spoke at length about why fiber was the right technology for helping 5G succeed. “If you look at what fiber brings, especially versus metallic, there’s just no comparison,” argued Mark Boxer. Fiber broadband bandwidth, scalability, reliability, and durability just can’t be beat.
They also talked about the impact of fiber-connected 5G on how and where we live and do business. Fiber-connected 5G “can make communities operate more efficiently, save cities money, and help us do things better,” noted David Young.
The panelists noted that before fiber can empower 5G and all of the associated benefits, there are procedural hurdles, such as pole access, that must be addressed to make deploying fiber easier, faster, and cheaper.
Other topics of discussion included the positives of fiber-connected 5G for the wireline and wireless arenas, fiber’s aesthetic adaptability, and how fiber will stay relevant and necessary outside of its 5G applications.
To learn more about fiber broadband, the Fiber Broadband Association, and other exciting upcoming events, visit fiberbroadband.org.
