Federated Wireless has successfully raised USD22 million to bolster the development of its cloud-hosted Spectrum Access System (SAS) and CINQ platform to bring the benefits of shared spectrum in the 3.5GHz band to Enterprise customers in the Education, Healthcare, Hospitality, Retail and Financial markets.
Federated Wireless raised USD22 million to bolster development of its Spectrum Access System (SAS) and CINQ platform.
The Series A round, led by Woodford Investment Management, demonstrates growing investor support for Federated Wireless’ efforts to collaborate with leaders in the Telecommunications and Wi-Fi industries, as well as with government agencies such as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), to develop standards for dynamically sharing the newly introduced 3.5 GHz band of unlicensed spectrum. Access to this finite resource will provide extensive new wireless network capacity and will relieve many of the challenges associated with accelerating demand for successful Wi-Fi deployments.
Federated Wireless’ SAS system is designed to leverage the newly released 3.5GHz spectrum band that has been mandated to be made available by the FCC over the next few years. The company’s SAS aims to help alleviate spectrum management challenges and to substantially improve the throughput, performance, and capacity of wireless networks.
The company also plans to accelerate the development and commercialization of its CINQ platform, a cloud-hosted data analytics and intelligence solution that provides access to the real-time management of shared spectrum made possible through SAS. CINQ is designed to make it easy for wireless carriers to extend the allocation and management of spectrum resources and enable 5G, the next generation of mobile communications.
The CINQ platform will also help to support new applications that enable connectivity in homes and smart cities, and facilitate the smooth deployment of Industrial Internet of Things (IoT). Enterprises including universities, hospitals, hotels, conference centres and stadiums would have greater capability to alleviate the congestion plaguing the private Wi-Fi networks within their buildings, as users increasingly rely on wireless for their voice, video, data and multimedia needs.
“We are committed to continuing our leadership in the development of Shared Spectrum technology,” says Iyad Tarazi, Chief Executive Officer of Federated Wireless. “We believe that our Spectrum Access System and broad-based CINQ platform architecture will enable carriers and enterprises to extend wireless networks seamlessly and cost effectively.”
Other investors in the round included Allied Minds (LSE:ALM), the Boston-based parent company of Federated Wireless.
Federated Wireless is currently working with The National Advanced Spectrum and Communications Test Network (NASCTN) to certify its Environmental Sensor Capability (ESC) for its SAS. The company has been instrumental in shaping the ecosystem and standards for the 3.5 GHz band (known as the Citizens Broadband Radio Service) since the FCC established rules for innovative spectrum sharing in the band in April 2015, and has led collaborations with industry partners, including the Wireless Innovation Forum (WinnForum).
Chris Silva, Chief Executive Officer of Allied Minds, says: “Federated Wireless has established itself as a leader in developing a shared spectrum model, which will provide a wealth of growth opportunities for wireless carriers and other industry participants. Through our most recent investment in Federated Wireless, we are confident that access to low-cost, high-quality spectrum will drive the next wave of growth in the unlicensed LTE market, similar to the growth of Wi-Fi over the last decade. This successful fundraising will help to make this model a reality.”
