Microwave backhaul as a business: taking the next step [Microbusiness]

This article presents the technical and business conditions driving microwave backhaul deployments in the United States servicing mobile 3G, 3.5G, and 4G technologies. Microwave backhaul deployments for next-generation first-responder networks - advanced mobile systems in their own right - also provide some interesting new lessons. A symbiotic relationship now exists between microwave backhaul and other growing microwave uses in the enterprise and government sectors. This includes incentives in the broadband sections in the 2009 economic stimulus package. It also includes increased commercial and government interest in both video surveillance and federal standards for physically diverse networks (PDNs). In this article, U.S. government frequency allocations are summarized, the mobile operator backhaul selection process is explored, service deployment structures for such backhaul operators, also known as carriers´ carriers in the United States, are discussed, and current and future challenges are examined.