The future

Eventually, the small form factor and efficiencies could alter the manner in which LTE networks are deployed at incident scenes when additional capacity is needed, Wright said. Options such as more mobile cell on wheels (COWs) and use of alternative energy sources could be given greater consideration in the future with a smaller, lighter and more power-efficient lightRadio architecture.

But one limiting factor could be backhaul options, Rehbehm said, noting that lightRadio is designed to work best with a fiber link. However, Lartigue said that Alcatel-Lucent is busy trying to improve compression schemes so that small microwave links could be used to backhaul sites, which would provide more flexibility regarding site deployments.

Meanwhile, many in the industry have wondered what the lightRadio solution will do to the tower industry, which by all accounts is thriving under the status-quo cellular architecture (see February’s cover story).

“If I’m a tower company, I’d start looking at how my business model needs to change,” Wright said. “It may be that the tower companies become the hotel companies of the future, as they find other ways to find value and manage. Maybe it’s not the vertical tower anymore; maybe it’s a flat tower. Maybe they go wide and look at the services they can provide across the board.”

Others in the industry question whether lightRadio or a similar remote-radio-head solutions will hurt tower owners, particularly in the near future. After all, Alcatel-Lucent is not expected to have a complete lightRadio portfolio available for three years — the first components will be available this fall — and tower owners have fared quite well in the face of new technology threats in the past.

“It depends on the engineering need,” said Connie Durcsak, senior director of industry services for the Personal Communications Industry Association (PCIA), during a session at the International Wireless Communications Expo (IWCE) in Las Vegas. “Carriers will have a preference for macro sites, because it gives them the broadest coverage. But, if it’s really a capacity boost that they’re looking for … you’ll probably see them augment with these smaller cells.”

Thomas Engel, managing partner of Milestone Media Partners, echoed this sentiment.

“I think the cost is impractical in rural areas … or in semi-rural areas,” Engel said. “I think the towers will be around for a long time. But, as you get in high-density locations with a lot of data usage, I think you’ll see these smaller micro and mini cells.”