After the initial 3G and HSPA network deployments around the world, we are now seeing not only a rapid increase in network capacity; after the first wave of adoption of mobile broadband, we are also seeing a rapid increase in traffic.
Market testimonials show that getting the combined offer right, with attractive flat rates to the end users, high-impact marketing, good service coverage and high throughput, results in a tremendous uptake of the services and a subsequent increase in data traffic.
The coming LTE networks and new mobile broadband services are likely to further fuel the need for new, cost-effective backhaul solutions.
Microwave links have been the obvious mobile backhauling choice for many operators, and microwave solutions are likely to remain very important. New, high-speed link technologies, in the form of microwave with more than 1Gbps capacity, plus fiber and bonded DSL are recommended in an all-IP RAN over a carrier Ethernet network optimized for data traffic.