5G Fixed Wireless Broadband: Helping Close the Digital Divide in Rural America

5G fixed wireless access (FWA) services could serve 8.4 million rural households — nearly half the rural homes in the US — with a “future-proof”, rapidly deployable, and cost-effective high-speed broadband option, according to a new Accenture study commissioned by CTIA, the wireless industry association. The report, titled 5G Fixed Wireless Broadband: Helping Close the Digital Divide in Rural America, discusses how 5G FWA services can quickly and cost-effectively bring high-speed broadband to 8.4 million households in rural parts of the country. With the federal government and states poised to implement $65 billion in broadband infrastructure programs geared toward bridging the digital divide, policymakers should recognize the capabilities of 5G FWA connectivity. By using wireless links between fixed points — a nearby tower and an antenna on a consumers’ residence — 5G FWA provides high bandwidth broadband connections wirelessly instead of through a wired cable connection. The report also discusses how 5G FWA offers benefits for both mobile rural connectivity and home broadband services. Accenture also identifies additional licensed spectrum, particularly in the mid-band range, along with stable, nationwide regulatory frameworks that incentivize the efficient buildout of network infrastructure, as key to bringing 5G FWA to even more U.S. consumers in the future.