As always, new mobile networks get built first in the big cities, allowing operators to rapidly reach large numbers of potential customers before gradually extending networks to smaller cities and rural areas, data from Opensignal clearly suggests.
“By comparing 5G availability with demographic data from the U.S. Census Bureau, we found that our users on average spent a higher proportion of time with an active 5G connection in states having a higher percentage of urban population,” Opensignal says.
“Our data therefore suggests that mobile operators have been focusing on deploying their 5G networks in highly-populated states where the vast majority of the population lives in urban areas.”
That tends to be the rule for other fixed networks as well. The salient historical exception to this rule was early cable TV, designed to import distant TV signals, and therefore of most value, and first built, in rural areas.
Low earth orbit satellite constellations likewise have be deployed with some consideration of covering a substantial potential customer base first.
No comments:
Post a Comment