Redzone Reports 2019 Maine Broadband Expansion Progress
July 31, 2019The Need for Speed? Faster Internet – A Confusing and Increasingly Questionable Monthly Expense
September 5, 2019August 15, 2019 Redzone Wireless, LLC, a Maine-based broadband innovation company, announced that it has completed construction and activated two new fixed wireless broadband sites serving 4,000 new business & residential locations, bringing total broadband access to 284,000 households statewide.
The new sites are located in Windham and New Sharon. Redzone has activated nine new sites year-to-date, with additional sites nearing completion in Alfred, Sanford, and Presque Isle.
Redzone’s total Maine broadband coverage now reaches more than 50% of all Maine homes. The new fixed wireless broadband network operates on FCC licensed 2.5 GHz wireless spectrum, and is considered one of the largest FCC licensed fixed wireless broadband deployments in the US delivering 25 Mbps broadband speeds.
“We see a bright future for wireless broadband technology as it rapidly replaces wired connections here in Maine and around the world with increasing capacity, reliability and ubiquity,” said Jim McKenna, Redzone President & CEO. “Wireless broadband will be everywhere – because only wireless broadband can be everywhere. In a world where over 95% of broadband connections are made wirelessly, we believe the only future-proof method of delivering broadband to the consumer is wireless,” added McKenna.
Redzone’s strategy is to reduce the amount of fiber infrastructure needed to deliver the high speed wireless signal, thus reducing the cost. That's where the Redzone’s 5Gx architecture comes in. This technology allows fiber connected towers to be linked via powerful microwave radios to additional transmitters on towers without fiber. So instead of deploying radios on 500 towers and running fiber to each of these sites, Redzone can deploy clusters of towers serving broadband to thousands of homes across a region from a single fiber optic link.
Redzone’s 5Gx architecture doesn't completely do away with the need for fiber backhaul. The wireless service still needs a core network of fiber connections. But it greatly reduces the number of towers that require fiber. And this saving goes far beyond the initial 90% lower capital cost of building fiber. Redzone can also reduce the time to deliver broadband to an entire community by 90% versus a comparable fiber optic network.
“Reliance on wired networks is an antiquated model for the future of broadband in Maine. Redzone’s network combines existing middle mile fiber networks with the most advanced 4G & 5G wireless technology to extend sustainable broadband further into underserved areas,” said Michael Forcillo, Executive Vice President of Redzone Wireless. Redzone is executing its 2019 network expansion plan, and we are grateful for the opportunity to deliver true broadband to thousands of new homes and businesses in Windham and New Sharon.”
Redzone offers a range of broadband plans and price options – including the most popular among Maine cord cutters providing FCC recommended 25 Mbps download speeds, with no contracts or installation fees. Complete service information and special offers are available at www.redzonewireless.com.
Redzone Wireless, LLC, established in 2014, is deploying a FCC licensed 4G LTE and 5G fixed wireless broadband network across Maine. The company’s 5Gx advanced multi-spectrum fixed wireless network platform maximizes coverage and capacity by operating across multiple frequency bands on a proprietary operational support system – extending the reach of regional fiber optic networks to large geographic areas. Redzone 5Gx fixed wireless provides an economically viable and sustainable premium broadband service alternative to wireline, fiber, or cable to serve the first mile.
