January 12, 2017 – Rockland, Maine.  Redzone Wireless, LLC, a leading wireless Internet service provider (WISP), has activated the first phase of its new ultrafast 5Gx fixed wireless broadband network in selected areas in Maine.  The 5Gx wireless network has been successfully tested to maximum speeds of 450 megabits per second (Mbps), operating within a frequency range of 5.1 – 5.8 GHz.

Redzone’s 5Gx combines both licensed LTE and unlicensed wireless broadband technologies on a single tower, and integrates them with a proprietary operational support system (OSS).  This strategy maximizes bandwidth availability on a per site basis, affording Redzone the capability to service more customers from each site, and at faster speeds than LTE alone can provide.  By integrating the technologies onto a common OSS Redzone gains operational efficiencies through spectrum aggregation, including the capability to migrate customers seamlessly between the wireless platforms.

The 5Gx Fixed Wireless Broadband Network was completed in less than 6 months, providing a new level of broadband service access to 50,000 households in 10 selected rural and suburban Maine markets including Portland, Bangor, Augusta, Sanford, Waterville, Lewiston, Auburn, Camden, Rockland & Topsham.   

“Redzone Wireless has propelled Maine into the era of 5G Fixed Wireless Access (5G FWA),” said Wireless 20/20 Senior Analyst Berge Ayvazian.   “By aggregating FCC licensed 2.5 GHz and unlicensed 5 GHz spectrum bands, Redzone is significantly increasing its network performance and service capacity to level the playing field for Maine’s urban and rural populations.  While Verizon and AT&T are conducting field trials of future 5G FWA, Redzone is already putting 5Gx FWA to work for the benefit of its current and future customers.”

“Redzone’s 5Gx significantly increases fixed wireless broadband performance, while substantially reducing network development time and deployment costs, said Jim McKenna, President Redzone Wireless, LLC.  “Redzone is leading the convergence of licensed and unlicensed spectrum to deliver on the promise of affordable next generation broadband access for underserved areas of the country.”   

 “High-speed broadband is a necessity for communities across Maine, particularly those in rural areas,” United States Senator Angus King said. “And each new advance by internet service providers to improve the reach, quality, and access to internet connectivity helps expand the economic, educational, and health-supporting benefits that this exciting technology enables. Creative approaches like this will help ensure that more Maine businesses and families have the opportunity to access the full range of internet-enabled resources, providing a great benefit to our state.”

The Federal Communications Commission’s most recent broadband progress report, released in January 2016, found that 53 percent of Americans and 87 percent of rural Americans had no access to high-speed wireless service. Both the relatively limited availability of fast wireless Internet nationwide and the rural-urban disconnect on availability are often cited factors in the so-called “digital divide”, relegating low-income and rural consumers to limited or no internet service.

“Redzone is leading the market in the delivery of fixed wireless broadband technology for both residential & commercial applications, and our new integrated technology platform clearly has potential applications and scalability well beyond Maine.” said Michael Forcillo, Redzone Wireless, LLC Vice President. “Since Redzone’s launch in 2015, we have received over 68,000 service inquiries, and the activation of our new 5Gx network is critical to keeping pace with the increasing consumer demand for broadband we see in Maine on a daily basis,” added Forcillo.

Since June of 2015, Redzone Wireless has expanded it’s fixed wireless broadband network to over 60 Maine communities, covering 225,000 Maine households and more than 40,000 businesses across the state.  Redzone’s broadband network in Maine is believed to be the largest multi-spectrum fixed wireless deployment of its kind in the US.