| | June 20188CIOReview5GGoogleLAYING THE FOUNDATION FOR 5GBy Ray Butler, VP, Wireless Network Engineering, CommScope [NASDAQ:COMM]urrent trends in the wireless industry can be thought of as a prelude to 5G. Now is the time when Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) are laying the groundwork for the future while monetizing and managing their existing investments. Wireless net-works will achieve the 5G vision in three fundamental ways in the converged network: densification, virtualization and optimization.The road to 5G begins with the evolution of wireless networks to the two meanings of C-RAN: initially, Cen-tralized RAN, which brings with it operating expenditure and capital expenditure savings, and then true Cloud RAN. The C-RAN architecture enables virtualization and brings computing capabilities closer to "the edge." Virtualization engenders optimization and provides capacity elasticity, meaning a better user experience with more efficiency, throughput capacity, and lower latency. Making all of this possible will be the addition of more cell sites in a denser wireless network. Network densifica-tion will include more small cells supporting areas with high user demand. Bringing power and backhaul to these sites, after the initial obstacle of acquiring them, will re-main the primary challenge of densification. Stadiums and large enterprise buildings will emerge as the first test beds and microcosms of the 5G network. When we talk about 5G being a network of networks, one of those networks is LTE. Today's evolved LTE net-work is going to be a cornerstone in 5G's network of net-works. LTE will be the workhorse of the wireless industry for many years to come. We're going to see incremental improvements in LTE capabilities on the way to 5G and 4G, 5G and Wi-Fi will all coexist--along with some earlier wireless air-interfaces depending on the region. MNOs will use slices of different networks to address different applica-tions and provide connectivity resources to them. C IN MY OPINIONWe're going to see incremental improvements in LTE capabilities on the way to 5G and 4G, 5G and Wi-Fi will all coexist
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