Deutsche Telekom sees rising campus network market demand

As Senior Vice President of 5G campus networks at Deutsche Telekom, Antje Williams is able to draw on a varied career to develop the communications service provider’s (CSP’s) private network portfolio. After starting with the German operator as a lawyer, she moved into wholesale service sales in southern Germany. From there she went on to become Managing Director of T-Mobile Hotspot and then Executive Programme Manager for 5G.

Not long after Williams took up her current role in 2018, however, the German market for campus, or mobile private, networks underwent both a challenge and a change. The challenge was global: several projects were put on ice during the first year of the Covid-19 pandemic because there was so much uncertainty about what might lie ahead. Business did not exactly grind to a halt, but it certainly slowed down.

The change, however, was local and cuts to the core of the ongoing questions around CSPs’ role in providing mobile private networks (MPN). Germany’s regulator, BNetzA, became one of the spearheads of private 5G licensing in Europe, when in November 2019 it launched the applications process for local licenses in the 3.7GHz/3.8GHz band for vertical use cases. It then opened up the 26GHz band (24.25GHz–27.5GHz) in January 2021.

Enterprises and others that hold private spectrum licenses can establish their own private networks with the help of vendors, enabling them to bypass operators completely. In Germany, applications have typically come from large industrial enterprises, airports, fair trade organisers, universities, research institutes and others. As of 15 January 2023, BNetzA had received and approved 293 applications for local networks in the 3.7GHz band, and 16 in the 26GHz band.

The result is a country on the cusp of MPN growth. For although Williams acknowledges that mobile private networks still represent a relatively small market, she is seeing renewed interest from enterprises in setting up MPNs. And she is confident Deutsche Telekom will take a slice of the market.

“We’ve seen some indications in Germany, but also in some of the more industrially developing countries – for instance, Czech Republic – that it’s really picking up,” she said. Other key markets are Hungary and Greece, while there are also signs of interest in the US, Williams adds.

As things stand, Deutsche Telekom has been involved in the deployment of between 40 and 50 campus network projects in Europe, mostly in Germany. Crucially, the operator makes money from the outset, Williams said, noting that there is “always a decent margin” from campus network engagements.

Public-private partnerships

Williams acknowledges that while some large enterprises may prefer to set up and run their own campus networks, many customers “don’t want to be bothered with the connectivity part” and also require support in establishing use cases for the technology.

She adds that Deutsche Telekom often combines private industry spectrum with its public spectrum as part of a campus network project. “You can then provide a very strong offering to the customer,” she says. She also notes that the operator often helps enterprises and others to apply for the spectrum in the first place. “There are a lot of technical questions to answer, and you have to obey the rules, such as on interference,” she says.

Deutsche Telekom works with both Ericsson and Mavenir on campus networks. Typically, Ericsson tends to be the private network partner in Germany, while Mavenir technology is used in other European markets. Key industrial sectors include ports and airports, hospitals, logistics sites and manufacturing facilities. The gas and oil industry and mining sector are also active users of private networks, although this does not apply so much in Germany, Williams notes.

A central driver for private or campus networks is to make operations more efficient through digitalization and automation. Williams also sees more use cases emerging, particularly as enterprises seek to bring production back to a more local setting in order to reduce the impact of supply chain delays.

Looking ahead, her aim is to further strengthen Deutsche Telekom’s campus network portfolio while also offering applications on a modular level. “We believe that the value of the network can only be shown by the use cases of the customer. So, we offer both use case solutions, system integration and the network”, she said.

“We are also planning to have a proposal for Wi-Fi 6,” Williams adds. “We think we have to enhance the 5G part with a Wi-Fi offering because that's what the customer demands, and it makes absolute sense.”