A Cost Modeling of High-capacity LTE-advanced and IEEE 802.11ac based Heterogeneous Networks, Deployed in the 700MHz, 2.6GHz and 5GHz Bands

In this paper we develop “state-of-the-art” cost model of the heterogeneous wireless networks in order to determine the most cost effective radio network deployment as a function of extreme demand levels of more than 100 GB per user and month. We perform comparative analysis by consideration of the advanced radio access technologies like LTE-Advanced and IEEE 802.11ac Wi-Fi standard. Our analysis especially contributes to the assessment of the benefits when operating LTE-Advanced technology on the forthcoming “Digital Dividend II” band. The outcome of the cost model gives the proper assessment of the total investment needed to serve certain area, using bands ranging from 700 MHz and up to 5 GHz. The key finding is that the small cell solutions, like femto cells and Wi-Fi, are more cost efficient when new macro base station sites need to be deployed or when very high demand levels need to be satisfied. In all other evaluated cases, results show that the importance of the spectrum size is significant in leveraging cost-capacity performance. By evaluating the economic value of a joint deployment of small and macro cells, we determine that instead of investing in additional spectrum or deploying denser network, mobile operators could compensate the indoor wall penetration losses by femto or Wi-Fi sites.