Cambium is best known for providing wireless products for Wi-Fi, CBRS private wireless networks and fixed wireless access (FWA) for service providers. But now, the vendor is getting into the fiber business.
Specifically, it will manufacture fiber optic electronics, including optical network terminals (ONTs) and optical line terminals (OLTs). It will compete in this space against the likes of Nokia, Adtran, Calix, DZS and Ubiquiti, among others.
Asked why Cambium was undertaking such a big change, Sakid Ahmed, general manager for Cambium’s Fiber Business, said it was a combination of factors, including all the funding that’s about to become available from the Broadband Equity Access & Deployment (BEAD) program as well as the fact that its WISP customers are becoming increasingly interested in deploying fiber.
Ahmed said in the past, deploying fiber was too expensive for its WISPS that serve rural areas. “ln the last three to five years, fiber did not make sense in that type of territory. Wireless was the answer. But bring in the government funding, and all of a sudden those customers we cater to have to look at fiber as an option,” he said.
It's important to evolve with the demand, so Cambium doesn’t lose its customer base of WISPS.
In addition to targeting WISPS, Cambium will also target rural electric cooperatives with its fiber electronics.
“You start with your low-hanging fruit customer base,” said Ahmed.
He also thinks there’s room for some disruption in the fiber electronics space because the big vendors sell systems for large networks. And Cambium will focus on smaller network operators with a message of simplicity.
Cambium is working with a Taiwanese manufacturer to make the OLTs and ONTs. It’s been shipping some of the initial electronics to a select number of channel partners in North America for beta testing. And it plans to offer the products commercially soon.
Since Cambium is a latecomer to fiber, it’s bypassing GPON-only products. It is providing a connection for XGS-PON and GPON from the same port in order to support GPON for backwards compatibility.
Cambium’s solution is managed via its cnMaestro converged single pane of glass addressing both fixed wireless, fiber and Wi-Fi.
Buy America
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) is expected to publish its Buy America rules this month.
Ahmed said Cambium is definitely keeping an eye out for those rules, especially since it’s working with a Taiwanese manufacturer. “The first premise is: get out of China,” he said. “We believe that we’re going to be OK.”
He said the biggest challenge in this whole move to fiber wasn’t building the equipment. It’s getting the word out that Cambium has gotten into the fiber market.