• The 60,000-plus-seat stadium will use a 53-sector Airspan DAS supporting C-band, 3.45GHz and 2.5GHz spectrum
  • AT&T will own the system as a neutral host, but the other mobile operators expected to use it have not been named

The fact

AT&T is leading a project to deploy a distributed antenna system (DAS) at Mississippi State University’s Davis Wade Stadium in Starkville. Telecoms.com reports that AT&T will own the system as a neutral host, with the infrastructure designed to support multiple mobile operators. The 60,000-plus-seat stadium will use Airspan’s MobileAccess 6000 Digital platform, with M-Communications also involved in the deployment.

The planned DAS has a 53-sector MIMO architecture and supports C-band, 3.45GHz and 2.5GHz spectrum. Airspan says the MobileAccess 6000 supports multi-operator deployments and uses compact headend equipment designed for venues with limited space. The companies intend the system to improve mobile coverage and capacity during football games, concerts and other crowded events. The report does not name the other operators expected to use the system or give an activation date.

The assessment

AT&T will provide mobile service at Davis Wade and also own the neutral-host system. The same antenna network is designed to support several mobile operators. However, the other carriers that will use it have not yet been named, so the project is multi-operator by design rather than confirmed multi-carrier service.

The system supports several mid-band frequencies, but it is not yet clear which bands will be active when service starts. For BTW readers, the main point is that installing shared infrastructure is only the first step. The next will be seeing which carriers join and how the system performs when the stadium is full.

What to watch

Watch for AT&T to name the other carriers that will use the DAS and confirm when service starts. Which spectrum bands are activated will clarify how the system is configured for participating operators. Performance data from a full stadium event would provide the first public measure of how the shared network handles peak traffic.