Economic feasibility of powering on/off cells in heterogeneous networks

Switching on/off nodes in a heterogeneous networking environment allows for efficient utilization of radio resources, and lowers the overall energy footprint of operating such a network. Early simulation results of such a mechanism being developed in the CONSERN project indicate a significant reduction in the Operator's energy and operational costs (OpEx) without any noticeable impact on end-user throughput. In order to test the commercial feasibility of the mechanism, we first perform an economic impact assessment for costs and ownership of the network, following which a holistic business model analysis is performed in which two commercial deployment modes - an operator based and operator independent mode are outlined. The paper concludes with some recommendations and steps to mitigate disjunctions and improve synergies between the key stakeholders, constituting a sustainable business ecosystem.