5G Micro-operators for the future campus: A techno-economic study

In this paper, we propose a deployment framework for future indoor small cell networks that will be beneficial for the venue owner/campus, micro-operator (uO), end-users and Mobile Network Operators (MNOs). The research is motivated by ongoing struggle to improve indoor coverage, to meet ever increasing capacity demands and to develop 5G access solutions to be ready for future use cases. The framework conceives an indoor small cell deployment for the campus, operated and managed by the uO, which leverages network slicing to provide the campus with local customized service, while at the same time also acting as a neutral host for participating MNOs. The proposed framework will be beneficial in terms of reduced costs, additional revenues, dedicated services, coverage, and spectrum utilization. In the end, the framework is contended to be economically viable and more beneficial than Wi-Fi deployments. The total cost of ownership (TCO) is calculated per access point type and then the TCO for current total capacity is calculated for each option. The analysis shows that although small cells are expensive on a unit basis but the overall network can be cheaper and more beneficial than a Wi-Fi deployment.