Arda Lisis, Chief Operating Officer, Tilson Infrastructure
Alda Licis is a member of WIA’s Innovation & Technology Council. Learn more about the ITC here.
With the buildout of 5G coverage well underway, there are many ideas for how to monetize these networks and unlock the value of 5G technology. One of the ways Tilson Infrastructure is achieving this is through public-private partnerships that make 5G more affordable through shared infrastructure that maximizes asset utilization and improves return on investment.
In the wireless industry, the concept of sharing is well known. For decades, mobile operators have co-located antennas on towers, but can sharing go beyond co-location to also include small cell poles, fiber, and data centers? What if we started thinking about the communications system as a whole rather than its individual parts? Tilson and Plenary Americas have partnered under the Plenary Broadband Infrastructure (PBI) brand to bring a sustainable, resource-rich approach to this concept in Pennsylvania and North Carolina, where shared fiber connects poles, macro towers, and AI-driven data centers.
In Pennsylvania, PBI has assumed responsibility for operation and maintenance of 467 miles of publicly owned fiber optic network along the Pennsylvania Turnpike from Philadelphia to Pittsburgh. The network was designed to provide connectivity to the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission’s administration and maintenance buildings, toll collection systems, and Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), but PBI is working to commercialize it to support revenue-generating applications. Potential customers include large enterprises, internet and communications providers, cable multi-system operators, municipalities, and educational institutions.
Similarly, PBI partners with the North Carolina Department of Transportation to operate, maintain and commercialize 580 miles of fiber optic infrastructure on 1-95, US-70 and US-74.
States such as Pennsylvania and North Carolina are deploying conduit and fiber primarily to support ITS, but don’t necessarily have the budget to operate and manage the network. When a PBI leases excess fiber capacity to commercial entities, the revenue is shared with the state. The state can then use the revenue to pay for the operation and maintenance of the PBI, replacing cameras, monitors, and sensors, locating fiber, and repairing any potential fiber cuts.
Meanwhile, surplus fiber optics can be used to reach underserved markets and increase the value of 5G networks by entering into short-term leases or long-term Inviolable Right to Use (IRU) agreements with telecommunications carriers, enterprises, hyperscalers and internet service providers for a variety of uses. In Pennsylvania and North Carolina, PBI also has exclusive rights to develop vertical infrastructure in the form of poles and towers connected to these fiber optic networks.
In the United States, very little fiber is installed along the interstate highways. Building and maintaining these fiber optic routes by any single entity is costly and difficult. Creating public-private partnerships that share the costs and risks allows fiber to be installed in different locations, creating a unique opportunity to build a variety of mutually beneficial use cases. For hyperscalers developing new data centers that will host artificial intelligence capabilities and require high power availability, these interstate fiber optic routes are the most direct, and therefore the lowest latency and most protected option.
Current wireless use cases include mobile operators interested in leveraging fiber along interstates to their macro towers if it helps meet coverage or capacity needs, eliminating at least one barrier to deploying towers because fiber is already available for connectivity.
Future use cases include autonomous vehicles, truck-only lanes, etc. For example, Cavnue is working with the Michigan Department of Transportation to develop a connected autonomous vehicle (CAV) corridor in Michigan. The network includes pole-mounted optical sensors every 200 meters, radar equipment, and low-latency edge computing applications. In addition to maneuvering autonomous vehicles, the network can provide drivers with real-time road information about weather events and traffic congestion.
Another use case where these networks could prove valuable is drones used for public safety and surveillance applications.
When I think about monetizing 5G, I think about leveraging different communications assets working together. Today, in public-private partnerships, we own and operate the poles that support small cells and macro towers, and we operate fiber along transportation corridors. By considering how these assets can work together, 5G will become more affordable. To maximize investment and asset utilization, infrastructure needs to be shared.
