The Importance of In-Building Wireless Connectivity

As we get closer to the end of 2024 and the start of Connect (X) in May of 2025, one thing is becoming very clear: the availability of reliable in-building wireless connectivity is of increase importance to large enterprises and organizations as more people return to the office or increasing adopt hybrid work solutions.

In September 2024, the WIA conducted a survey of U.S. enterprise IT professionals who were responsible and/or knowledgeable of their company’s in-building and campus wireless network deployments and plans. The survey was designed to understand the enterprises’ business and IT challenges, current deployments of in-building networks and private 5G, plans for future deployments, vendor selection criteria, funding sources and applications and services supported by the networks.

Several data points jumped out from the survey:

• 97 percent of enterprise IT/network executives said reliable indoor cellular connectivity was very important or important to their business operations.
• When planning an in-building cellular network, 69 percent of enterprise IT/network executives said that 5G is required.
• 91 percent of enterprise IT/network executives planning a private cellular network deployment said it was critical or important that the network be connected to the public carrier networks.

Take these three data points together and it is clear that reliable indoor 5G communications that provide access to the public cellular networks are needed in today’s enterprise. Reliable in-building cellular communications are no longer just ‘nice to have’ or required by specific companies or in certain vertical industries. All enterprises and organizations demand reliable communications throughout their business operations, just as consumers expect connectivity wherever they go.

The good news is that Connect (X) 2025 has an entire track dedicated to providing indoor, in-building and on-campus connectivity solutions for enterprises, organizations and businesses of all sizes: Connected Spaces: In-Building, Campus, and Venue Connectivity.

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