Network Communications News (NCN) April 2017 | Page 40

KNOW HOW
The indoor coverage crisis
With 80 per cent of mobile calls now made from inside a building, John Lillistone, Arqiva’s
head of capacity and coverage products, looks at what can be done to combat the crisis.
A
s the UK moves
towards being a
nation of urban
dwellers, this
figure is perhaps
not surprising. Factoring in the
continuous increase in the use of
mobile devices in the workplace,
research from Aruba HPE found
that 60 per cent of employees link
mobile technology with the ability
to be productive at work – it could
well be set to go even higher.
40 | April 2017
I n t h e fa c e o f s u c h s tat i s t i c s
t h e a s s u m pt i o n m i g h t b e t h at
t h e U K wo u l d b o a s t s t ro n g
i n d o o r c ove ra ge , h oweve r,
a re p o r t b y O fc o m l a s t y e a r
fo u n d t h at ove r h a l f o f t h e U K
p o p u l at i o n h a d re p o r te d i s s u e s
w i t h vo i c e a n d d ata s e r v i c e s
when making calls indoors.
With the economic effect of
such lacklustre indoor coverage
impacting both businesses
working within buildings, and
subsequently those building and
facilities managers trying to lure
top companies into their office
space, indoor mobile coverage is
already a very real and increasing
problem. Combine this with the
UK’s battle to become a leader
of the 5G connected world and
you find us hurtling towards an
uncertain future.
So how might 5G intensify
indoor mobile coverage issues,
who is responsible for solving