Telecom Lead America: The size of the tower mounted
amplifiers market is nearing $500 million.
Despite encroaching competitive technologies, according
to ABI Research, tower mounted amplifiers have become a common addition to most
macro base station systems.
They increase overall system performance and are now
easily mounted and monitored. Tower mounted amplifiers can provide significant
BTS performance improvement for a moderate investment.
The use of tower mounted amplifiers in wireless
infrastructure base station systems represents one of the most cost effective
ways of improving overall system performance,” said Lance Wilson, research
director, mobile networks, ABI Research.
Although tower mounted amplifiers still represent
healthy business, that market position will be threatened by the increasing use
of remote radio heads and active antennas, both of which include the tower
mounted antenna functionality,” Wilson added.
The tower mounted amplifier holds an almost unique spot
in the base station RF hardware chain. It can be a portion of a complete system
from the outset of an installation or they can be added later as needed.
There are new hardware technologies, however, namely
remote radio heads and active antennas, which will represent a threat to TMA
market growth. Although tower mounted amplifiers still represent healthy
business, that market position will be threatened by the increasing use of
remote radio heads and active antennas, both of which include the tower mounted
antenna functionality.
