Trials are well underway around the world as the industry progresses to 5G operating in standalone mode, and “vendors and service providers are working together to learn about the intricacies of implementing 5G SA, which primarily means implementing the 5G core for 5G New Radio (NR) base stations,” Dave Bolan, research director at Dell’Oro Group, wrote in a recent report.

“Charter’s entry is a big deal because it’s the first cable operator to officially announce its intention to apply for RDOF funds,” said Dell’Oro Group’s Jeff Heynen, senior research director for broadband access and home networking, in an email to FierceTelecom. “It certainly won’t be the only cable operator to do so, but it will likely be the largest. I think there will be a number of cable operators—think NCTC members—that will also apply for RDOF funds.

CBRS investments accelerated in the first quarter of this year, driven by Fixed Wireless Access and capacity augmentations. Dell’Oro Group has been tracking CBRS developments for the past several years, with periodic updates to its outlook. VP Stefan Pongratz, who heads up the analysis firm’s Radio Access Network and telecom capex areas of study, said that while it has taken longer than anticipated for CBRS to come to fruition, that has largely been due to regulatory-related delays rather than issues on the demand side.