Abside Networks breaks cover in pursuit of US military's 5G businessAbside Networks breaks cover in pursuit of US military's 5G business

Founded more than a decade ago, Abside Networks is looking to raise its profile as the company gets more serious about the US military's 5G business.

"We're stepping out and we're growing," Doug Hutchison, Abside's chief product officer and VP of business development, told Light Reading. "We're in that growth phase now."

Based in Concord, Massachusetts, Abside Networks builds wireless networking equipment that is open radio access network (RAN) compliant, including 5G radios and other components. It does so via a small team of veteran designers and a group of third-party contract manufacturers that physically build the company's radio products.

All that work – including the manufacture of Abside's 5G radios – is done inside the US.

"Everything is local," Hutchison said, though he declined to name the companies that manufacture Abside's products. "That's one of our claims to fame."

Abside is pursuing the same opportunity that JMA Wireless, Lockheed Martin, Ericsson, Nokia, Motorola, Oceus Networks, Sempre and others are chasing: the Pentagon's FutureG program, which is part of the US Department of Defense's (DoD's) effort to leverage commercial 5G technology for military applications.

Ultimately, the US military has a vision of using 5G and other technologies to connect "sensors with shooters across all domains, commands and services." Meaning, the DoD wants a comprehensive, interoperable wireless networking system to connect everything owned and operated by the Pentagon.

Along those lines, the DoD has already allocated roughly $650 million over the past three years to various 5G research and development projects – and more spending is imminent.

In response, massive 5G radio vendors like Ericsson and Nokia have set up divisions focused specifically on 5G military applications.

From Loon to the Pentagon

Abside originally launched in 2012 with the goal of leveraging 4G technology for federal and military uses. But much of its early work involved designing and building the networking equipment used by Google's ill-fated Project Loon effort, a program that aimed to provide Internet access to remote and underserved areas using high-altitude balloons. Three years ago, Google owner Alphabet shuttered the project because "commercial viability has proven much longer and riskier than hoped."

The timing was good for Abside, Hutchison said.

Early Pentagon forays into 5G primarily involved the 3.5GHz CBRS spectrum band. But the DoD is increasingly eyeing other spectrum bands including n79, which operates in the 4.4-5GHz range and is licensed to federal users, according to Hutchison.

"It's a very different approach from Nokia and Ericsson," Hutchison said of Abside's efforts. He explained that big 5G equipment vendors mainly focus their equipment on commercial spectrum bands owned by the likes of AT&T and T-Mobile. But Abside is focusing its efforts on spectrum intended for federal and military users.

Hutchison likened Ericsson and Nokia to Ford and GM, which build standard commercial cars. The military, meanwhile, buys specialized Humvees for its transportation needs. "That's probably the fairest analogy," he said.

Moving forward

"One of the reasons we're stepping out now is the maturity of our products," Hutchison said. Abside has conducted multiple rounds of fundraising, each totaling several million dollars, he said, though he declined to provide details. The company counts around 20 full-time employees and a wide range of contractors and consultants.

The global open RAN trend is helping to drive Abside's momentum, Hutchison added. Open RAN allows components from different vendors – including radio, hardware and software – to be interoperable on the same platform. Although the technology has traveled a bumpy path, commercial operators ranging from Vodafone to AT&T have voiced support for open RAN.

"Modularity in the RAN allows agility and promotes supply chain security, vendor competition, and, ultimately, innovation and cost efficiencies," according to the DoD.

With open RAN, "you're getting to see a lot of new ideas at least get introduced to the marketplace," Hutchison said. "You've kicked the door open to innovation, and that's a big deal."