Operators around the world are going indoors with RFS ClearFill® Star

Colombes (France), February 10, 2010 – With its unique ClearFill® Star RF over Ethernet wireless in-building cellular coverage solution, Radio Frequency Systems (RFS), the global wireless and broadcast infrastructure specialist, is now helping operators around the world take full advantage of the untapped benefits of indoor cellular coverage.

ClearFill Star is the world’s first and only fully digital RF-over-Ethernet wireless in-building cellular coverage solution. One year after its launch, the ClearFill Star CDMA and ClearFill Star W-CDMA solutions are proving their value in trials with operators in North America, Europe and Asia with trials in India and Latin America soon to follow.

 With ClearFill Star’s innovative and cost effective approach to in-building cellular coverage, operators can increase total network capacity by up to 25 percent while reducing customer churn. Because it uses Cat 5e standard LAN cabling and Gigabit switches rather than expensive RF feeder cabling, ClearFill Star also reduces total cost of ownership by up to 30 to 40 percent compared to other in-building solutions. This combination of financial and business benefits is resonating with operators around the world.
    
“RFS’ ClearFill Star solution is unique in the in-building market, which is why the strategic leaders within operators have shown extreme interest in seeing the solution operating,” explains Patrick Houze de l’Aulnoit, VP Global Sales & Marketing at RFS. “Before ClearFill Star, operators had no way to cost effectively enter the indoor market space and differentiate from their competition. Low total cost of ownership is one important factor. Spectrum efficiency is another,” he says. “Operators want to avoid spectrum exhaust so they’re very keen to see how the ClearFill Star solution delays, and even eliminates, the need for additional spectrum. Through customer trials and tests performed by Alcatel-Lucent Bell Labs, we’ve proven that ClearFill Star offloads the macro network to the extent that capacity can increase by up to 25 percent.”

ClearFill Star’s ability to reduce customer churn related to dissatisfaction with indoor coverage is another attractive factor for operators. “We know that 22 percent of customer churn is related to dissatisfaction with the network,” notes Houze de l’Aulnoit. “Within that churn, 80 percent is due to poor indoor coverage. As people continue to increase their use of wireless data services, efficient, high-quality indoor coverage will be more important than ever. With ClearFill Star, operators can improve their indoor coverage to better serve their subscribers’ needs and the growing demand for data with guaranteed quality of service.” Because ClearFill Star is an open transport channel, it supports the maximum data throughput delivered by the operator’s network. It is never a bottleneck that could negatively affect the operator’s strategy for indoor wireless coverage.   
    
The trademark flexibility found across RFS solutions for indoor and outdoor wireless coverage is also provided by the ClearFill Star solution. Today, the solution supports the 850 (CDMA), 1900 (CDMA) and 2100 MHz (W-CDMA) bands to meet a variety of in-building requirements. Also, as the only in-building wireless solution that truly separates capacity from coverage, ClearFill Star easily adapts to changing needs in both areas.

Coverage is provided by remote radio heads that are distributed inside the building while capacity is defined by the number of base station interfaces that are co-located with the feeding base transceiver station (BTS). Operators can increase capacity simply by using the network management system (NMS) software to change the number of base station interfaces and change the indoor sectorization. There is no need to touch the cabling or the coverage elements of the solution. Similarly, if coverage needs to be extended to include, for example, an indoor parking garage or a new floor in a building, it can be added without jeopardizing coverage in other areas of the building.
    
“As our customers face the challenges and uncertainties of the rapidly evolving wireless world, our goal is to always provide solutions that give them the flexibility they need to easily adapt to their changing environment,” says Eric Mariette, VP Global Marketing at RFS. “With ClearFill Star, operators and building owners can invest in what they need today and be assured that the solution has the flexibility and scalability to meet tomorrow’s needs. Imagine a hospital, a university or an apartment building. It’s critical to be able to expand and extend cellular coverage without disturbing building occupants.”  

Along with ClearFill Line, ClearFill Space and ClearFill Air, ClearFill Star is part of RFS’ ClearFill suite of in-building wireless communications solutions. In a world dominated by in-building wireless subscribers, these purpose-built solutions meet performance criteria across today’s broad range of building architectures and occupant needs.

During the RFS StayConnected Days @ 2010 Mobile World Congress, RFS is hosting a Press Briefing on Wednesday, February 17 from 9:00 am to 11:00 am at the RFS booth (Hall 2, Booth C53). To confirm your participation at the RFS Press Briefing or schedule an interview with an RFS executive, please contact:

Eric Giaretto,
eric.giaretto@rfsworld.com,
+33 (0)6 80 26 42 40

Trademarks: Radio Frequency Systems®, RFS® and ClearFill® are registered trademarks of Radio Frequency Systems. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

About RFS
Radio Frequency Systems (RFS) is a global designer and manufacturer of cable, antenna and tower systems, plus active and passive RF conditioning modules, providing total-package solutions for wireless infrastructure.

RFS serves OEMs, distributors, system integrators, operators and installers in the broadcast, wireless communications, land-mobile and microwave market sectors. As an ISO compliant organization with manufacturing and customer service facilities that span the globe, RFS offers cutting-edge engineering capabilities, superior field support and innovative product design. RFS is a leader in wireless infrastructure.