WLL technology has several economic characteristics that make it attractive to deploy for 20 to 50 percent of a typical telephone network. In some cases—e.g., adverse terrain or widely dispersed subscriber areas—WLL would be even more attractive. However, since WLL is a relatively new technology, there is considerable misunderstanding of it due to cost models that are not accurate. The primary inaccuracy of these models is that many of the ancillary expenses of deploying and maintaining WLL technology are not taken into account. This is a mistake that is usually not made by wireline providers, who understand well that the cost of provisioning service to a customer consists of elements such as switching, outside plant, personnel, and operations.

One important economic consideration is that a WLL network can be deployed very quickly: Activating a system within 90 to 120 days is feasible. Although this economic benefit is difficult to measure in purely economic terms, it is a key advantage in a market where multiple service providers are competing for the same user base. To illustrate, consider a region in which telephone service is first introduced (i.e., a pioneer rollout). In this situation, putting outside plant infrastructure in place is an uncertain investment. However, if a WLL system is deployed in the region with the intent of building a traditional outside plant afterwards, the WLL generates data that will confirm the traffic levels and user population models which are used to justify the outside-plant investment.

Because the expense of provisioning service via WLL is not affected by the distance between the subscriber and the central office (CO), WLL is more cost-effective than wireline operator service provider (OSP) for at least 20 percent of the service lines deployed in a network (see Figure 2).

Figure 2. Impact of WLL on OSP Costs

WLL has a much lower incremental investment cost than copper, and it is much cheaper to deploy at lower subscriber densities. As shown in Figure 3, the cost of deploying the last mile of connectivity will continue to fall for wireless while remaining constant for copper-wire networks.

Figure 3. Copper versus Wireless: The Cost of the Last Mile

In short, ease and speed of service implementation, scalability and versatility, and maintenance and reliability make WLL the preferred alternative from an economic standpoint.