LOS GATOS, Calif., April 07, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — AccessParks, the first and only Broadband provider approved as a concessionaire by the US National Park Service, and FreedomFi, the open 5G company, today announced a multi-year partnership to deploy 5G networks across hundreds of sites within marquee national and state parks, using Magma open source 5G network software.
The network will serve millions of tourists visiting national and state park locations every year, providing free social media exposure for parks, and providing emergency connectivity for tourists exploring frontcountry areas in the outdoors.
The network will use 5G CBRS spectrum and will meet FCC requirements of broadband connectivity. Using FreedomFi distribution of Magma makes it possible to build this network using radios from a variety of vendors, ensuring that it is free from lock-in. Magma architecture also makes it possible for the network to have roaming agreements with mobile network operators and MVNOs.
“We’ve considered a variety of software options for this network rollout, both closed source and open source. In the end we decided that Magma distribution provided by FreedomFi is the optimal choice,” said Tim Rout, CEO at AccessParks. “Magma has the most momentum out of all open source alternatives and it’s access agnostic architecture enables us to take advantage of the radio innovation from a variety of vendors and to stay in control of our destiny.”
“We are honored to have been selected by AccessParks for this ambitious project,” said Boris Renski, CEO at FreedomFi. “AccessParks’ requirements for sophisticated network topologies, MNO roaming capabilities and, most importantly, stability are pushing the boundaries of what’s possible with the CBRS technology today. It’s been a tremendous opportunity to refine the open 5G network ecosystem.”
The project kicked off two months ago and already has nine locations active with the technology, including the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. With several sites being added every week, the current plan is to have hundreds of highly trafficked tourist locations covered by the end of 2021. AccessParks was recently awarded a contract to deploy 5G wireless technologies to over 200 California state parks, and the FreedomFi technology will be a critical component in many of those installations.
FreedomFi delivers a turnkey Private LTE/5G experience for enterprise customers, based on an opinionated, hardened distribution of Magma open source project. Customers are able to purchase FreedomFi Gateway on the company website for as little as $300, plug in any commodity small cell radio and immediately bring-up and start managing their Private LTE/5G network via a cloud hosted network management system.
About FreedomFi
FreedomFi is the open 5G company that offers the easiest path toward open source Private LTE or 5G networks. Be it for Fixed Wireless Access, Enterprise Cellular or Mobile Broadband, just plug in any commodity small cell into a FreedomFi Gateway and start managing a private cellular network via a SaaS-hosted portal.
Joe Eckert for FreedomFi
Eckert Communications
Jeckert@eckertcomms.com
