Private LTE network tech vendor Federated Wireless has raised an additional $13.7 million in series C funding, adding to $51 million in investment that was announced in September.
The money is coming from the same sources, Allied Minds and Pennant Investors. Arlington, Virginia-based Federated Wireless said the investment will be used to pursue partnerships with cloud computing companies Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure.
Also read: CBRS Specialist Federated Wireless Secures Another $51M in Funding
Having already built a business provisioning private wireless LTE networks built around 150 MHz of Citizens Broadband Radio Service spectrum, Federated Wireless is now developing a connectivity-as-a-service (CaaS) business built around the 6 GHz band.
With the FCC set to soon finalize the rules regarding 6 GHz sharing, Federated said its CaaS offering will expand to provide a path to 1,000 MHz of shared spectrum, taking advantage of both Wi-Fi 6 and 5G in the 6 GHz band to enable data transfers of up to 10 Gbps. Caas, the vendor added, will enable enterprises to order the business connectivity services they need with a single click from AWS or Azure. Federated Wireless will deliver and manage the network.
In March, Federated Wireless said that its Spectrum Controller platform, already widely deployed for FCC-sanctioned use in the CBRS frequency range, is being extended to cover spectrum in the 6 GHz band.
Also read: Federated Wireless Extends Spectrum Controller for Unlicensed 6 GHz Use
“The rapid adoption and general enthusiasm that we have seen since FCC approval for commercial deployment of CBRS is even greater than we anticipated, and is driving both Federated Wireless and the wireless industry as a whole to new heights,” said Iyad Tarazi, president and CEO of Federated Wireless, in a statement. “Our newest developments, CaaS and extending the Spectrum Controller to 6 GHz, have greatly expanded our footprint and our opportunities, and I would like to thank our investors for continuing to support us as we continue to grow.”
According to Federated Wireless’ Crunchbase profile, the company had raised $120 million before this latest series C round addition.
“Over the last three decades, control and management of scarce spectrum assets has been the driver of hundreds of billions of dollars in market capitalization for wireless carriers in the US,” said Tim McDonald of Pennant Investors, also in a statement. “Federated Wireless is the clear market leader in delivering spectrum as-a-service, turning what had previously been a high fixed cost asset – spectrum licenses – into a variable, price-per-connection service. This is a game changer in wireless, enabling not only wireless carriers and cable companies, but also cloud service providers such as AWS and Microsoft, to offer valuable connectivity services over shared spectrum resources.”
