1. Planning and Design Considerations For a 4G LTE Network Presented by: Engineering Associates, Inc. Professional Engineering Firm 2012 ACE/RUS School and Symposium

2. Previous Speakers with Wireless Topics Leo Zoucha Connecting in the Wireless Networks (Backhaul) Don Swedenburg Will LTE be the Death of the Landline? Gordon Caverly, Ben Pidek Wireless Video in the Home 2 - CONFIDENTIAL

3. Overview Funding Options Design Criteria Technology Considerations Frequency Bands Core Design RF Design - RAN Backhaul Considerations Bandwidth Efficiency & Traffic Planning Investment/Pricing Models 3 - CONFIDENTIAL

4. Funding Options Connect America Fund Universal Service Fund transitioning to Connect America Fund Objective is to Accelerate Broadband Build-Out in Rural Areas Additional $300M of CAF Funding Available to Incumbent Providers that Commit to FCC Broadband Requirements for Unserved Areas 4 MB/s Downstream; 1 Mb/s Upstream Remaining Areas to Receive CAF Money Based Upon Broadband Cost Models and Competitive Bidding 4 – CONFIDENTIAL

5. Funding Options RUS Broadband Loans Provides Funds to Provide Broadband Service in Eligible Rural Areas Includes New Construction, Improvements, and Acquisition No More than One Loan Awarded per Service Area Broadband Grants Funding is Ongoing but Application Process has Ended Additional Funding Would Require New Legislation 5 – CONFIDENTIAL

6. Design Criteria Which Spectrum Licenses are Available? Is Coverage Area Urban or Rural? Are Existing Towers Available or Will Tower Construction be Required? Applications - Fixed Solution vs. Mobility? CPE – Outdoor, USB Desktop, Dongle, or Handsets What Backhaul Options are Available? Product Availability and Number of Vendor Options? Ensure Design Reflects Goals for Geographic Coverage and Broadband Speed? 6 – CONFIDENTIAL

7. 700 MHz Band Plan 700 MHz – Lower Band 48 MHz; Upper Band 60 MHz Most Blocks are 6 MHz, Allowing 5 MHz LTE Carrier 35% Build-Out Required by June 13, 2013 for A,B, & E 40% Build-Out Required by June 13, 2013 for Upper C 7 - CONFIDENTIAL

8. 700 MHz Details Block A – 12 MHz Lower Band Paired Block B – 12 MHz Lower Band Paired Block C – 12 MHz Lower Band Paired and 22 MHz Upper Band Paired Block D – 6 MHz Lower Band Unpaired (Video) and 10 MHz Upper Band Paired (Public Safety) Block E – 6 MHz Lower Band Unpaired (Video) 8 – CONFIDENTIAL

9. 700 MHz Spectrum Ownership Verizon – 22 MHz Upper C Block Nationwide (except Alaska and U.S. Territories) and Scattered Lower A and B Blocks AT&T – Scattered Lower B and C Blocks (Mostly Metro Areas); Purchasing Unpaired Lower D Block Nationwide and Unpaired E Block in some Major Markets from QualComm (for LTE Use) Sprint – No 700 MHz T-Mobile – No 700 MHz Regional Carriers – Lower B and C Blocks (Mostly Rural) Public Safety – 10 MHz Upper D Block 9 – CONFIDENTIAL

10. AWS Band Plan AWS – Advanced Wireless Service; 1.7 GHz; 2.1 GHz Blocks are 6 or 10 MHz, Allowing 5 or 10 MHz LTE Carrier Substantial Service Build-Out Deadline is 2021 10 - CONFIDENTIAL

11. PCS Band Plan PCS – Broadband Radio Service; 1.9 GHz 11 – CONFIDENTIAL

12. BRS/EBS Band Plan BRS – Broadband Radio Service; 2.6 GHz EBS (Educational Broadband Service) was not licensed for commercial services, although its use has been postulated for LTE in some markets. Due to current Band 7 ecosystem using FDD, BRS is of limited use until Band 41 TDD ecosystem becomes reality. 12 – CONFIDENTIAL

13. RF Design - RAN Using RF Analysis Tool, Determine Predicted Coverage Levels and Aggregate Speeds Based Upon Technology and CPE Selection Utilize Various GIS Data To Evaluate Possible Tower Sites Select First Choice Tower Locations in Populated Areas Select Additional Tower Locations to Fill in Rural Areas Identify Areas Where New Towers May Be Required Generate Site Search Rings When Necessary Analyze Results and Add or Delete Sites as Required 13 – CONFIDENTIAL

14. Service Area Of Interest Network Planning / Design Tools-GIS Software E911 Location Data Highway/Street Traffic Count Vector Data Minimum UL/DL Throughput Requirements Network Resource Locations

15. Propagation Tools Propagation Software Tools Integrated With GIS Software Target to Customer Design Backhaul (Microwave) Feasibility Tool Operations Reports to Assist with Customer Service

16. Shaded Relief Showing Topography of Area

17. E911 Points for Potential Locations Evaluate Network Objective Percentage of Projected Coverage Area Coverage of Major Thoroughfares Ability For Sites To Be Contiguous Fixed Locations and/or Mobile Devices Network Parameters Technology Type Frequency Band(s) Network Backbone/Backhaul

18. 18 Existing Cellular Coverage in Planned Service Area Coverage Objective for Planned Service Area

19. Establish Search Area Ring (SAR)

20. Search Area Ring (SAR) Description: Identify feasible sites for providing necessary coverage as to existing network. The SAR includes the following activities and deliverables: Importing target coverage zones Develop alternate search area rings Base map indicating: RSA Boundaries E911 addresses (When Necessary) Existing Coverage Contours Topography Roadways Target and Propagation overlay demonstrating RF coverage as related to target zones for specified frequencies.

21. 21 Review Co-Location Possibilities

22. 22 Establish Site Location

23. Projected Coverage in Planned Service Area PERCENTAGE OF PROJECTED COVERAGE AREA COVERAGE OF MAJOR THOROUGHFARES

24. LTE Coverage Maps LTE Downlink (USB Dongle) 2Mbps to 8Mbps Four Towers with Five Mile Radius; Roughly 16 Miles x 16 Miles 24 – CONFIDENTIAL

25. LTE Coverage Maps LTE Uplink (USB Dongle) 2Mbps to 6Mbps Four Towers with Five Mile Radius; Roughly 16 Miles x 16 Miles 25 – CONFIDENTIAL

26. Backhaul LTE demands high-capacity backhaul Leased T1’s will prove inadequate Viable choices are fiber or microwave 26 – CONFIDENTIAL

27. Core Design Design Core Network Based Upon Projected Number of Subscribers and Bandwidth Requirements Is VoIP Required or Data Only? Ancillary/OEM Solutions Needed Billing Network Management, Subscriber Provisioning Regulatory (E911, CALEA) Identify Existing Equipment Required to Interface Evaluate Building Feasibility Related to Redundant Backhaul Facilities, Security, and Back-up Power 27 – CONFIDENTIAL

28. LTE Evolved Packet Core 28 – CONFIDENTIAL

29. Technology Considerations 700 MHz is Fundamental Design Based Upon Coverage; However, Bandwidth is Limited Reserve 700 MHz for Rural Areas that Require More Reach but Serves Fewer Subscribers Use AWS, BRS, or PCS for Capacity in Populated Areas with Shorter Reach 29 – CONFIDENTIAL

30. LTE vs. WiMax Although LTE and WiMAX are Similar in Technology, Vendors have Moved Development Emphasis to LTE WiMAX has Less Vendor Competition Today LTE will have Longer Product Life and Future Prices are More Likely to Decrease 30 – CONFIDENTIAL

31. Technology Comparison 700 MHzWiMAXLTE DownlinkOFDMA UplinkOFDMASC-FDMA MIMO Supported Today2x24x2 downlink, 1x4 uplink Cell edge interference control Soft frequency re- use Inter-cell Interference control MobilityHard handoffFull mobility Microcells availableYes VoIP Supportw/ optional core node w/ optional IMS core 31 – CONFIDENTIAL

32. Technology Comparison 700 MHzWiMAXLTE Router CPEYes USB Dongle CPEYes Outdoor CPEYes Smart PhonesNoFuture Built-in Laptop SupportNot at 700 MHzFuture Vendors at 700 MHzOneFive or More Industry GroupIEEE/WiMax Forum3GPP 32 – CONFIDENTIAL

33. Bandwidth Efficiency 700 MHzLTE Available Licensed Bandwidth (MHz)6 + 6 Usable Bandwidth (MHz)5 + 5 Spectral efficiency, downlink (bps/Hz)1.67 Spectral efficiency, uplink (bps/Hz)0.89 Average Throughput per 3-sector site, downlink (Mbps)25.05 Average Throughput per 3-sector site, uplink (Mbps)13.35 Loading Factor, downlink70% Loading Factor, uplink60% 33 – CONFIDENTIAL * Performance data is averaged from various vendors’ claims as of 2011.

34. Subscriber Traffic Model 700 MHzLTE Traffic per Subscriber per Month (GB)30 Downlink Traffic (%)70% Uplink Traffic (%)30% Hours in the Busy Period per Day4 Percent of Daily Traffic Carried in Busy Period25% Downlink Busy Hour Traffic per Subscriber97 kbps Uplink Busy Hour Traffic per Subscriber42 kbps Subscribers Supported per Sector60 Subscribers Supported per Base Station (3 sectors)180 34 – CONFIDENTIAL * Performance data is averaged from various vendors’ claims as of 2011.

35. Estimate of Investment 700 MHzLTE Access Network 3-Sector Single-5MHz-Carrier Macro Cell$55,000 Investment per Subscriber$306 Core Network Broadband Data-Only Core Network$3,000,000 Incremental for VoIP Core Network$1,400,000 CPE Terminals Desktop/Fixed CPE$395 USB Dongle$200 35 – CONFIDENTIAL * Pricing data is averaged from various vendors’ proposals as of 2011.

36. Pricing - Example Network #1 700 MHzLTE Base Stations50 Subscribers Supported9000 Total Investment$9,827,500 Investment per Subscriber$1,092 36 – CONFIDENTIAL * Pricing data is averaged from various vendors’ proposals as of 2011.

37. Pricing - Example Network #2 700 MHzLTE Base Stations100 Subscribers Supported18,000 Total Investment$15,255,000 Investment per Subscriber$848 37 – CONFIDENTIAL * Pricing data is averaged from various vendors’ proposals as of 2011.

38. Pricing - Example Network #3 700 MHzLTE Base Stations200 Subscribers Supported36,000 Total Investment$26,110,000 Investment per Subscriber$725 38 – CONFIDENTIAL * Pricing data is averaged from various vendors’ proposals as of 2011.

39. Summary - Start to Finish Process Feasibility Study and Business Case Preliminary RF/Backhaul Network Design RFP Preparation, Proposal Analysis, and Contract Negotiation Site Acquisition and Lease Negotiations Permitting / Legal Detailed RF/Backhaul Network Design Project Management and Asset Management Construction Management As Built Drawings 39 – CONFIDENTIAL

40. Thank You Engineering Associates, Inc. 1220 Old Alpharetta Road, Suite 390 Alpharetta, GA 30005 678-455-7266 engineeringassociates.com 40 – CONFIDENTIAL