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W ith origins in the early days of satellite, Broad Sky Networks believes that its technology drives the future of wireless connectivity. From 4G/5G and beyond, the “100 percent channel- focused” firm provides managed business wireless services and equipment. Broad Sky focuses on affordable, robust offerings to meet organizations’ needs, whether for cloud applications, AI-enabled IoT, LTE advanced and 5G networking solutions, automatic failover for business continuity, machine-to- machine (M2M) connectivity, LTE analog (POTS) replacement or business satel- lite connectivity such as VSAT (very small aperture terminal) – for the most remote locations. “Broad Sky has focused on wireless since its creation in 2003,” said company president, Ron Ireland. “But our value proposition goes so far beyond that. We drive optimal multi-carrier, wireless performance in the areas that our customers need.” Whether for the retail, manufacturing, hospitality or other key industries, Broad Sky’s focus on 4G/5G connectivity to power AI-enabled internet of things (AIoT) solutions solves real business challenges with a clear return on investment. And its December 2020 acquisition by IntelliSite only reinforced this aim. “We now have access to a full suite of IoT and AI solutions that are driven by excellence in connectivity,” said Ireland. “I think the channel community is so hungry for a fully integrated solution provider that is connected, from A to Z. They’re looking to turn to just one company to derive value.” With its “engineering-first” approach, Ireland believes Broad Sky is that firm. Broad Sky works to provide the best and most-affordable equipment for bolstering connectivity and speed at virtually any location, whether for failover or primary access. The company’s wireless tech supports cloud-hosted apps and SD-WAN deployments, with support services that are comparable to – and in some cases superior to – direct carrier offers. After all, cellular SD-WAN (CSD-WAN) has become increasingly important as remote work continues to grow. “As more workforces are working from home, and doing so more perma- nently, managers don’t want to rely on a personal hodgepodge of worker internet connections,” said Ireland. “SD-WAN allows them to better manage employ- ees, drive reliability and promote security over hybrid networks.” This is especially true when consider- ing wireless routing advances and the marriage of wireless communications with terrestrial circuits. “Those are,” smiled Ireland, “all benefits of SD-WAN.” These areas, however, are only some of Broad Sky’s focuses. In Ireland’s eyes, another one of Broad Sky’s specialties is assisting phase-out of traditional POTS (plain old telephone service) lines in favor of cutting-edge infrastructure. The exec believes that this area has “tremendous opportunity,” based on Broad Sky’s wireless exper- tise and the FCCs goal of phasing out copper networks across all carriers. “While we’re talking about something basic like taking a newer technology to replace an older one, there’s still a great deal of need for help, from the organi- zational perspective,” Ireland noted. “There’s still a need by new and exist- ing customers as copper lines go away. And we are poised to identify and hit on those opportunities.” Such deployments equate to improved performance, uptime and return-on-investment, all further bolstered by growing instances of 5G. “There are going to be so many more applications that are impacted by 5G,” said Ireland. “Some of them are new, emerging technologies, but all of them are driven by tremendous growth. And they are only going to continue to become more and more important as people move toward a wireless-first, wireless WAN approach to networking.” With so many areas of focus, Ireland sees the company as a “one-stop-shop to the channel.” But Broad Sky’s 5G, AI/IoT portfo- lio is the area that he sees as having the most potential for “tremendous growth” within “existing – and green- side – opportunities.” And, given Broad Sky’s ongoing focus on affordable and efficient solutions for channel partners, the company’s success to date is very much indicative of how far it has yet to come. o PROFILE Broad Sky Portfolio Helps Create Safer, Smarter, More-Connected World W E M A K E W I R E L E S S W O R K By Brady Hicks Broad Sky President Ron Ireland MOBILE & WIRELESS 18 CHANNEL V ISION | July - August 2021