By Crown Castle
NOVEMBER 2, 2022
Across the city of Chicago, reliable connectivity has become increasingly important to ensure an equitable playing field for businesses to grow, from Rogers Park, to Pullman, and the Loop to Little Village. To ensure these communities have access to reliable internet, it is important to build out the infrastructure necessary to support the increase in demand for data. Businesses like yours rely on this technology, whether you’re a restaurant using digital menus, or a boutique relying on cashless payments, our infrastructure enables the critical connectivity you and your customers rely on.
We live in a world where connectivity is an absolute necessity. With more than 275 million smartphone users in the US, and with up to 25 internet-connected devices in the average American home, it’s safe to say that reliable internet is no longer a luxury, but indispensable. Society’s expectations for our wireless devices go beyond texting, calling, and surfing. Smartphone and mobile devices are used for everything from securing a safe ride home, to socializing with friends, to using touchless payments, to working from home, and more – and we expect it all to work in an instant.
Even the best smart devices are only as good as their network. Whether it be livestreaming, sharing video from your child’s soccer tournament, attending Chicago’s Michelada Fest or Lallapalooza, navigating directions using GPS, and checking in with loved ones from anywhere all require a network of communications infrastructure. After all, according to an Ericsson Mobility Report, smartphones generate about 97 percent of mobile data traffic, with video accounting for nearly 70 percent of that traffic.
The movement from 3G to 4G meant an explosion of mobile internet use, as users created more and more data with every swipe of their finger. Now, we need to upgrade from 4G to 5G to meet the ever-growing data demand created by modern American life. To achieve this level of connectivity anywhere, anytime, 5G communications infrastructure must be built in every Chicago community. Not only will the buildout of next gen wireless networks create more jobs in Chicago, but 5G will unlock innovations in nearly every industry.
With an estimated 3 billion 5G subscriptions worldwide by 2025, demand is skyrocketing for the reliable, ultra-fast connectivity this technology will bring, and innovation along with it. The infrastructure we build will empower your business by allowing you to take advantage of customer demand for new grocery or food delivery services, online appointment setting, and new innovations that are yet to come due to the opportunities 5G creates. Chicago is already home to the various new technologies that allow businesses to engage customers—5G infrastructure will enable us to reliably meet that demand.
There are 17 billion connected machines today, 7 billion of which are IoT devices – and that’s expected to triple in the next three years to 21 billion IoT devices. You as a business owner have already come to rely on these technologies that have quickly become the new norm. By working together to build, maintain, and improve these revolutionary 5G capabilities in Chicago, everyone can benefit from faster, more reliable internet whenever and wherever it’s needed.