The Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) is one of the most successful spectrum policy innovations in recent years.
Often referred to as “America’s Innovation Band,” CBRS demonstrates how smart spectrum policy can expand connectivity, drive economic growth, and strengthen U.S. wireless leadership — all at the same time.
What Is CBRS?
CBRS is a first-of-its-kind, dynamic spectrum sharing model that allows multiple users to access the same spectrum band efficiently and reliably. It has opened opportunities for businesses, communities, institutions, and others to deploy advanced wireless services without the delays and disruption of clearing incumbent users.
The result is a flexible and scalable platform supporting next-generation wireless services across a wide range of environments.
How Does CBRS Work?
Operating in the 3.5 GHz band, CBRS uses a sharing framework to make valuable mid-band spectrum available for commercial use while protecting critical federal operations.
Rather than relocating federal users to other spectrum bands, CBRS enables commercial providers, enterprises, and other organizations to deploy 5G and private wireless networks while safeguarding mission-critical operations.
An automated Spectrum Access System (SAS) coordinates spectrum use in real time, ensuring the band is used efficiently and responsibly while ensuring protection from interference.
Why CBRS Matters
CBRS has quickly become a cornerstone of America’s mid-band spectrum ecosystem because it lowers barriers to deployment and unlocks new use cases. Today, CBRS supports:
- Private 5G networks that give businesses secure, high-performance connectivity tailored to their operations.
- CBRS has become the leading spectrum band for private mobile networks. It is now the most widely assigned band for these deployments, and the United States leads the world in the number of private mobile networks in operation.
- Expanded broadband access in rural and hard-to-serve areas where innovative deployment models are essential.
- Improved in-building and campus connectivity for hospitals, universities, airports, and other large facilities.
- Advanced industrial and logistics operations that rely on secure, low-latency wireless communications.
- Secure government and defense applications that operate alongside protected federal users.
By making mid-band spectrum more accessible, CBRS enables innovation across industries while strengthening overall spectrum efficiency.
CBRS at Work
CBRS is delivering measurable results in communities and facilities across the country. Real-world deployments demonstrate the versatility and impact of America’s Innovation Band:
- Broadband in eastern North Carolina: A rural broadband provider is using CBRS to deliver fixed wireless service across a wide rural area where traditional wired builds are costly and slow to deploy.
- Airport operations connectivity: At Miami International Airport, CBRS supports a private wireless network that enhances real-time coordination of baggage systems, ground operations, and logistics, providing secure and reliable connectivity across the airport campus.
- Military logistics modernization: For the U.S. Marine Corps, CBRS enables a private wireless network that improves warehouse and supply chain operations at its logistics facility in Georgia, while operating alongside other protected defense users.
- Smart connectivity at TSMC housing: At the new TSMC Arizona facility, CBRS provides a secure, reliable broadband solution across residential housing for employees, supporting smart home connectivity and campus-wide wireless needs.
These deployments are only a small portion of the innovative ways that CBRS supports enterprise innovation, strengthens logistics and operations for critical missions, and expands broadband access in areas where traditional options can be challenging.
Looking Ahead: A Proven Model for the Future
CBRS has become a global model for dynamic spectrum management.
It shows that shared spectrum can protect federal missions while supporting licensed investment and widespread commercial innovation. It demonstrates that mid-band spectrum can be made available efficiently, without years of delay. And it proves that forward-looking policy can accelerate deployment while safeguarding reliability and national security.
As policymakers consider the future of America’s spectrum strategy, preserving the integrity of the CBRS framework is critical.
America’s Innovation Band is already powering airports, factories, rural communities, and military facilities. With continued support, it will remain a cornerstone of U.S. wireless leadership — expanding connectivity, strengthening economic growth, and ensuring that spectrum policy keeps pace with innovation.
