Small cells took a major part in last week’s Mobile World Congress Americas event in San Francisco, indicating how this technology is finally entering the mainstream of carrier strategies as they look towards densification and 5G. Ironically, of course, MNOs’ hesitancy to implement small cells at scale may come back to haunt them, if new rivals emerge which can use shared spectrum, small cells and edge computing to support new business models and undermine the mobile operators’ dominance (see previous items). But whether the deployer is an MNO, a cableco or a neutral host provider, the complexities of sites and backhaul must be addressed more effectively to make small cell roll-out more cost-effective, rapid and repeatable – something the public…