Verizon moved a step closer to deploying 5G services on Citizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) spectrum after completing a trial data session with Ericsson.

CBRS will add more spectrum depth for Verizon’s 5G service, with the operator planning to deploy it alongside C-Band and mmWave spectrum.

A Verizon representative told Mobile World Live it sees CBRS as a capacity play, with plans to also employ the spectrum in areas which have constraints, where there are major usage increases and in higher-density areas where mmWave isn’t in use.

The 5G data session trial with Ericsson employed General Authorised Access (GAA) spectrum, one of three tiers within the CBRS band alongside protected incumbent users including the US military and Priority Access Licences (PAL).

Verizon spent $1.9 billion on PAL in an Federal Communications Commission auction in 2020.

Kyle Malady, Verizon EVP and president of Global Networks and Technology, stated the company “leads the industry with the strongest spectrum portfolio across low-, mid- and high-band spectrum”.