Franklin Wireless (operating as Franklin Access) makes wireless connectivity hardware — primarily mobile hotspots and fixed wireless routers — that give consumers and businesses internet access over 5G and 4G LTE networks. Franklin sells almost entirely to wireless carriers and distributors, which in turn offer Franklin's devices to their subscribers. Revenue is driven by device volumes and pricing, and the business is heavily dependent on carrier purchasing decisions, which tend to be lumpy and concentrated. Franklin outsources manufacturing to two companies in Asia, with product design and R&D handled through FTI, Franklin's majority-owned subsidiary in Seoul, South Korea. The cost structure is dominated by cost of goods sold, and margins are thin. North America accounts for essentially all of Franklin's revenue. Franklin also offers JEXtream, a cloud-based device management platform that provides mobile device management and network management capabilities to carriers and enterprises, though the business remains predominantly hardware-driven. Beyond its core business, Franklin is pursuing several adjacent opportunities: Sigbeat, a 60%-owned joint venture focused on IoT connectivity modules; an industrial IoT gateway product for M2M applications; on-device AI for edge computing; and Quvo Family Guardian, a consumer product adding parental controls and senior care monitoring to Franklin's devices.
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