3g services

India expected to auction 3G licenses soon

Lynnette Luna — Sun, 03 Aug 2008 22:54:14 -0400

Wireless infrastructure vendors everywhere should be rejoicing. After years of delays, India appears close to awarding 3G licenses and new spectrum. Late last week, the country's Department of Telecommunications (DoT) issued guidelines for the auction and anticipates seeing 3G services commercially available in 2009. The auction is expected to begin in two months and finish by the end of they year. Article

U.K.'s 3 hit by competition authority ruling

Thu, 22 May 2008 06:59:54 -0400

U.K. mobile-phone operator 3, owned by Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa, may be crippled by a decision from U.K. competition regulators that will require the operator to cut by 45 percent the charges it imposes on its competitors for interconnection fees.

3 had warned the Competition Appeal Tribunal, which heard 3's appeal against the original Ofcom ruling on the matter, that such a move would significantly reduce its revenue between 2007 and 2011. The tribunal said that argument was of "limited relevance." 3, which launched in 2003, has yet to report a pre-tax profit. 3 shook up the U.K. market in 2006 by offering flat-rate 3G data service.

To read more:
- check out this article from FT.com

Related stories:
3 launches flat-rate mobile Skype, Sling, Orb. See this story on 3's new 3G strategy
3 to come to U.K. market with cheap HSDPA. See this report on 3's U.K. HSPA strategy

A breakdown of the Sprint-Clearwire deal

Thu, 08 May 2008 06:59:57 -0400

After months of rumors and speculation, the deal that the mobile WiMAX industry has been hoping for finally became a reality. Sprint and Clearwire announced that they will be combining their WiMAX businesses and creating a new company that will include a $3.2 billion investment from Intel, Google, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Bright House Networks and Trilogy Equity Partners. The deal is complex, so here's a breakdown of the key elements:

The "new" Clearwire: The new company will be named Clearwire. It will include Sprint's Xohm unit. Sprint will contribute its 2.5 GHz spectrum to the new Clearwire in exchange for an ownership stake in the new company. Clearwire CEO Ben Wolff will be the CEO of the new Clearwire. Barry West, Sprint's CTO and Xohm business unit leader will be the president. The new company will include staff from both the existing Clearwire and Sprint Xohm business unit. Headquarters will be in Kirkland, Wash., with significant presence and R&D in Herndon, Va.

MVNO deals: Comcast, Time Warner, Bright House and Clearwire will operate as MVNOs selling Sprint 3G services. But unlike the former Pivot JV, these players will sell the 3G wireless services using their own brand names. Once the 4G WiMAX network is built, Comcast, Time Warner, Bright House and Sprint will be MVNOs on the Clearwire network.

Sprint's role: Sprint won't be involved in the day-to-day operations of Clearwire but as the largest shareholder it will have input on the portfolio and the go-to-market strategy.

Intel: Intel will work with manufacturers to embed WiMAX chips into laptops and devices. It will also have the option to enter into a 3G or 4G wholesale agreement with Clearwire and Sprint if it wants too.

Google: Google will partner with Clearwire on an open Internet business model. Clearwire will support the Android operating system. In addition, Google will be the default provider of Web and local search on Sprint's network and Sprint will preload several Google services including Google Maps for mobile, Gmail and YouTube. Like Intel, Google will have the option to have a 3G or 4G wholesale agreement with Clearwire or Sprint if it wants too.--Brian Dolan

For more details
- see this press release

Related articles:
Read this timeline of the Sprint/Clearwire WiMAX deal
Check out this chart depicting Clearwire's new spectrum position

ALSO NOTED: Ericsson introduces commercially available LTE-capable platform; Australian government nixes WiMAX plans; and much

Mon, 07 Apr 2008 06:59:51 -0400

> Ericsson introduced what it calls the world's first commercially available LTE-capable platform. Article

> Government plans to roll out broadband to underserved and rural parts of Australia using a mixture of WiMAX and ADSL have been abandoned. Article

> A trial WiMAX network in South Africa will be closed down at the end of the month after the regulator decided not to extend the trial license. Article

> Brazilian long-distance telecom provider Embratel Participacoes plans to invest $351 million in setting up a WiMAX broadband Internet network in 200 cities by the end of 2009. Article

> Thanks to greater adoption of 3G services and increase in made-for-mobile content, the mobile entertainment market could reach $47.5 billion by 2010, says Juniper Research. Article

And Finally... Will the iPhone drive iPorn? Article

iPass moves into consumer market

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 07:59:53 -0400

iPass announced today that it is moving into the consumer market. The company, whose core business is providing wireless connectivity services to the enterprise market, announced the availability of iPassConnect mobility service for individuals. The service enables business people and consumers to buy a subscription-based service, which was previously reserved for enterprises, directly from iPass.

"We had consumers ask how they could get our service," said Piero DePaoli, director of global product marketing. "Looking through our statistics, WiFi hotspots are great but very destination oriented. 3G services are up and coming and work well in big cities, but once you leave the big city, you get downgraded to slower speeds. And if you travel internationally, the moment you leave the country you're paying big fees."

The iPassConnect mobility service offers subscribers unlimited access to more than 95,000 WiFi hotspots as well as 3G service across the U.S. for a fixed monthly fee.

iPass is taking a conservative approach to the consumer market, viewing it as a niche part of its business, but as DePaoli said: "Consumerization is a huge trend and could become very powerful for us."

For more about iPass' consumer offering:
- check out this release

Related articles:
- iPass breaks 40,000 WiFi hotspot barrier in Europe Report
- 3G usage offers a business case for 4G Editorial

3G usage offers a business case for 4G

Thu, 13 Mar 2008 07:59:58 -0400

iPass released a new survey that measures both enterprise WiFi usage and 3G broadband usage. The findings shed some light on how much enterprise users are relying on 3G. According to the findings:

Monthly usage increased steadily throughout the year, growing from an average of 152 MB per user in the first quarter of 2007 to 190 MB in the fourth quarter. Of those more established users who had been on the service since January 2007, monthly usage averaged 188 MB in Q1 and 225 MB in Q4, indicating that usage seems to rise with experience.
At the extreme, a small number of users exceeded 2 GB of usage in a given month. These heavy users accounted for less than one half of one percent of all users in the sample and were offset by the 32 percent of businesspeople who used on average less than 50 MB in a month.
Users tended to access their mobile broadband capability quite regularly. More than 90 percent of established users were active in any given month.

The results should give Verizon Wireless some justification in putting limits on its data plans. The operator recently introduced new data plans that have a hard stop at either 5GB or 50MB of data depending on the plan. Those who go over, spend extra per MB.

"Roughly 97 percent of our customers are well within the 5GB level so the plans meet the needs of what customers have told us they wanted," said Brenda Raney, spokeswoman with Verizon Wireless.

But what happens when demand continues to grow as it is expected? In the 3G world, voice is still the revenue generator of the business. That means voice capacity is being sacrificed for high-speed data services. As such, it's difficult for some operators to offer a truly unlimited high-speed data plan. That's why operators have not positioned 3G as a competitor to DSL or cable.

Moreover, as usage increases on flat-rate mobile data pricing plans, revenues are threatened, operator executives speaking at a CeBIT NGMN meeting recently lamented. Usage is increasing at a far greater rate than operator revenues.

Hamid Akhavan, CEO of T-Mobile, said that this could lead to a complete decoupling of traffic and revenues. "It is only a matter of time before we lose all profitability on mobile data. In the past, user experience has been driven by the average traffic on a cell site. Today it has to do with how much peak traffic you can carry in a cell."

Doesn't this offer a business case for a transition to an all-IP 4G infrastructure in the next few years? By then, with the help of WiMAX, expectations will be a wireless broadband experience any place at any time with no limitations. People have always questioned the need for next-generation technology. In the analog world, folks wondered whether digital was necessary when usage wasn't spiking on analog networks. In 2001, the industry wondered if we really needed 3G because there was uncertainty around user demand for wireless broadband services. What we are witnessing today, leads me to believe that yes, there is a market for 4G and soon.--Lynnette

And to learn even more about 4G, check out the agenda for our "Path To 4G" seminar at CTIA Wireless 2008. Fierce will be hosting the day-long seminar on April 2, which will feature speakers such as Kris Rinne, CTO of AT&T and Barry West, CTO of Sprint Nextel and president of Xohm. Click here for details. You can register for this event when you register for CTIA.

ALSO NOTED: Worldwide EV-DO subscribers grew 64% in 2007; 02 fails to meet 3G license coverage requirements; and much more...

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 06:59:51 -0500

> The worldwide 1xEV-DO subscriber base grew from 55 million to 90.5 million in 2007, achieving a compound annual growth rate of more than 64 percent, according to the CDMA Development Group. Article

> 02 may have to pay an $80-million fine in the U.K. for not meeting its 3G license coverage requirements. Article

> Telecom Italia has won three WiMAX licenses in Italy, according to sources. Article

> The French telecoms regulator, Arcep, has given the OK to Orange and SFR (Societe Francaise de Radiotelephonie) to deploy 3G services using the 900 MHz band frequencies. Article

And Finally.... The BBC apologized for its airing of a one-sided WiFi safety scare television show. Article

SPOTLIGHT: In-Stat says 3G uptake will drive base station sales

Tue, 19 Feb 2008 06:59:52 -0500

In-Stat says sales of base stations depend on the take-up rate of 3G services worldwide. The firm predicts more than 4.7 million cellular base stations will be in operation by 2011. Article

ALSO NOTED: Ruckus shows off IPTV feeds via 802.11n access point; TransTelecom to deploy WiMAX in Bulgaria; and much more...

Mon, 14 Jan 2008 06:59:51 -0500

> Ruckus showed off an 802.11n access point capable of transmitting IPTV feeds around the home. Article

> Bulgarian operator TransTelecom is deploying a commercial WiMAX network operating in the 3.5 GHz band. Article

> Aircell, which plans to provide in-flight WiFi and 3G services, has chosen Martin Dawes Systems to provide customer care for the company. Release

And Finally... A security expert explains why he leaves his own WiFi network unsecured. Article

China continues to hedge on 3G

Mon, 22 Oct 2007 06:59:53 -0400

China continues to play coy about when it plans to issue 3G licenses. Lou Qinjian, vice-minister of China's information industry, indicated China has no timetable for issuing the licenses, saying 3G services still lacked a clear business model. Of course, the Chinese government has been pushing the country's home-grown standard, TD-SCDMA, and has a vested interest in making sure it competes well with the more mature 3G technologies, WCDMA and EV-DO. And vendors have been wringing their hands to get 3G in China, especially with all of the profit warnings.

To read more about China's 3G views:
- take a look at this article from the Financial Times

SPOTLIGHT: Europe's mobile broadband market to reach $4.1B

Mon, 02 Jul 2007 06:59:52 -0400

New research from Berg Insight says the European mobile broadband market will reach 5 million connections at the end of this year, with Austria and Sweden leading the way because operators there are offering affordable 3G services at about 20 euros per month for laptop users.

The firm forecasts that the total value of the European mobile broadband market will grow at an annual compound growth rate of 22.9 percent during the next five years to reach $4.1 billion. The number of connections are expected to reach nearly 30 million by 2011, the year when mobile network connectivity is anticipated to become a standard feature in notebook PCs. Release

Helio ends hybrid WiFi/3G data plan; What's next?

Sun, 22 Apr 2007 20:01:38 -0400

Helio ends hybrid WiFi/3G data plan; What's next?
MVNO Helio is ending its hybrid WiFi/3G data plan next month. It hasn't said why, although it's probably safe to assume it was lack of uptake (Why else do operators pull plans?). The plan was introduced last October using the some 55,000 hotspots controlled by Boingo and Sprint Nextel's CDMA2000 1xEV-DO service which Helio buys minutes from. Using specially designed software, Helio Hybrid combined the use of an external 3G card with a laptop's built-in WiFi capability, automatically searching for the best wireless signal from free private or commercial WiFi hotspots and from the EV-DO networks. Then it automatically connected users to the best-performing network. The card was available on Helio's website for free with a two-year customer agreement and a data plan costing $85 per month for unlimited access.

The plan was actually quite attractive and got some rave reviews since 3G-only plans cost about the same. Verizon Wireless, Sprint Nextel or AT&T don't offer a decent WiFi plan alongside their 3G services, let alone on a single bill. They'd rather keep traffic on their own networks. T-Mobile offers attractive packages but doesn't really have a competitive high-speed mobile data network.

WiFi should have been the preferred connection method both because it's faster than 3G and it's cheaper for Helio because, as an MVNO, it has to pay Verizon or Sprint for each minute or bit they use.

Does that mean WiFi/3G plans are unattractive to end users? I suspect that Helio is suffering more from spreading itself too thin. The move to offer mobile broadband service is a divergence from its main business plan: to offer young tech-savvy users an advanced mobile-phone experience. A data-card WiFi/3G offering is still attractive primarily to the road warrior business professional.

Hopefully, Helio will continue to experiment with WiFi. Chances are it will, given the fact that Helio's CEO Sky Dayton is the founder and chairman of Boingo. But Helio is also burning through a lot of money and will need significantly more than the $440 million its parent companies, Earthlink and SK Telecom in Korea, have pledged to it.

Can it afford to keep experimenting? Right now it's working to differentiate itself from fellow MVNO Amp'd Mobile, which is going after the same teen demographics. WiFi may present a key differentiator for Helio beyond just access. For instance, it could take a cue from T-Mobile, which is running a promotion with Sony Computer Entertainment America that involves offering a new firmware upgrade for its PlayStation Portable (PSP) system, called version 3.30, that will enable PSP users to play games online, browse the Internet and download podcasts on all 7,000 of T-Mobile USA's hotspots for free for six months. After the six months are over, T-Mobile will offer PSP owners an option to purchase a subscription at a special rate.

It's a rather creative way for both Sony and T-Mobile to drive customer adoption. Sony notes that more PSP users are going online to challenge each other in multi-player games. Giving them the ability to do that in more places only increases the attractiveness of the device. T-Mobile, in return, potentially receives access to the millions of PSP owners who will try the service for free, get hooked on using it for six months for online gaming and be willing to pay the special rate reserved just for them. A similar offering could give Helio the opportunity to bundle mobile services and cross-sell applications. As mentioned in today's Spotlight story, Nintendo DS systems account for about 25 percent of the WiFi traffic in McDonald's restaurants.

Finally, I'm pleased to announce this year's 2007 FierceWireless Fierce 15 list. It consists of the 15 privately held startups the staff at FierceWireless believes hold the most promise to help shape the wireless industry and establish a successful presence in this market. Check out this year's list here. --Lynnette

WiMAX distance record set

Mon, 19 Jun 2006 20:01:39 -0400

Going the distance. WiMAX Telecom Group, the only multinational operator of WiMAX services in Europe, transmitted live pictures of the World Sailing Championships on the Neusiedlersee in Austria through its wireless broadband Internet connection. Why is this important? Because this sets a new record transmitting live video at ranges of up to 40 kilometers and from moving vessel to WiMAX Telecom in extending its network in the coastal region of Croatia. This news should be of interest not only to boat owners.

WiMAX Telecom says this was the first attempt to send live video footage via WiMAX from a moving vehicle into the Internet: From a yacht moving at 12 knots, pictures of the World Sailing Championship were streamed live, and over a distance of about 40 kilometers. This should be good news for agencies such as the Coast Guard and also for the merchant marine.

For more on the record-setting experiment
-see this report

MORE: Frost & Sullivan says that the introduction of mobile WiMAX, and the expensive roll-out of 3G services in many areas of the world, has created concerns about WiMAX being a direct competitor to 3G. This concern is more pronounced in the Asian region. The combination of 2.5G such as EDGE with WiMAX could be seen as a far less expensive business model compared to the 3G-deployment model. New analysis from F&S finds that the revenue in the WiMAX chip sets industry totaled $18 million in 2005 and projects to reach $257.3 million in 2008. Report.