Mobile Tv

Qualcomm invests in femtocell maker ip.access

Thu, 22 May 2008 06:59:57 -0400

Femtocell and picocell maker ip.access received a financial boost from Qualcomm. The company joined existing investors Cisco, Intel Capital, ADC, Motorola Ventures, Scottish Equity Partners, Rothschild Gestion and Amadeus Capital Partners to fund ip.access' Oyster 3G femtocell system, which uses the residential broadband connection to deliver a 3G signal in the home. ip.access is rumored to have inked a femtocell deal with AT&T.

This move by one of the technology giants in the wireless industry is being seen as validating the concept as well as ramping up the competitive stakes. "Having [Qualcomm's] weight behind us and behind femtocells is good," Andy Tiller, VP of marketing at ip.access, told sister publication FierceWireless Europe. "It's beginning to look like this market is about scale. We need big friends in that kind of market, and Qualcomm is one of those friends."

Ovum analyst Jeremy Green says that while Ovum is still somewhat skeptical about the femtocell business case, Qualcomm's decision to invest in ip.access gives the femtocell proposition more credibility.

This is the second big European announcement from Qualcomm this week. On Monday, the firm announced it was purchasing a 40 MHz chunk of L-band spectrum, prompting speculation that it was planning to use it to deliver mobile TV service.

For more:
- see this press release

Related stories:
Qualcomm wins U.K. spectrum but coy about plans. See this story about Qualcomm's spectrum win
T-Mobile invests in femtocell maker. Read this T-Mobile femtocell article
Rumor: ip.access wins femtocell deal with AT&T. See this article on ip.access and AT&T

Technology-neutral European auctions opportunity for technology companies

Mon, 19 May 2008 06:59:58 -0400

European governments have taken an unprecedented move to offer wireless broadband licenses on a technology-neutral basis, and technology companies are taking advantage to foster the proliferation of their technology interests and for a relatively cheap price tag.

Qualcomm last week won U.K.-wide L-band spectrum for $12.9 million, but the company is being vague about its plans for the band, saying it wants to "explore emerging business models and advanced mobile technologies."

Said Andrew Gilbert, an executive VP of Qualcomm: "Acquiring this spectrum will enable us to develop, test and explore a variety of innovative wireless services and technologies that will benefit European consumers and the wireless industry as a whole. The company has a long history of innovation and creating new technology markets."

Earlier this month, Intel Capital was among the winners of Sweden's auction of the 2.6 GHz band, acquiring 50 MHz of TDD spectrum for $26.5 million. Intel is seeking partners to build and operate a WiMAX network. The company plans to rent out the license to partners rather than sell it to grow WiMAX and the market for its Centrino WiMAX-enabled chips.

Of course, Qualcomm has a history of pushing new technologies via license ownership, with mobile TV being the latest. As it was going around evangelizing CDMA in the 1990s, the company bought licenses to begin Leap Wireless to push CDMA. Maybe it wants to prove that Ultra Mobile Broadband, the 4G path for CDMA technology, is a viable one.

It will be interesting to see who bids in the auctions going forward. Might Google make a play for a license and look for someone to run the network so it can guarantee its services on a carrier's network? Will Intel look to win more licenses, and what in the world is Qualcomm doing?--Lynnette

What will Qualcomm do with the U.K. spectrum it won?

Mon, 19 May 2008 06:59:53 -0400

Having won the auction for the U.K.-wide L-band spectrum auction, Qualcomm has been reluctant to define what it might be used for other than to "explore emerging business models and advanced mobile technologies."

Qualcomm spent $12.9 million to win the spectrum right to the 1452 MHz to 1492 MHz band, and competing against seven other hopefuls, Qualcomm claims the license is suitable for offering mobile television, wireless broadband and satellite radio. The spectrum has been released on a technology and service neutral basis, leaving Qualcomm and its partners free to decide what to do next. The frequency band is also available as of now.

Andrew Gilbert, an executive VP of Qualcomm, said: "Acquiring this spectrum will enable us to develop, test and explore a variety of innovative wireless services and technologies that will benefit European consumers and the wireless industry as a whole. The company has a long history of innovation and creating new technology markets."

For more on this story:
-read CNNmoney

Is 3 UK moving toward a bit-pipe model?

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 06:59:58 -0400

Kevin Russel, CEO of 3 UK, which has taken the open access model to heart by opening up its network to any application, has reset the company's business objectives by stating there will be less emphasis on developing mobile content and a greater focus on promoting mobile email, VoIP and IM services.

The Hutchison Whampoa-owned carrier made the headlines in 2006 when it announced the X-Series offering, a service that, among other things, included an 'all you can eat' data plan and came with Skype pre-installed on the subscribers' terminals. In October, 3 introduced the Skypephone that features a dedicated Skype button.

Since introducing a USB dongle, 3 says that data throughput on its HSDPA network increased sevenfold from October '07 to February '08, and mobile broadband would be a focus area. "But there are some bandwagons 3 is not big enough to jump on", Russell added. "We need to be a more focused company and not get distracted by services such as mobile TV." He also noted the company would continue to follow an own-brand handsets strategy, as this enabled it to offer more disruptive services such as Skype.

3's strategy should be watched carefully as many operators will embark on an open access model as they move into the 4G world. Is this the bit-pipe warning that Vodafone CEO Arun Sarin mentioned during his keynote at CTIA earlier this month? 3 isn't offering its own email, VoIP and IM services. It's allowing partners like Skype, Yahoo!, Microsoft and Google offer these services, possibly pushing 3 toward that bit-pipe model (for some reason the industry likes to use the phrase bit pipe instead of dumb pipe). 3's business model could ultimately turn into one where it is subsidizing devices, carrying data traffic and dealing with customer service.

3, however, says it would rather get a head start over larger competitors with email, VoIP and IM services than get distracted with developing content services. Meanwhile, many operators are talking about becoming "smart" pipes, a term I heard at FierceMarkets' 4G conference during the CTIA show. Sprint is embarking on such a strategy with its WiMAX network. It means operators leverage their assets, acting as both a content and access provider by controlling the customer experience. Third parties may be able to develop applications for the network, but the operator also partners with content providers to create optimized services. It also means the operator can charge based on function, not bits, and prioritize traffic on their networks.

It will be interesting to see how operators approach this open access world. We could very well see a no one-size fits all answer to this and everyone still making money.--Lynnette

ICO to deliver DVB-SH services soon via satellite

Thu, 03 Apr 2008 07:59:53 -0400

Satellite company ICO Global Communications announced plans to deploy a GEO satellite on April 14 that will deliver a satellite-hybrid terrestrial network using mobile TV technology DVB-SH.

After the satellite is launched, the company plans to begin market trials in Las Vegas and Raleigh-Durham in mid-2008 of what it calls ICO MIM, Mobile Interactive Media. The trials will focus on three areas: entertainment using DVB-SH for mobile TV services, guidance services that will include real-time traffic data and social networking applications and assistance services, which will offer OnStar-like roadside services.

Initially, the service will consist of a "set-top box in the trunk" to deliver these services, said Tim Bryan, CEO of ICO during an Alcatel-Lucent press briefing here at CTIA. Later, the company plans to offer dockable portable mobile and OEM-installed devices. Direct delivery to handhelds is possible in the future.

Partners in the trial include Alcatel-Lucent, which is providing the DVB-SH technology, Hughes and WiMAX operator Clearwire, which adds a wireless broadband offering to the mix. Last fall, Clearwire announced a joint agreement with ICO. Craig McCaw, who founded Clearwire, owns a 75-percent voting interest in ICO.

Related articles:
Can WiMAX be a boon to the MSS industry? Editorial
Clearwire, ICO collaborate on mobile video Report

Vendors work to speed up existing data technology

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 07:59:58 -0400

With all the hoopla surrounding WiMAX and LTE as the future at this week's CTIA 2008 show in Las Vegas, vendors don't want us to forget HSPA and even EDGE.

Ericsson plans to demonstrate downlink speeds of 42 Mb/s over a 5-megahertz channel using HSPA evolved equipment with the addition of MIMO technology. The new architecture is expected to become commercially available this year. For some time Ericsson, which hasn't boarded the WiMAX train, has been heavily pushing HSPA, likely hoping that by providing improvements, operators won't be tempted to deploy WiMAX before LTE comes along. For the past year Ericsson has been doing everything it can to make HSPA attractive for a while.

In October, the vendor introduced infrastructure and device platforms for WCDMA/HSPA in the 2.6 GHz frequency band, where new licenses for wireless broadband services are becoming available globally. Most view that band along with the 2.5 GHz and 3.5 GHz as bands ripe for WiMAX growth. Ericsson also announced its first HSPA module for laptops and other client devices, aiming for 50 percent of notebook computers to adopt HSPA modules by 2011. In September, Ericsson introduced the U335 WCDMA mobile platform designed to enable handset providers to create mass-market HSPA multimedia devices capable of offering services such as mobile TV, mobile video blogging and other services that require both high uplink and downlink data speeds.

Of course, Ericsson has another good point. Not every operator can get their hands on additional spectrum to deploy WiMAX or LTE, which will require a significant amount of spectrum to achieve the extremely high data speeds that the technology's proponents tout.

Meanwhile, Nokia Siemens Networks announced last week an upgrade to EDGE technology that doubles its speed. The new software, known as Dual Carrier EDGE, improves the speed to 600 kbps over existing GSM/EDGE networks. NSN said that its new Dual Carrier EDGE technology, which will be available as a software upgrade beginning in the third quarter, is part the company's strategy to promote EDGE as a true mobile broadband technology.

No doubt EDGE would be dying right now if it wasn't for the popularity of the iPhone in the U.S. and Europe. It has been seen that the iPhone's support of EDGE is the primary flaw of the iPhone since the sophisticated capabilities of the device can't be fully exploited by an EDGE network with sparse access to WiFi.

But the iPhone still flies in the face of what operators around the world are trying to do: make money from 3G. They are looking for innovative ways to persuade customers to adopt services on these higher speed networks to monetize their investments and deliver data services at a more cost-effective price point. Move into the WiMAX or LTE realm, and it's about providing a broadband Internet experience quite cheaply, something that is not affordable even on today's fastest 3G networks. Now apply the iPhone on a 2.5G network, and it's a step back. Will speeding up an inefficient network do the trick?--Lynnette

P.S. The Fierce editorial team will be bringing you all the news from CTIA Wireless. I'll be there along with Editor-in-Chief Sue Marek, Brian Dolan and Jason Ankeny. Click here for the latest news from CTIA.

Qualcomm CEO admits to slow pace of mobile TV

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 07:59:55 -0400

Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs said his company's foray into the broadcast mobile TV space, through subsidiary MediaFlo USA, has moved slower than Qualcomm wants. Speaking during the Tech Policy Summit in Los Angeles, the CEO said carriers "haven't spent a lot of advertising on it to this point," adding that they may be waiting for MediaFlo to increase its coverage.

MediaFlo USA has a deal with Verizon, which has launched the service and AT&T Mobility, which hasn't rolled out service yet. "It's not as nationwide as we would have liked," Jacobs said. "We're really waiting for February 2009 to get the real digital transition done."

To read more about Jacobs' views on MediaFlo:
- check out this article from RCR Wireless News

Related articles:
Qualcomm files $240 million loss on MediaFlo Report
Qualcomm acquires Xiam for $32 million Report

Forecasting wireless broadband is a complex proposition

Thu, 20 Mar 2008 07:59:58 -0400

I've had a few conversations now that center around the difficulties in projecting market growth for OFDMA-based mobile broadband systems, namely WiMAX and LTE (Long Term Evolution). It's no cut-and-dry prospect.

Ron Resnick, president of the WiMAX Forum, recently voiced his concern to me over analyst projections that forecast the market for one flavor of OFDMA as being bigger than another. "How are they getting there, because there are so many variables?" he lamented. That's why the WiMAX Forum plans to release a commissioned report soon, taking into account a number of variables.

What are they? In the mobile voice world, projections are relatively easy to make as most operators have deployed similar voice networks with similar coverage. But the mobile broadband world will be defined by the fact that not every operator will deploy their networks in the same way. Some will deploy fixed networks, others nomadic and still others fully mobile. What type of deployment an operator chooses has a bearing on capex, how many subscribers it will attract and what its return on investment could be. Frequency bands certainly play an important role given the fact that an OFDMA network would require more cell sites at 3.5 GHz than 700 MHz. Moreover, what sort of business plan are mobile broadband operators embarking on? A simple access model? VoIP services, mobile TV? How much spectrum does an operator have? Then there are technical considerations such as MIMO and smart antennas. The list goes on.

Michael Thelander, head of Signals Research, and a crew of experts have spent 15 months tackling these variables. His firm has released a new economic study evaluating mobile broadband. Rather than predicting any technology winners or subscribers, the firm plugged these different variables I mentioned to come up with economic feasibility of deploying OFDMA-based systems. Signals Research studied wireless broadband across 65 countries, eight frequency bands and the various flavors of OFDMA. The firm then plugged in different variables, such as nomadic vs. fully mobile deployments, to determine an operator's network economics.

For example, if an operator deployed a truly mobile broadband wireless network that is capable of deep in-building penetration to a handheld device at 2.5 GHz, covering the top 70 percent of the population would require about 11 times more coverage of cell sites than a network that was designed to provide semi-fixed coverage and nearly 20 times more coverage cell sites than a network that was designed to provide fixed wireless services, Thelander said.

Of course, just because it's cheaper to deploy a fixed network, doesn't mean every market can support one. The North American market has a limited market for fixed or semi-fixed networks, while a market like India, with low broadband penetration, could easily find success from such deployment scenarios.

"Given our analysis of existing telecom demand, combined with these metrics and their underlying economic implications, operators in developing markets may be better off initially designing their networks for nomadic or semi-fixed services and then grow into higher degrees of mobility as subscriber uptake increases and they begin to add new cell sites for capacity purposes," Thelander said.

The bottom line is the greater the risk, the greater the return. Operators taking the most risk are those deploying a fully mobile WiMAX network, such as Sprint, because the industry has yet to see a dramatic swing in mobile broadband subscriber uptake and usage patterns. "There has to be something that drives a lot of data," Thelander said.

"One could argue that with the introduction of a new broadband wireless network that all of a sudden there will be a dramatic swing in subscriber uptake and usage patterns," Thelander said. "We don't disagree, but if we use the demand that exists today in these countries, or even multiples of what exists today, as the frame of reference for predicting future adoption on these new networks, then fully mobile networks would be largely under-utilized and, as a result, network economics would suffer."

Clearly, the mobile broadband world has become inherently more complex.--Lynnette