proposals

FCC mulling another spectrum auction

Tue, 27 May 2008 06:59:57 -0400

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin has scheduled a vote on rules for another spectrum auction. And you thought there wasn't any more spectrum to be auctioned. This auction would include 25 megahertz in the 2155 MHz to 2180 MHz band and would require the winning bidder to offer free broadband service under a strict buildout schedule.

It's a similar plan to what M2Z Networks proposed back in 2006. The company asked the FCC for 25 megahertz of vacant spectrum in the 2155 MHz to 2175 MHz band to offer free wireless broadband service. The FCC subsequently dismissed M2Z's request. More recently, Rep. Anna Eshoo (D-Calif.) introduced new legislation, known as the Wireless International Nationwide for Families Act, that would direct the FCC to auction unused spectrum, the 2155 MHz to 2180MHz band, and require the winner to offer a free wireless broadband network that reaches 95 percent of the U.S. population within 10 years.

"We've had a variety of proposals that had come into the commission originally where some people wanted us to give them the spectrum," said Martin in an RCR Wireless News article. The FCC chairman said a vote may be held at the agency's upcoming June 12 meeting, but added it is possible the measure could be approved before that date.

Martin said a licensee of the 2155-2180 MHz spectrum would have to provide a free service tier, and would have to reach 50 percent of the population in four years and 95 percent of the population by the end of the license term.

To read more about the FCC's auction plans:
- check out this article from RCR Wireless News

Related stories:
- Congresswoman proposes free wireless broadband. See this wireless broadband story
- M2Z Networks pushes broadband for the masses. See this M2Z Networks story

Houston issues RFI for muni-WiFi

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 06:59:54 -0500

Using its $5 million it received as a penalty payment from EarthLink for dropping the city, the city of Houston is looking to re-launch its muni-WiFi initiative, issuing a request for information to review proposals for a new project.

The RFI is looking for information about approaches for providing network operational support for a mixed-use muni WiFi network, hotspot network services in high traffic areas of the city and ISP and open access wholesale management.

For more about Houston's WiFi plans:
- read this article from MuniWireless

Related articles:
EarthLink not responsive in Houston with WiFi Report
Houston not wavering on WiFi plans Report
EarthLink officially pulls the plug on muni-WiFi business Report

What is Grand Rapids up to?

Thu, 20 Sep 2007 06:59:58 -0400

Late last year, the city council in Grand Rapids, Mich., unanimously approved a bid from Clearwire to build a sort of muni-WiMAX network, one that will see both government users and consumers served. By the end of this year, the city expects to have a fully standardized mobile WiMAX network run by Clearwire, said Sally Wesorick, wireless project manager with Grand Rapids.

Clearwire beat out nine other proposals from companies such as AT&T/IBM, EarthLink, NeoReach and Pronto Networks. The operator will own and operate the broadband network and will include hybrid WiFi hotspot locations. Wesorick said the city was set on WiFi until it made its due diligence visits to deployments of Clearwire's pre-WiMAX systems.

"What really tipped the balance was the performance of WiMAX," she said. "We couldn't lose a signal in the WiMAX network in Greensboro, N.C. It wasn't supposed to be mobile but we were going 70 miles per hour on the highway streaming video. We connected in the conference room in the hotel without any issues. We even drove into areas of high foliage, parking ramps, hospitals with wireless noise, trying to see if it would interfere, and we didn't lose the signal."

Clearwire was going to build out the Grand Rapids market anyway as it owns licensed spectrum there. Now it has a guaranteed revenue stream from the start as the city plans to use WiMAX to bolster its public-safety capabilities as well as enhance other government functions.

The WiMAX network will be designed to be ubiquitous, overlayed with strategically placed WiFi hotspots to cater to conventions, businesses and low-income areas. The city hasn't decided where those locations will be.

The network could very well become a proving ground for WiMAX in the municipal wireless world. I for one will be interested to see how it plays out.--Lynnette

After two years, San Francisco is closer to free WiFi

Mon, 09 Jul 2007 06:59:53 -0400

Two years after proposing a plan to unwire San Francisco with free muni-WiFi, Mayor Gavin Newsom may finally see the plan come to fruition, with some modifications. In May, Newsom voiced his frustration that plans to have the city WiFi-enabled were put on hold again by the board of supervisors. He lamented that San Francisco could become one of the last cities in the U.S. to have WiFi.

Newsom's administration had negotiated a contract with Earthlink and Google to provide the network. The duo would pay the city $2 million over four years in exchange for building and operating the network. But some members of the board of supervisors didn't like the contract and wanted the city to consider running its own WiFi network. Aaron Peskin, president of the board, said he studied the contract and decided it would benefit the city--with some significant changes to the contract. Peskin said he is in talks with officials at EarthLink about the proposed amendments.

Peskin's proposals include:

Speeding up the connection for those receiving WiFi for free. Under Newsom's original plan, those customers would be connected at a slower rate of 300 Kbps, while paid subscribers would get 1 Mbps. Peskin believes the speed for free users should be increased to 500 Kbps.
Making sure the network works in all parts of the city, especially in the southeast sector where a high percentage of residents lack Internet access.
Getting more money from Earthlink. Peskin said he wants to make sure the city is compensated for letting Earthlink use the city's poles. He also wants the 16-year contract Newsom has negotiated to be shortened to eight years.

For more about the proposed WiFi contract modifications:
- read this article from the San Francisco Chronicle

WiFi mesh-networking draft standard approved

Tue, 14 Mar 2006 19:01:36 -0500

The IEEE standards group working on interoperable WiFi mesh networks has taken an important step forward by adopting a single proposal as the basis for the new standard. The new standard sets the stage for a battle royal between WiFi mesh and 802.16 technologies such as WiMAX and ETSI HiperMAN. The new standard will be called 802.11s. It will define the WLAN MAC and PHY for "extended service set mesh networking." The goal (brace yourself now) was to create a protocol for auto-configuring paths between APs over self-configuring multi-hop topologies in a wireless distribution system (WDS) to support both broadcast/multicast and unicast traffic in an ESS Mesh using the four-address frame format or an extension. Translation: The standard will allow WLAN APs mobility.

The beginning did not look promising, with 15 proposals submitted to the working group when it met in July 2005. It took two months to whittle the list to four proposals, and four more months, until January 2006, to wind them down to two proposals (or, rather, approaches). As was the case with 802.11n and UWB, powerful companies joined to create powerful coalitions behind the two approaches. The first coalition was the Wi-Mesh Alliance (WiMA), created last year and led by Nortel. Supporters include Accton Technology, ComNets, InterDigital Communications, NextHop Technologies, Philips, Extreme Networks, MITRE, Naval Research Laboratory, Swisscom Innovations and Thomson. In the opposite corner was the SEEMesh coalition, backed by Intel, Nokia, Motorola, NTT DoCoMo and Texas Instruments. To the surprise of many, the two coalitions managed to reach a compromise on a single joint proposal, which the IEEE working group quickly approved. Final approval of 802.11s is targeted for 2008.

For more on the joint mesh-networking standard:
- see this Telecomweb report

ALSO: Farpoint's Craig Mathias is bullish on mesh networks. The problem with WLANs in public venues, he writes, is the core challenge that any cellular network faces: back haul. "The interconnection of outdoor access points would normally be the source of most of the expense in deploying metro-scale WLANs, but this isn't the reality we see today. Rather, we can interconnect the access points (AP) wirelessly, using a technique based on the concept of a mesh... A wireless mesh allows APs to be connected only to power and then to interface with the rest of the infrastructure by relaying information to other APs--in other words, the back haul is wireless. This allows an operator to quite literally blanket an area with APs and provision over-the-air back haul at basically zero cost for this interconnect." Analysis

PLUS: If your company is in Tempe, AZ (but not only there), you're now faced with a decision: Should you spend money on metro-area WiFi services or cellular data services such as 1x EV-DO? Analysis

Chicago's brand of muni-WiFi

Tue, 21 Feb 2006 19:01:36 -0500

Chicago is looking for proposals to build a citywide WiFi network. The Windy City joins others which are moving toward building a WiFi network of their own, among them Philadelphia and San Francisco. New Orleans, too, is using a free WiFi network to attract businesses back to the ravaged city. New Orleans got around the legal issues involved in deploying municipal networks more easily than other cities because its designation as a disaster zone made it exempt from various rules and regulations, including those governing communication.

Chicago's request for proposals was announced by the city's CIO, Chris O'Brien. Note that unlike other cities, Chicago has no interest in operating the WiFi service or investing money in it. The city's goal is to ensure that any plan for the network will be a viable alternative to DSL and cable broadband services, while at the same time being inexpensive and available across the city, including the poorer neighborhoods. Analysts see Chicago as positioning itself more as an advocate and promoter for such a WiFi service rather than a partner in providing the service, which is how most other cities have approached similar projects.

For more on Chicago's WiFi plans:
- read this report

ALSO: London's financial district will have saturated WiFi access within six months. The City of London Corp. said it entered a partnership on Thursday with The Cloud Networks, a high-speed wireless network provider with operations in the U.K., Sweden and Germany. The network will be installed in existing "street furniture," including lamp posts and signs, within the area, which is about 1 sq. mi. Demand has increased for wireless coverage as the area's 350,000 workers want access to the Internet and email as they shuffle between meetings in different buildings in the district, a spokeswoman said. The Cloud won the bid for a contract to install the network, but the value of the deal has not been disclosed, said a spokeswoman for the company. The Cloud runs WiFi hotspots at several London locations, such as Canary Wharf, the British Library and Coffee Republic, a chain of cafés. Operators such as BT Group and Nintendo rent time on The Cloud's network and then turn and charge their customers for the service. Report

PLUS: MetroWiFi is offering free WiFi in the San Francisco Bay Area. The company says its signal now reaches 178,000 of the 300,000 residents in Cupertino, Santa Clara and Sunnyvale using a network of 500 transmitters spread across 25 sq. mi. More transmitters will be added by late April, raising the population served in the three cities to 246,000. Report

FINALLY: Houston last week made public its formal request for proposals for a planned citywide WiFi network. Article

802.11n compromise in sight

Tue, 05 Jul 2005 20:01:39 -0400

In what may well be a significant breakthrough for 802.11n, the leaders of the two groups advancing competing proposals for the standard's sepcifications have agreed to submit a joint proposal at the next meeting of the working group tasked with elaborating the standard. The meeting will be held in two weeks. In the March meeting of the task group, one of the leading contenders, TGn Sync, won a simple majority over rival WWiSE but fell short of the 75 percent majority required to carry the day. In the May meeting, however, TGn Sync's vote fell to below 50 percent.

Not surpirisingly, Dave Borison of pro-WWiSE Airgo said of the May vote, "The IEEE 802.11n ballot was a good result... It's a wake-up call for both camps. We want to move forward and get a standard in place. Within the next quarter, or two at the most, we will have a compromise." Airgo is the leader in MIMO chipsets, and MIMO technology is central to both proposals. Borison belives that the two proposals could be reconciled quite easily, although some differences may have to be handled as options within the standard. TGn Sync uses 40MHz channels instead of the 20MHz channels, which are the global standard. Each standard also uses different numbers of antennas, and TGn operates in the 5GHz spectrum rather than the 2.4GHz band which WWiSE supporters use.

TGn Sync is led by Agere, Intel, and Atheros; supporters of WWiSE include Conexant, Broadcom, Airgo, and Texas Instruments.

For more on a likely 802.11n compromise:
- see Matthew Broersma's Techworld's report
- check out this Unstrung report