Mobile Broadband

Report: Bulk of capital spending finally shifts to 3G

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 06:59:54 -0400

A new report from Heavy Reading says mobile operators are finally shifting their infrastructure capital spending away from GSM/EDGE and toward WCDMA/HSPA. The report says Western European operators are leading the way in the trend.

"Over the last 18 months, HSPA has finally started to deliver on the mobile broadband performance promise of 3G," says Patrick Donegan, senior analyst with Heavy Reading. "There is genuine excitement on the part of users at being able to get out their laptops across extensive urban and suburban areas and consistently get at least 1 Mbit/s throughput over the air."

Donegan cautions, however, that the slower-than-anticipated adoption of 3G could result in a shorter lifespan as 4G rounds the corner. "Just as WCDMA is finally starting to establish itself as the preferred global platform for mobile broadband services, it faces the prospect of being made redundant by an acceleration in the time to market of the 4G mobile WiMax and LTE standards," he says. "These technologies are designed to be deployed in much larger spectrum channel widths and offer better spectral efficiency, higher throughput, and lower latency than anything W-CDMA/HSPA can support."

For on this story:
- read Cellular-News

Related stories:
Is China ready to move to 3G? China 3G story
India could see 3G, WiMAX in 2009. India 3G story

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

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

Sprint: WiMAX ready in Baltimore, Washington D.C.

Mon, 19 May 2008 06:59:54 -0400

Sprint Nextel and Samsung Electronics announced that WiMAX services in Washington D.C. and Baltimore have completed the testing phase successfully and are now ready to launch commercially. The companies, however, did not disclose a specific date for when the services will be made available to the public. Sprint spokesman John Polivka said the services will make their full commercial launch sometime "later this year."

"This is a major step towards launch readiness and Sprint is extremely pleased with the performance of the mobile WiMAX network and access devices from Samsung," said Barry West, president of Sprint's mobile broadband network branch, called Xohm. "The collaboration with Samsung and our other partners has created a WiMAX ecosystem that has now proven that it can deliver this new technology to the marketplace well ahead of any feasible alternative."

Right now only PC cards have been used, but mobile devices such as Nokia's tablet are also in the pipeline. Plans to embed WiMAX chips into various personal devices, including digital cameras, have been widely discussed.

Recently, Clearwire, with is merging with Sprint with the help of cable partners, Google and Intel, announced plans to launch mobile WiMAX in Atlanta, Los Angeles and Grand Rapids, Mich., where it has a deal with the government, after it launches in Portland, Ore., during the second quarter of this year. It will do so prior to its merger with Sprint.

For more on Sprint's WiMAX plans in D.C. and Baltimore:
- read this article from Washington Business Journal

Sprint's backhaul conundrum

Mon, 05 May 2008 06:59:58 -0400

Last month Sprint Nextel said provisioning of backhaul is the primary hold-up to the operator's nationwide deployment of mobile WiMAX. Sprint, which was supposed to launch its Xohm network in April, is having difficulty finding high-capacity transport links to connect cell sites as typical T-1 lines that feed today's mobile networks are inefficient for high-speed wireless broadband data.

The problem is that the majority of Sprint's sites today are T-1 lines, and there just isn't a lot of fiber and microwave options available across the country. The link between the local area network and local fiber ring is still challenged by older technology and poor coverage, offering limited access to high-capacity connections. The use of microwave is still limited to operators' highest density sites as they have traditionally rolled it out on as-needed basis.

Most experts believed that Sprint was going to initially start out with T-1s for backhaul of the WiMAX network since it was readily available, eventually migrating to backhaul technology capable of dealing with high-speed broadband data. Perhaps Sprint decided the quality of WiMAX was at stake, and now it finds itself scrambling for alternatives. Suppliers are short in this area because they haven't seen the demand coming from operators and because T-1 lines are a highly lucrative business.

With AT&T and Verizon rolling out Long Term Evolution in two years, we'll begin seeing a big demand T-1 alternatives, although these two landline companies can leverage the much of the fiber networks they have. The dark horse is cable. With a deep penetration of fiber, they could be powerful partner for a company like Sprint, but have yet to make any significant moves in the area.

The next few years should see an explosion in alternative backhaul technology providers, making the traditionally boring business quite interesting--Lynnette

NextWave selling big swathes of spectrum

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 06:59:58 -0400

Just in time. Last week NextWave announced it enlisted the help of Deutsche Bank and UBS to assist in the sale of its vast U.S. spectrum holdings, which include licenses and lease rights for a total of 4.7 billion MHz/pops of spectrum comprised of 154 AWS licenses in the 1.7/2.1 GHz band, 30 WCS licenses in the 2.3 GHz band, and 39 EBS and BRS licenses and spectrum leases in the 2.5 GHz band.

With the last of the so-called beach front spectrum--the 700 MHz airwaves--being auctioned and swallowed up primarily by AT&T Wireless and Verizon Wireless, NextWave has received multiple offers for its spectrum assets, NextWave President and CEO Allen Salmasi said.

For sure, NextWave will be able to get top dollar for the spectrum now that the FCC doesn't plan to release anymore spectrum, and there are still a number of companies chomping on the bit to get their hands on spectrum. NextWave's state mission in the past was to make spectrum available to companies that wanted to enter the mobile broadband space and use its products and technologies, including WiMAX and TD-CDMA. Today, NextWave says it no longer needs this spectrum in order to reach its product sales objectives.

NextWave's sale could give WiMAX the bigger U.S. foothold that the technology's proponents were hoping for with the 700 MHz auction. LTE, not WiMAX, emerged as the big technology winner in the 700 MHz band as AT&T and Verizon announced their intentions to deploy the 4G technology in the major swathes of spectrum they won.

While not announced by the WiMAX Forum, sources close to the forum say an FDD profile for the AWS band in the U.S. is imminent as is one for the 2496-2690 MHz band, which is reserved for broadband services in the U.S and in many European countries such as the UK. SpectrumCo, the joint venture formed by Sprint (which withdrew from the consortium in August) and cable heavyweights Comcast, Cox, Time Warner and others, purchased $2.37 billion worth of spectrum in the AWS band last year and has yet to announce its plans for the spectrum. But sources say WiMAX equipment is now being tested for this band. Moreover, speculation is that Comcast might be mulling an entrance into the wireless broadband market as a network operator.--Lynnette

Backhaul, billing causes of Xohm delay

Thu, 24 Apr 2008 06:59:57 -0400

Sprint Nextel says provisioning of backhaul is the primary hold-up to the operator's nationwide deployment of mobile WiMAX. Sprint, which was supposed to launch its Xohm network this month, is having difficulty finding high-capacity transport links to connect cell sites as typical T-1 lines that feed today's mobile networks are inefficient for high-speed wireless broadband data, said Xohm President and Sprint Chief Technology Officer Barry West in an interview with Telephony.

To build the network, Sprint is provisioning fiber where economically feasible, West said. In other areas, Sprint is using microwave. The entire process has moved slower than what Sprint expected, causing the delay of the commercial launch.

"Clearly I wanted to hit the April date," West said. "Having missed that date, I want to make sure we come out with a robust service. Right now I'm building sites."

Billing and customer provisioning have also caused delays, but only by a matter of weeks, West said.

To read more about Sprint's Xohm delays:
- check out this article from Telephony

Related articles:
Sprint's CTO attacks LTE
Sprint's Xohm has been delayed Report on Xohm's delay
Sprint: Xohm will be a platform for innovation Report on Xohm

Could the 700 MHz auction trigger spectrum caps?

Mon, 21 Apr 2008 06:59:58 -0400

Could the recently completed 700 MHz auction trigger spectrum caps--which were lifted in 2003--and other regulations on the mobile wireless industry?

Last week, some in Congress lamented that AT&T and Verizon Wireless walked away with the lion's share of the licenses. AT&T and Verizon Wireless spent $16 billion, or 85 percent of the total money raked in from the auction. Analysts believe the two now hold more than 95 megahertz of spectrum in several markets.

According to an article in BusinessWeek, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin told members of Congress during a hearing last week that he will look at whether the FCC should request winning bidders to dispose of some of that excess spectrum.

But Martin also found himself defending the auction and arguing against the notion that AT&T and Verizon won the lion's share of licenses. He pointed out that congressional leaders and other various parties had plenty of time last year to assist the FCC in crafting the auction rules. He also noted that small and rural providers won 500 licenses covering nearly 60 percent of the spectrum available outside the top 15 markets, in certain slices of spectrum that were available for sale at the auction. A total of 99 bidders other than Verizon and AT&T won 754 licenses-representing almost 70 percent of the licenses sold. And a bidder other than Verizon or AT&T won a license in every market.

Still, Verizon and AT&T spent the bulk of the money at auction. And that is to be expected. Simply put, these two incumbents have the wherewithal to spend billions on licenses and billions more to build out network infrastructure. That's their core business. And with the 700 MHz band the last of the so-called beach-front property, these operators were prepared to drive the price up to a hefty level, especially given the fact that new 4G networks need a nice chunk of extra spectrum, about 20 megahertz, to deliver the broadband data speeds that are advertised.

The FCC has tried in the past to make special concessions for new and smaller entrants with disastrous effects. The PCS C-block auction resulted in bankruptcies and a number of companies essentially serving as shell companies for large incumbents.

In the wireless broadband world, I'd have to say that we are seeing some smaller companies find their niche. TowerStream is offering pre-WiMAX in several markets, successfully targeting the enterprise market with services that fixed incumbents can't offer. Xanadoo has spectrum in the 2.5 GHz band and is targeting consumers and small- to medium-sized businesses with WiMAX services to compete with DSL and cable offerings. The ISP offers seven different pricing plans beginning at $15 per month with plans to soon launch a prepaid wireless broadband offering. This large number of pricing plans is how Xanadoo is differentiating itself from DSL and cable, which typically only offer two different plans and require bundling of services.

And many winners of 700 MHz spectrum have varying business plans, with CenturyTel, for instance, using wireless to extend DSL over rural areas. Some will offer TV services. We have yet to hear about many of the winners' business plans.

In light of this, it's too early for the FCC to make any rash decisions about placing additional regulations on the mobile industry. And Congress should wait to see what the impact of the 700 MHz auction will really be.--Lynnette

Is the MSS industry on its way to a comeback?

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 06:59:58 -0400

Is the mobile satellite service (MSS) on its way to a comeback? And will WiMAX or other mobile broadband technologies play a pivotal role in their business models?

Most of us know the crash-and-burn history of the MSS industry in the late 1990s. Iridium and others ran to bankruptcy courts, suffering from high operating costs. Now, at least three companies are working to make MSS a consumer product in the next two years and most are looking to the mobile broadband industry as a significant part of their businesses. ICO Global Communications announced plans during the CTIA trade show earlier this month to deploy a GEO satellite today 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. Moreover, WiMAX operator Clearwire plans to join the trial, bringing wireless broadband 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.

Mobile Satellite Ventures (MSV), which already offer satellite telephony service to niche markets, is planning on launching two new high-power satellites capable of high-speed data and featuring smaller, sleeker and cheaper devices--one of the shortfalls of the old satellite telephony model. The difference this time around will be a system capable of superior link margin, full redundancy and capacity no terrestrial operator can match, said Wade Alt, vice president of corporate development with MSV. And of course ubiquity will be a key differentiator when the operator plans to launch service in 2010.

"We've done market studies and both consumer segments and the enterprise customers want this feature and are willing to pay for it," Alt said. "They like the ubiquity, and from consumer standpoint, it's brand new market out there."

There are a host of markets MSV is targeting: government, enterprise, telematics and mass consumer. One of the keys to being able to cast a wide net is hybrid technology. "It was important for MSV to prove we could integrate with existing chip sets. Satellite on its own was not enough. You can't have people walking around with clunky devices."

Another key factor was obtaining approval from the FCC to deploy an ancillary terrestrial component (ATC) that is designed to solve a fundamental problem plaguing the MSS industry: operators' inability to penetrate buildings with satellite signals. That technical shortfall has had a tremendous constraint on demand and resulted in higher operating and equipment costs in the past.

MSV doesn't have a terrestrial partner but Alt says the company is looking for a partner whether that's a WiMAX or LTE operator partner. It remains to be seen if these operators will see MSV as a competitor rather than a partner, but such a hook-up could could create a differentiator for a 4G operator by enabling it to offer ubiquitous services.

Finally, Satellite Terrestar Networks, formerly known as Motient, announced back in November plans to build what it calls a 4G all-IP integrated satellite/terrestrial network in North America. The company says it will offer a wholesale business model with priority access for first responders and allow other wireless carriers, third party developers and portal companies to use its 4G network. TerreStar plans to roll-out its network in late 2008 or early 2009.

For sure, these plans come with risk with unproven business models and commercially unproven technology. Couple that with the unknowns surrounding full MSS/ATC integration and nascent 4G technology, and you have the potential for a lot of trial and error or another crash and burn of the MSS industry. But if these companies pull their plans off, we could see quite an industry game-changer that will see mobile broadband as the center point.--Lynnette

More perspective on mobile WiMAX certification

Mon, 14 Apr 2008 06:59:56 -0400

Last week the WiMAX Forum announced the first mobile WiMAX products to receive a certified seal of approval. Four base stations and four subscriber units for the 2.3 GHz band were approved from Posdata, Runcom Technologies, Samsung Electronics and Sequans Communications.

But these products only received Wave 1 certification, which doesn't include the features such as MIMO that operators are asking for. WiMAX chip maker Beceem has said the move has little practical benefit since operators want Wave-2 certification, and it saw no point in building Wave 1 products.

"... Due to the misleading statements about the impact of this Wave 1 certification it is important to point out that [this] certification means 'conformance testing', which can not be confused with product performance and interoperability testing, which operators really and only care about," the company said in a statement emailed to FierceBroadbandWireless.

Current Analysis' Peter Jarich, however, had a different perspective on the WiMAX Forum's move. "We are taking a positive stance on the WiMAX Forum's certification of initial mobile WiMAX products," Jarich wrote in a note. "Where operators have been launching 802.16e-based products for a while, certification (and the interoperability it promises) is expected to drive additional interest in the technology along with new network launches and network expansions. And, while the certifications are based on a 2.3 GHz profile (Wave-1) that may have limited global value, they do pave the way for the Wave-2 certifications most WiMAX operators have been eagerly awaiting."

Related articles:
Xanadoo upgrading to mobile WiMAX Report on Xanadoo's WiMAX upgrade
On the Hot Seat with Ron Resnick Report on WiMAX Forum's Ron Resnick