Motorola

Proxim looks to capitalize on Motorola's restructuring plans

Lynnette Luna — Wed, 06 Aug 2008 23:47:47 -0400

Proxim Wireless is pouncing on Motorola's recently announced re-organization of its Home & Networks Mobility Group as an opportunity to steal Motorola's broadband wireless customers. The company is offering an investment protection plan to all Motorola customers and resellers of Motorola equipment, extending preferential pricing to these groups if they move way from Motorola's Symbol, MeshNetworks, Canopy or Orthogon products and buy Proxim's WLAN, WiFi mesh and point-to-point solutions.

At the end of July, Motorola announced plans to separate its Home & Networks Mobility Group into three separate businesses, a move that many believe may make the businesses easier to sell off. The Home & Networks Mobility Group has been profitable compared to the firm's mobile devices unit. Many analysts believe that either the entire division or parts of it are attractive to other industry vendors.

For more:
- see this release

Related stories:
Motorola restructures--again. Motorola story
Motorola finds breaking up is hard to do. Motorola story

3GPP agrees on femtocell architecture

Thu, 05 Jun 2008 06:59:57 -0400

The Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) has adopted an official architecture for 3G femtocell home base stations.

The 3GPP wants to have the new standard done by the end of this year, which appears to be an aggressive time schedule given the fact that vendors had various approaches to building a femtocell base station. The agreed upon architecture follows an access network-based approach, leveraging existing standards, called IU-cs and Iu-ps interfaces, into the core service network. The result is a new interface called Iu-h.

The architecture defines two new network elements, the femtocell and the femtocell gateway. Between these elements is the new Iu-h interface. This solution was backed by Alcatel-Lucent, Kineto Wireless, Motorola and NEC.

All of the femtocell vendors must go back and change their access point and network gateway equipment to comply with the new standard interface.

All femtocell vendors will have to make changes to their access points. Alcatel-Lucent, Motorola, NEC, and those that already use Kineto's GAN approach, such as Ubiquisys, will have the least work to do.

To read more:
- check out Unstrung

Related stories:
Femtocell announcements bring market momentum; questions still remain. Femtocell editorial
Femtocells face their tipping point. Femtocell story

Femto Forum agrees on one interoperability standard

Thu, 22 May 2008 06:59:55 -0400

The Femto Forum announced it has reached consensus on the standard way femtocells should connect with the mobile core network. The agreement is welcomed news as a number of vendors have come up with their own standards and mobile operator femtocell trials are heating up.

With interoperability a key factor in their success, femtocells have been deployed in trial networks without an agreed standard. However, vendors are meeting this week to hammer out the finer details of the agreed interfaces, with plans to send submissions as early as next week to the 3GPP, where there are already three work items in progress related to femtocells. By agreeing on the interfaces, the Forum believes it has removed one of the barriers that have discouraged some operators from making the leap from trial to soft commercial launches.

"We've enabled operators to move forward faster on their deployments," said Simon Saunders, chairman of the Femto Forum. "For many operators, until they have a clear path toward standardization, they won't take that first deployment step. So we've set out a road map, and now more operators are willing to take that step."

For more:
- check out this article from Unstrung
- read this report from Cellular News

Related stories:
Femto Forum adds new members. See this article on the Femto Forum
Motorola, Netgear announce femtocell products. Take a look at this article about Motorola and Netgear's femtocell gear

Motorola submits new white space device to FCC

Thu, 15 May 2008 06:59:55 -0400

Amid the brouhaha over potential interference with wireless microphones and digital television signals in the white-space band, Motorola has presented the Federal Communications Commission with an updated version of a wireless device designed to work in the spectrum. Commission, which favors unlicensed white-space spectrum--that unused portion next to television signals, has already looked at devices from companies such as Microsoft and Philips Electronics. Early devices reportedly have not performed well in tests.

Motorola's device primarily looks at a database of existing spectrum licensees to avoid interfering with signals. According to a Dow Jones report, the vendor has now updated the device to include sensors for adjacent channels that uses "techniques commonly utilized in cellular phones and two-way radios," according to a draft of the FCC presentation.

The sensors are designed to detect "nomadic" wireless microphones to avoid interfering with circumstances such as "roving, unplanned news-gathering operations," the draft document says.

To read more about Motorola's white-space device:
- check out this Dow Jones article

Motorola: WLAN poised to replace enterprise wired networks

Mon, 05 May 2008 06:59:54 -0400

Motorola made the case for the enterprise to cut the wires during the Interop conference in Las Vegas. Kathy Paladino, president of enterprise mobility with Motorola, told conference attendees that wireless LANs are at the point where they should motivate enterprises to go all wireless. She said new standards such as 802.11n are offering the enterprise wired-like data speeds, reliability and security to WLAN networks. In addition, cost savings provide a compelling proposition to move all wireless. Paladino said wired networks cost 10 times that of WLANs to deploy and maintain.

"The technology is ready, and the time is now to make the shift," she said.

For more about Motorola's all-wireless views:
- check out this InformationWeek article

ALSO NOTED: Rogers Wireless plans to roll out iPhone this year; PCWorld reveals its top choices for 802.11n routers; and much m

Thu, 01 May 2008 06:59:51 -0400

> Rogers Wireless is planning to roll out the iPhone this year. Article

> Sierra Wireless posted a profit of $9.1 million, up from $5.3 million a year ago. Revenue jumped 66 percent from a year ago to $141.9 million. Article

> Motorola is working with Thailand's Advanced Info Service (AIS), the largest mobile operator in Thailand to conduct trials of mobile WiMAX solutions. Article

> Towerstream lights up the General Motors building in Manhattan. Article

And Finally... PCWorld's lab tests reveal the top choices for 802.11n routers. Article

Rumor: ip.access wins femtocell deal with AT&T

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 06:59:56 -0400

According to a report from ThinkPanmure, AT&T has inked a $500 million deal with ip.access for 7 million femtocells, which it plans to sell to its subscribers for about $100. The firm says the deal was fiercely fought with companies such as Motorola, Alcatel-Lucent, Nokia Siemens Networks and Airvana heavily contending for the contract.

Further, ThinkPanmure believes such a win could push Cisco to look at ip.access as an acquisition target.

"We believe Cisco is looking to increase its profile in wireless, and that ip.access is likely next in this strategy as Cisco's femtocell play. We believe that if this were to happen, it would be integrated into the Linksys organization," said the firm.

- Check out ThinkPanmure's web site

Related articles:
Sprint launches femtocell service in two markets Report on Sprint's femtocell launch
T-Mobile plans femtocell trials Report on T-Mobile's femtocell plans

MOT: WiMAX won't have financial impact until 2009

Mon, 28 Apr 2008 06:59:54 -0400

During Motorola's earnings call, CEO Greg Brown said the vendor has shipped 3,600 WiMAX base stations and 120,000 customer premise equipment devices worldwide. The number is a bit of a jump from the 2,000 base stations and tens of thousands of CPE devices the vendor announced in December, but a far cry from having any financial impact for the company.

However, Brown said the WiMAX deals Motorola has been making are beginning their commercial deployment phases, which should increase WiMAX equipment volumes, although the company won't see an impact until 2009.

The vendor has to be champing at the bit to see Sprint roll out its network.

To find out more about Motorola's WiMAX numbers and the company's earnings:
- check out this article from Telephony
- read this Motorola Q1 press release

Related articles:
Motorola introduces 2.5 GHz WiMAX CPE Report on Motorola's WiMAX business
Backhaul, billing causes of Xohm delay Report on Sprint's Xohm

World Economic Forum praises WiMAX

Thu, 10 Apr 2008 06:59:54 -0400

A new report issued by the World Economic Forum singles out WiMAX as continuing to "leapfrog past copper wire" in developing countries. The report takes particular notice of rollouts in Pakistan and India, praising WiMAX as a possible solution to the lack of rural connectivity.

"In the context of having to apportion chunks of finite spectrum, WiMAX is appealing because it holds the promise of increased sharing," says the report. "Rural connectivity is promised as long as power supply is available, PCs are given, local languages are used in developing content and people are provided with training in using PCs."

For more about the World Economic Forum's report:
- check out this article from eWeek

Related articles:
- Gartner: India to remain niche market for WiMAX Report on WiMAX in India
- Motorola in world's largest 802.16e deployment Report on WiMAX in Pakistan

Motorola intros platform to support both WiMAX, LTE

Mon, 31 Mar 2008 07:59:57 -0400

Motorola introduced a common wireless broadband platform capable of supporting both mobile WiMAX access points and the Long Term Evolution (LTE) evolved Node-B. Motorola says the design should reduce operators' deployment and operating costs. With Motorola's flexible modem technology, common platform can support either WiMAX or LTE by being software configurable.

Fred Wright, senior vice president, Motorola Home & Networks Mobility, said in a press release: "We're building upon our OFDM expertise and early success in WiMAX 802.16e as we develop our LTE product solutions. We can reuse about 75 percent of the basic application software and platform technology we developed for WiMAX in our LTE products, thereby advancing our development efforts. For example, the new common wireless broadband platform is expected to be commercially deployed in WiMAX networks in 2008, followed by the LTE application available by late 2009, giving us the advantage of deploying LTE technology on a field proven platform."

To find out more about Motorola's new platform:
- check out this article from TMCnet

Related articles:
- On the Hot Seat with WiMAX Forum's Ron Resnick Report
- Vodafone CEO: WiMAX has a home in LTE Report