Reports

Gartner: 3G laptops to become enterprise must-have

Mon, 02 Jun 2008 06:59:56 -0400

Laptops embedded with 3G are likely to become a must-have for the business world starting next year because new technologies and better pricing plans are making them more attractive, says research group Gartner. The firm said the high cost of hardware and expensive monthly charges have so far kept the enterprise from investing in 3G-enabled laptops, but that should begin changing at the end of this year, said Ken Dulaney, vice president with Gartner.

"Our standing recommendation against embedding wireless WAN (WWAN) cards in notebooks--except for applications with a clear return-on-investment justification--has been based on lack of global coverage, high costs and poor asset protection," Dulaney said. "However, new technologies and pricing due by the end of 2008 have the potential to eliminate the problems of embedded, wireless 3G notebook purchases."

Gartner says the advent of new chipsets that combine multiple technologies and frequency bands to offer better coverage would make 3G laptops a good proposition for the moderate to extensive traveler in 2009. In addition, 3G operators are beginning to see the value in moving beyond the standard two-year contracts to include daily and monthly rates, much like WiFi providers offer today. Operators are also considering plans for allowing international travelers to use local rates on a pay-per-day basis, Gartner said.

For more on this story:
check out TechWorld

Related stories:
Qualcomm aims to replicate dominance in laptop market. 3G laptop story
Laptop makers look to Gobi to bridge 3G. Gobi story

Report: WiMAX to replace 12% of global DSL base by 2013

Thu, 08 May 2008 06:59:53 -0400

Juniper Research forecasts mobile WiMAX will replace up to 12 percent of the global DSL installed base by 2013, lead by the Far East with more than one-fifth of the 47 million subscribers in 2013.

According to report author Howard Wilcox: "WiMAX will be an attractive offer in areas where there are no wired networks, and in areas where the existing DSL speed is suboptimal. WiMAX will solve the broadband access problem for users located at the fringes of DSL coverage. This is in fact the case in a number of developed nations such as U.K., U.S.A., Ireland and Scandinavia, and WiMAX network operators are deploying networks to address this market need. Additionally in developing countries--such as India--network operators are aiming to provide basic connectivity.

To read more about Juniper's report:
- take a look at this release

ABI survey identifies top three femto developers

Mon, 05 May 2008 06:59:53 -0400

ABI Research has released details of the top three femtocell developers using an analytical tool to determine a clear understanding of each supplier's market focus. The company stated that Ubiquisys had been ranked at the top of the list, with Alcatel-Lucent and ip.access claiming the second and third spots.

According to London-based Stuart Carlaw, a VP and research director for ABI, the market continues to see manufacturers shuffle as early RFP and trial activity takes hold. "Interestingly, major players in this market such as Cisco, Motorola, NEC and Nokia are not represented in the measurement matrix as they are positioning themselves as complete solution providers and have chosen not to produce their own products but to partner instead with dedicated box vendors."

The femtocell vendors were assessed by ABI on parameters such as innovation and implementation across several criteria unique to each vendor matrix. To view a list of the top ten firms in this vendor matrix, visit Femtocell Vendor Matrix.

For more about ABI Research's femtocell survey:
- check out this release

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

Gartner: India to remain niche market for WiMAX

Thu, 27 Mar 2008 07:59:53 -0400

Research firm Gartner predicted that India will remain a niche market for WiMAX until 2009, despite the fact that the Indian government is advocating the technology for broadband connectivity in rural areas. Gartner predicts that the country will have just 6.9 million mobile and fixed WiMAX connections by the end of 2011. The reason: "Although presented as an important driver for broadband policy in India, the Indian government has failed to effectively motivate operators to roll out country-wide mobile broadband. WiMAX has been selected by the Indian government to connect rural areas to the Internet. However, low PC penetration will lead to limited demand in the near term. WiMax is still a niche technology and limited to enterprise and high-end residential users in urban India," according to the firm.

India had only 3.4 million broadband subscribers in January 2008, less than the target of 9 million by 2007 set by the country's broadband policy, said Naresh Singh, principal research analyst with Gartner. Mobile frequencies will not be available in the short term, so most WiMax connections in the short- and mid-term will be for nomadic or fixed-wireless applications.

For more about Gartner's views regarding WiMAX in India:
- check out this article from EE Times

Related articles:
Telsima, Sequans capitalizing on Indian WiMAX market Report
Tata claims world's largest WiMAX deployment Report

FCC changes broadband calculation rules

Mon, 24 Mar 2008 07:59:55 -0400

The Federal Communications Commission adopted new data collecting and reporting practices for helping to more accurately determine broadband penetration in the U.S. The FCC changed its methods after coming under heavy fire for using a model that was too lax in its definition of what constituted broadband speed, and was not capable of counting broadband adoption accurately at street level. With the new rules, broadband speeds are defined as beginning at 768 kbps rather than the old baseline of 200 kbps, and service providers must organize data based on the different speed tiers they offer. Also, companies must calculate broadband penetration by looking at census blocks, rather than the old way of looking at a zip code and counting it as conquered if broadband happened to be available for one household anywhere in that zip code. The FCC also said broadband speeds now have to be reported for both downloads and uploads.

For more about the FCC's changes:
- see this post at CNET News.com
- check out this survey commissioned by Tellabs that details broadband gaps

Related articles:
U.S. broadband growth slows Report
Broadband up in Europe Report

iPhone owners big users of data

Thu, 20 Mar 2008 07:59:53 -0400

According to a new survey from M:Metrics, 85 percent of iPhone owners in January searched the Internet for news and information, making the slick device the most popular handheld device for wireless Internet access on the go.

"The iPhone has certainly delivered on its hype," Mark Donovan, senior analyst for M:Metrics, said while releasing the figures. "Beyond a doubt, this device is compelling consumers to interact with the mobile web, delivering off-the-charts usage from everything from text messaging to mobile video."

Moreover, 30.9 percent of iPhone users, which can access both EDGE and WiFi, watched television or video via their devices, according to the survey. The market average is 4.6 percent. The survey also found that 49.7 percent of iPhone owners visited social networking sites and 58.6 percent conducted web searches, compared with the industry average of 6.1 percent.

For more about M:Metrics' study:
- read this article from InformationWeek

Related articles:
- AT&T: 95% of iPhone owners surf the mobile web Report
- Google: iPhone traffic dominates mobile search Report

Wireless startups garner $515.5M in February

Mon, 17 Mar 2008 07:59:57 -0400

It looks like we're seeing a shift in the tide in terms of where the VC money is going in the wireless industry. For so long, the bulk of investments were going to start-up mobile application-type companies. Rutberg & Co., however, indicates that some 30 companies, primarily device, semiconductor and carrier infrastructure sectors, in February received a combined $515.5 million in VC money.

Leading the way was TerreStar Networks, the satellite firm that is developing an integrated satellite and terrestrial broadband network that will incorporate what it calls "4G technology." The company pulled in $300 million. WiMAX chipmaker Sequans received $28 million while wireless USB chip vendor took home $24 million.

To read more about VC money in the wireless industry:
- take a look at this article from Unstrung

Related articles:
- TerreStar mulls 700 MHz bid Report
- TerreStar picks Accenture for 4G network Report
- Telsima, Sequans capitalizing on Indian WiMAX market Editorial

Should operators subsidize laptops?

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 07:59:55 -0400

A recent report from Pyramid Research indicates that wireless carriers that sell laptops in their stores may help improve uptake of their wireless broadband services. According to the report, Russia's MTS, Telefonica's O2, T-Mobile, Orange, Vodafone Globul and PLDT all sell laptops in some of their markets. BusinessWeek suggests that carriers should even subsidize laptops in order to drive demand for their data networks.

Could the trend take off in the U.S.? Verizon Wireless, for one, says it has no intention of subsidizing laptops, according to a company spokeswoman. The company's BroadbandAccess service is embedded in notebooks from the likes of Dell, HP, Lenovo, Toshiba and Panasonic, and customers can click on the VZAccess manager to subscribe to service. The operator also offers daily use packages at $15 for 24 hours.

For more on the trend:
- read this BusinessWeek article

Carrier executives: Mobile data revenues in trouble

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 07:59:54 -0400

Executives speaking at a CeBIT NGMN (Next Generation Mobile Networks) meeting said that flat-rate mobile data tariffs will lead to usage increasing at a far greater rate than operator revenues. This shift will demand the cost of providing mobile data connectivity be driven down if they were to continue to make money.

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."

Akhavan explained that the cost-per-bit of handling such traffic could be lowered through better spectral efficiency and simplified network architecture. However, he also said it would be essential to reuse "existing assets", adding: "The world doesn't need any more cell sites".

For more on this story:
- read this article from ZDnet.co.uk

Related articles:
Verizon leads on mobile-data revenue Report
U.S. mobile-data market grows in Q3 Report

Clearwire Q4 results offer mixed bag

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 06:59:56 -0500

Clearwire's fourth quarter results show the carrier has increased revenue to $45.4 million, up from $23.7 million a year ago. During the quarter Clearwire's net subscriber additions totaled 47,000, bringing its total subscriber base to 394,000. During the fourth quarter of 2006 Clearwire had 206,000 total subscribers. Despite the subscriber growth, however, ARPU fell 30 cents year-over-year: It was $36.09 for the fourth quarter in 2007, down from $36.39 in Q4 2006. Clearwire's churn rate increased to 2.4 percent, up from 1.9 percent a year earlier.

Pali Research's Walter Piecyk wrote in a research this week that the carrier "is essentially in a holding pattern as it negotiates a transaction with Sprint of the potential combination of their WiMAX assets and seeks an investment to fund the build out of a nationwide WiMAX network." Piecyk noted that the near term results are weak but irrelevant since the carrier is in "cash conservation mode."

For more on Clearwire's Q4:
- read this article from the AP

Related articles:
Hesse: Sprint still talking to Clearwire about tie-up Report
Rumor: Intel to facilitate Sprint/Clearwire deal Report

Report: WiMAX poses interference threat to satellites

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 06:59:55 -0500

Field tests conducted by the Satellite Users Interference Reduction Group (SUIRG) concluded that WiMAX poses a "significant interference threat" to fixed satellite services (FSS) operating in the C band.

SUIRG, a non-profit association comprised of both private- and public-sector satellite organizations, said the primary objective of the tests was to measure interference levels generated by fixed WiMAX transmissions into an FSS satellite receiving station. Testing showed that WiMAX transmissions could cause interference to a satellite digital signal as far away as 12 kilometers. That led SUIRG to conclude that FSS antennas can't co-exist with WiMAX systems ranges from 50 kilometers to more than 200 kilometers, dependent on the local terrain and the WiMAX output levels.

"The C-band is in many ways the lifeline of the satellite industry, and protecting that spectrum from the threat of interference posed by sharing it with broadband wireless access services is of paramount importance," said Robert Ames, SUIRG president. "The tremendous support of the SUIRG member companies and the industry as a whole in making this test a viable platform to aid decision makers at WRC-07 was extremely gratifying. The results of the test are a firm testament to the need for clearly defined spectrum allocation."

To find out more about SUIRG's findings:
- read this article from TelecomWeb

Ericsson: LTE will be widespread in 2012

Thu, 21 Feb 2008 06:59:54 -0500

Ericsson anticipates Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology will see widespread deployments in 2012, with the U.S. and Japanese markets leading the way and Europe to follow. According to Juniper Research, 24 million subscribers will use LTE technology for mobile broadband services by 2012.

Arun Bhikshesvaran, vice president of business strategy and CTO for Ericsson North America, said Ericsson has begun a trial of its LTE baseband equipment with an unnamed carrier. He expects it will be completed toward the end of the year.

For more about Ericsson's LTE plans:
- check out this blog from GigaOm

Related articles:
Mobile World Congress: Ericsson plugs LTE, HSPA Report
Verizon committed to LTE Report

SPOTLIGHT: Report: Mobile WiMAX will be big in Asia by 2013

Tue, 22 Jan 2008 06:59:52 -0500

More than 40 million mobile WiMAX subscribers will reside in Asia by 2013, accounting for more than half of the global market for the technology, says a Juniper Research report. Article

ALSO NOTED: Qualcomm claims victory in patent dispute with Nokia; Motorola deploys WiMAX pilot in Paris; and much more...

Mon, 22 Oct 2007 06:59:51 -0400

> Qualcomm claimed an initial victory in a patent dispute with Nokia after a judge recommended ending a US International Trade Commission investigation of a complaint filed by Nokia. Article

> Motorola said it deployed a WiMAX pilot in Paris with Bollore Telecom, a holder of 12 WiMAX licenses in France. Article

> Google's latest comments about the upcoming 700 MHz auction. Article

> The U.K. is not expected to relaunch mobile broadcast TV services until 2010 at the earliest, well behind most of its European neighbors, according to recent studies from Juniper Research. Article

And Finally... Purse snatcher tries to ransom cell phone for $185,000. Article

SPOTLIGHT: Juniper: HSPA to dominate until 2012

Thu, 09 Aug 2007 06:59:52 -0400

HSPA, not mobile WiMAX, will dominate mobile broadband network deployments during the next five years, according to forecasts from Juniper Research. The firm says HSPA will consistently account for approximately 70 percent of the total mobile broadband subscriber base until 2012. On a worldwide basis, about one in three mobile subscribers will use a mobile broadband connection by 2012, representing about 1 billion users. Demand will come from North America, Western Europe and to a lesser extent by the Far East and China, Juniper Research said.

However, Juniper Research cautions that these numbers depend on availability of suitable devices, ranging from handsets to other types of devices such as media players. Release

Study: FMC has promise in U.S. market

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 20:01:34 -0400

ABI Research issued a study during last week's CTIA Wireless 2007 trade show that concluded there is a favorable market for fixed/mobile convergence in the U.S. The study surveyed more than 1,200 U.S. wireless subscribers earlier this month and found that 25 percent of wireless customers would switch cellular carriers for access to the benefits of WiFi/mobile convergence. The study also concluded that nearly 33 percent of subscribers would discontinue their traditional home phone service to access two main benefits of convergence: better in-home signal coverage and reduced pricing for calls made from home.

The report shows demand, but early experience in Europe shows that operators have to execute and market these services correctly to get any uptake. Last month, a German fixed-line operator ended its fixed-mobile convergence service, known as T-One, after attracting less than 10,000 subscribers since launching last August. Poor marketing, high tariffs and a lack of compelling handsets were largely to blame for the slow uptake.

For more about ABI Research's study on FMC:
- read this article from Telephony

SPOTLIGHT: Juniper: Enterprise wVoIP market to reach $15B

Sun, 01 Apr 2007 20:01:32 -0400

Juniper Research estimates the enterprise VoIP over WiFi equipment market will grow from $2 billion in 2007 to $15 billion in 2012 with Cisco being the main beneficiary. Switches/mobility controllers will account for $8 billion of that. In addition to Cisco, Aruba, Trapeze, Proxim and Meru are expected to reap significant amounts. For handsets, Juniper says Spectralink, whose sale to Polycom closed last week, will lead the market. Article

WiFi, WiMAX more energy-efficient than cellular

Mon, 15 Jan 2007 19:01:36 -0500

Here is another advantage WiMAX and metro WiFi have over cellular: Both technologies are more energy cost effective, according to a report by ABI Research. This is good news as worries about the increasing cost of energy mount and as carriers move to high-data-rate mobile broadband access.

The research firm's report, "Energy Efficiency Analysis for Mobile Broadband Solutions," says that energy costs represent the third most significant operating expense (OPEX) for cellular carriers, and spikes in energy costs present business planners with difficult choices. What is more, the inexorable move to higher data rates, and thus the increase in energy required per subscriber resulting from increasing data uptake, will push the ever-important per-subscriber energy OPEX for cellular solutions beyond an economically acceptable threshold. The solution to this energy crunch: Carriers should consider moving from a traditional cellular-only approach to one which integrates WiMAX and metro WiFi.

ABI's Stuart Carlaw says: "From a pure coverage perspective WiMAX is twice as energy-cost-effective and metro WiFi is 50 times more energy-cost-effective than WCDMA. When data traffic is factored into the equation, WiMAX can accommodate 11 times today's average data consumption and still be more energy-cost-efficient compared to WCDMA or HSDPA."

Note that another ABI study found that the total energy consumption resulting from mobile broadband service delivery is expected to grow from 42.8 billion kilowatt hours (KWh) in 2005 to 124.4 billion KWh in 2011.

For more on the energy advantage of WiFi-WiMAX:
- see the ABI Research website

WiFi reshapes consumer electronics sector

Mon, 02 Oct 2006 20:01:36 -0400

WiFi makes a lot of noise when it comes to metro-WiFi and hotspots but there is another area, consumer electronics, that is being reshaped by the technology as well. ABI Research said in a report released last week that the consumer electronics sector is in the middle of a "major shift"--and key to that shift is the fact that WiFi networking is becoming an enabler for the delivery and redistribution of entertainment content in the home. ABI predicts that the total number of WiFi-enabled consumer electronics devices will grow from about 40 million shipped in 2006 to nearly 249 million in 2011.

ABI's Michael Wolf says: "From the enormous interest in online gaming, to the rapid emergence of new internet distribution channels for top-tier movie and TV content, the need for connectivity in mainstream consumer electronics is growing rapidly." The consumer WiFi market has thus far consisted mostly of routers, gateways, and adapters, but ABI Research says that as the market evolves toward digital distribution, the growth will be fueled as much by the inclusion of embedded WiFi in consumer electronics. Among the report's highlights:

* The market is led by portable gaming consoles,with Nintendo and Sony equipping their latest devices with WiFi for multiplayer and online gaming

*Microsoft's Zune media player signals the beginning of a "large scale movement" toward embedded WiFi in portable media players

* Camera vendors such as Nikon, Kodak, and Canon have already embraced WiFi in their products

* Line-powered devices--gaming consoles, DVD players, and audio receivers--are expected to see "high attach rates" for WiFi during the forecast period

"The development of a market for Wi-Fi enabled consumer electronics has been hampered by technology limitations such as power consumption," ABI analyst Philip Solis says. "But it has also been delayed by consumer electronics vendors' hesitation as they waited to see what would happen with 802.11n. With the 802.11n standard set to be ratified in a little over a year, the Wi-Fi Alliance's decision to certify solutions based on a draft 2.0 for 802.11n, and vendors' intentions to release products based on current Wi-Fi protocols, this market is set for growth."

For more on ABI Research's report on WiFi in consumer electronics:
-see ABI Research's Web site