3g network

3G auctions in China, India could have dramatic industry impact

Thu, 29 May 2008 06:59:58 -0400

Vendors everywhere should be feeling a bit giddy this week as regulators in both China and India--two countries considered to have the most wireless growth potential going forward--indicated they would move forward with licensing 3G networks. India is also looking to license WiMAX networks.

This is welcome news to wireless vendors, which are suffering from a bit of a slowdown as the network-upgrade business has been hard to come by. 3G is beginning to mature in many markets with occasional contracts for capacity upgrades. What has been missing is the massive rollout of new technology.

Vendors aren't the only ones poised to capitalize on the moves in China and India. The world's operators are looking for the next growth engine markets. In India, many customers are using CDMA 1x technology as their primary Internet connection via handsets used as modems. Imagine the impact that a faster 3G technology could have on the market.

Of course, these announcements come from two governments notorious for delays when it comes to licensing. China has strung vendors along regarding 3G licenses for about six years now. The entire industry has to be crossing its fingers.--Lynnette

With little fanfare, T-Mobile launches 3G in New York

Thu, 08 May 2008 06:59:54 -0400

As anticipated, T-Mobile USA has commercially launched its 3G UMTS/HSDPA network in New York City. The carrier said the service will support both voice and data services, despite the rumors that the initial launch would not support data. By the end of 2008, T-Mobile USA plans to rollout its network in major cities across the U.S. The carrier also announced plans to launch its first HSDPA device in the coming months.

Current Analysis characterized the rollout as frustrating: "We are taking a slightly negative stance on T-Mobile's upgrade to a 3G network, as the much delayed launch (planned since T-Mobile won spectrum in late 2006) was further impaired by the fact that it is available in only one market (New York), with a limited number of compatible handsets and with the complete absence of suitable applications or services that can truly take advantage of faster network speeds. This provides potential early adopters of 3G technology with much less incentive to use the new network," the firm said in a recent note.

For more on T-Mobile USA's 3G plans:
- check out this T-Mobile USA 3G press release

Rumor: T-Mobile to roll out 3G in New York today

Thu, 01 May 2008 06:59:57 -0400

According to a report from TmoNews.com, which claims it received a leaked memo from T-Mobile USA, the carrier is launching its 3G network in New York City tomorrow. The memo promises T-Mobile subscribers great call quality and more network availability but makes no mention of advanced features, applications or services. It has been known for some time that T-Mobile is more interested in the capacity enhancements it gains from 3G than some of the advanced services that its competitors are offering since it bills itself as a low-cost carrier.

T-Mobile aims to roll 3G out in at least 20 markets by the end of the year. Some of the cities include: Los Angeles, Detroit, San Diego, Austin, Las Vegas, Minneapolis and Miami.

A T-Mobile USA spokesperson would not comment on the rumored report but did disclose that the carrier would be announcing its 3G plans within a week. He also reminded us that the carrier would be announcing its quarterly earnings next Thursday. Hint, hint.--Brian Dolan

For more on T-Mobile USA's 3G plans:
- check out this report over at Engadget

Alcatel-Lucent reveals mobile data performance tool

Mon, 17 Mar 2008 07:59:56 -0400

Alcatel-Lucent has created a mobile data performance analysis tool, called the 9900 WNG, designed to give mobile operators insight into their network in terms of what applications are using up mobile network resources and affecting performance. Knowing this information allows operators to manage and optimize their networks for data traffic volume. With flat-rate pricing plans, mobile data running on 3G networks is ramping up.

"Existing tools are blind to parts of the network--radio tools are blind to IP traffic, and IP tools are blind to RF [radio frequency] issues," said Michael Schabel, general manager at Alcatel-Lucent Ventures.

For more about Alcatel-Lucent's data performance analysis tool:
- check out this article from Unstrung

Related articles:
- Carrier executives: Mobile data revenues in trouble Report
- Sprint: Unlimited plan won't tax network capacity Report

NextWave introduces mobile TV platform for WiMAX

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 07:59:57 -0400

NextWave Wireless introduced MXtv, a mobile multicast and broadcast technology for WiMAX operators. The technology will enable operators to deliver a range of multimedia services, including mobile TV, interactive media and digital audio without having to invest in new spectrum or extra radio access network equipment, NextWave said.

MXtv is a similar proposition to NextWave's UMTS MBMS-based TDtv. The company has gained traction of late for that technology, signing on Orange and T-Mobile to a six-month pilot in the London area. The technology proposes to reduce mobile broadcast costs by means of shared, unpaired 3G spectrum and a standards-based TDtv network. NextWave has this capability from its acquisition of IP Wireless last year.

Supporting 30 fps QVGA and WQVGA content, MXtv technology provides up to 45 high-quality mobile TV channels in 10 MHz with rapid channel switching times of under two seconds, and offers network operators the ability to dynamically allocate spectrum based on content availability, time-of-day requirements, user demand, and the availability of 'must see' live events such as sports, concerts, interactive reality shows or emergency broadcasts, NextWave said.

"This gives WiMAX networks a solution that not only delivers mobile TV, but a whole range of multimedia services and targeted advertising," Jon Hambidge, chief marketing officer with NextWave's network product division, told FierceBroadbandWireless. "Most WiMAX operators are approaching the market with an access business case, competing with DSL and cable operators ... But WiMAX operators can add a layer of revenue to that business case by adding a multimedia component."

Separately, NextWave announced a joint development agreement with Chinese vendor Huawei Technologies that calls for the vendor to deliver the integrated MXtv technology into its WiMAX solutions.

For more about NextWave's MXtv:
- check out this release

Related articles:
Orange, T-Mobile UK partner for TDtv trial Report
NextWave buys IPWireless for up to$235M Report

Vodafone could launch femtocells this year

Mon, 10 Mar 2008 07:59:56 -0400

Commercial femtocell services could become available from Vodafone by the end of this year. The apparent drive behind this schedule is the potential CAPEX cost savings, which the company admits could be up to 20 percent of its 3G macro network deployments.

Vodafone, which last year finalized its RFP for femtocells, has been testing 3G home base stations from Alcatel-Lucent and Huawei in Spain for some months. However, the company's CTO, Steve Pusey, speaking at Vodafone's recent Technology Update, while highlighting the cost saving opportunity that femtocells present, also tempering the outlook for their commercial success.

"We're still studying it," said Pusey. "We've approached femtocells from a cost savings perspective. It gives us the potential to improve coverage and reduce backhaul costs. It may or may not have commercial opportunities beyond that."

Vodafone estimated that of its total network CAPEX spend for full-year 2007/2008, radio access will account for 48 percent, while backhaul will account for 32 percent.

For more on this story:
- read this article from Unstrung

Related articles:
Vodafone trials femtocells in Spain Report
T-Mobile plans femtocell trials Report

T-Mobile invests in femtocell maker

Thu, 06 Mar 2008 06:59:54 -0500

T-Mobile's venture arm has invested an undisclosed amount into the U.K.-based femtocell maker, Ubiquisys. Google, Accel Partners, Atlas Venture and Advent Venture Partners had previously invested in Ubiquisys. Cisco and Intel recently invested in femtocell company ip.access and Qualcomm has put money into Airvana.

T-Mobile said it plans to test Ubiquisys' femtocell technology in trials in Germany, the Netherlands and the U.K. in the coming months. Meanwhile, its U.S. subsidiary is using WiFi hotspots in the home as an alternative to a femtocell solution to improve coverage in the home. Once T-Mobile launches its 3G network in the U.S. we could see both femtocells and WiFi.

For more on T-Mobile's investment:
- read this article from the Guardian

Related articles:
Motorola, Netgear announce femtocell products Report
Cisco pours cash into U.K. femtocell developer Report

Qualcomm aims to replicate dominance in laptop market

Mon, 03 Mar 2008 06:59:58 -0500

You've gotta chalk one up for Qualcomm in its attempts to replicate its dominance on the handset chip side in the laptop market. The vendor is savvy. According to a recent article in GigaOm, Qualcomm's Gobi wireless platform is looking to make it a painless process for manufacturers to embed a 3G network card inside a laptop. Qualcomm is doing this giving manufacturers a solution that has already been certified by multiple operators and runs on the latest CDMA and HSPA silicon.

Qualcomm is licensing the Gobi platform to laptop vendors. HP already plans to use Gobi cards in select 2008 laptops. The Gobi platform includes firmware, a GPS chip and a software-defined radio that supports both CDMA and HSPA. The beauty of the platform is that it can be configured to operate on any compliant network or limited to work on just certain operator networks. The platform in the future will support other technologies like HSPA and LTE.

Vodafone Group and Verizon Wireless back the platform. It's certainly something HSPA operator Vodafone and partner EV-DO operator Verizon have been waiting for to help them bridge their disparate technologies.

As much as folks like to say that Qualcomm is in peril as the world moves away from CDMA-based networks, it's obvious the vendor has plans for the future. Qualcomm's strategy in the chip market has been to come out of the gate first and continually release newer and better versions of chips so that handset makers cannot ignore them. After snubbing Qualcomm last fall by going to Freescale for 3G chipsets, struggling Motorola announced in January that it would again work with Qualcomm. Qualcomm will work hard to make sure the same trend exists in the laptop market--Lynnette

P.S.--Don't forget to join Sue Marek at 2 p.m. EST, Wednesday, March 5 for a Webinar on "Mobile Broadband and the 4G Roadmap." She has some great guests including Ali Tabassi, vice president, technology development at Sprint Nextel, Arun Bhikshesvaran, CTO and vice president strategy and marketing at Ericsson, and Peter Jarich, research director at Current Analysis. Register here.

ALSO NOTED: Next-gen subscribers to top 90M by 2013; 3G network sharing set to take off; and much more...

Mon, 03 Mar 2008 06:59:51 -0500

> The number of subscribers to next generation wireless services worldwide, including both LTE and WiMAX, is expected to top 90 million by 2013, according to ABI Research. Article

> Infonetics Research says the WiMAX equipment market was up 46 percent in 2007 and forecasts the market to hit $7.7 billion in 2011. Article

> 3G network sharing is set to take off in developed markets and will have profound implications for mobile operators, vendors and regulators, according to a new report from Analysys. Article

And Finally... A British businessman has been socked with a $22,000 mobile data roaming fee after his wife used an "unlimited" data account to download several TV shows via a mobile phone. Article

Rumor: T-Mobile wants Canadian 3G network

Thu, 28 Feb 2008 06:59:57 -0500

A CIBC internal note indicates T-Mobile is interested in establishing a 3G network in Canada. The note says that T-Mobile doesn't want to purchase an existing network, but would rather set up a new network of its own. One obstacle is that Canadian Telecommunications regulations highly favor Canadian ownership of telecom companies.

In November, Industry Minister Jim Prentice announced that 40 percent of wireless spectrum set to be auctioned off will be reserved for new entrants.

To read more about T-Mobile's intentions for Canada:
- check out this article from Mobile Magazine

Related article:
Canada: 40% of spectrum for new entrants Report

T-Mobile UK bundles unlimited WiFi with 3G plans

Thu, 10 Jan 2008 06:59:53 -0500

Could T-Mobile UK's move be replicated in the U.S. once T-Mobile USA rolls out its 3G network? T-Mobile UK announced that it is bundling unlimited WiFi access with its Web'n'Walk Plus and Max 3G service plans. For an extra $18 per month, UK users can access the Internet using their laptops over 3G HSDPA and WiFi. T-Mobile UK has about 1,000 WiFi hotspots in the UK in locations such as Starbucks coffee shops, airports, train stations and service stations.

For more about T-Mobile UK's move to bundle 3G and WiFi access:
- read this article from telecoms.com

Related articles:
T-Mobile offers WiFi Blackberry Article
T-Mobile jumps into FMC pool Article

T-Mobile sells first 3G phone, WCDMA rollout near?

Mon, 15 Oct 2007 06:59:55 -0400

T-Mobile is selling its first 3G device in select retail stores in New York City. The Samsung T639, a quad-band GSM/EDGE and WCDMA 1700 MHz clamshell, is the first phone compatible with T-Mobile's WCDMA network, which isn't running yet. T-Mobile won 3G licenses in the 1700 MHz band in the 2006 AWS auction and is currently building out its 3G network. The phone's introduction likely indicates T-Mobile may be ready to roll out its WCDMA network in some markets.

For more about T-Mobile's 3G phone:
- read this article from Phone Scoop

ALSO NOTED: Apple general counsel to work for Qualcomm; The Cloud offers iPod Touch users WiFi access; and much more...

Mon, 01 Oct 2007 06:59:51 -0400

> Apple general counsel Donald Rosenberg is leaving for Qualcomm. Article

> Chunghwa Telecom awarded a 3G network expansion and services contract to Nokia Siemens Networks for $43.3 million. Article

> UK WiFi operator The Cloud offering iPod Touch users WiFi access. Article

And Finally... Experts say the patent threat to the 802.11n standard is overblown. Article

Ericsson introduces HSPA platform for mass market

Mon, 17 Sep 2007 06:59:53 -0400

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.

Unlike Ericsson's previously announced HSPA platforms, which have focused primarily on PC-card products and high-end feature phones, the U335 is the first platform that enables affordable HSPA devices for all segments of the market. the platform supports mobile TV standards MBMS, DVB-H and Unicast and includes imaging, video and music capabilities.

To read more about Ericsson's HSPA platform:
- check out this release

Related Articles:
Ericsson Bolsters Its 3G Network For Mobile TV. Report
Samsung, Ericsson settle two-year patent dispute

ALSO NOTED: Saudi Telecom selects Huawei for mobile WiMAX network; Vodafone UK to beef up HSDPA speeds; and much more...

Thu, 30 Aug 2007 06:59:51 -0400

> Japan Communication, Japan's first mobile virtual network operator, said it asked KDDI to open its 3G network. Article

> Saudi Telecom, the largest service provider in Saudi Arabia, has selected Chinese vendor Huawei to deploy the first WiMAX 802.16e-based network in the Middle East, covering major cities including Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam. Release

> Vodafone UK said it will upgrade its high-speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) network to 7.2 Mbps by November and unveiled three devices that are compatible with the new and improved 3G network. Article

> The wireless baseband chipset provider Spreadtrum Communications announced it entered into a TD-SCDMA strategic partnership agreement with ZTE. Article

> A survey from the Wi-Fi Alliance reveals that word of mouth and marketing efforts from the Wi-Fi Alliance's 300-plus members contributed to increased brand awareness in China, Japan, U.K. and U.S. Release

ALSO NOTED: FCC sets 700 MHz auction for Jan. 16; Beceem completes HARQ demos for WiMAX; and much more...

Mon, 20 Aug 2007 06:59:51 -0400

> The FCC set the 700 MHz auction for Jan. 16. Article

> Beceem Communications announced it successfully completed HARQ demonstrations exceeding a sustainable throughput of 20 Mbps. Release

> Finnish operator TeliaSonera has announced that it has completed the upgrade of its 3G network to HSPA technology. Article

And Finally... User Centric found that people who use QWERTY keyboards took twice as long to type the same message on the iPhone. Article

DoCoMo moves on pre-standard LTE

Mon, 16 Jul 2007 06:59:54 -0400

Japanese operator NTT DoCoMo is once again looking to take the lead in the next phase of high-speed data technology. The operator said it is conducting pre-standards lab tests of what it calls Super 3G, better known as Long Term Evolution (LTE). DoCoMo has a history of moving before standards are actually finished. It did the same with WCDMA. The carrier plans on testing the network in an indoor experiment to test transmission speed using one transmitting and one receiving antenna. DoCoMo is expecting speeds of 300 Mbps on the downlink and said its Super 3G network will allow it to make a smooth transition to 4G technologies in the future.

For more on the Super 3G:
- read this press release

Nokia Siemens unveils 3G femtocell

Thu, 05 Jul 2007 06:59:55 -0400

On the same day the newly formed Femto Forum was commencing its conference in the U.K., Nokia Siemens launched a 3G femtocell and a network gateway to allow operators to manage multiple femtocells in subscribers' homes. But it made no mention of the Femto Forum.

Femtocells are being billed as the next big thing in fixed-mobile convergence, promising to solve many of the shortcomings faced so far by several existing WiFi/cellular FMC services, namely a lack of compelling handsets and perceived complexity of the solution. The Femto Forum aims to create a standard for femtocells, designed to drive down the cost and encourage mobile operators to jump in.

Nokia Siemens' gateway plugs into an operator's core network and is designed to manage femtocells from multiple vendors, but Nokia Siemens has announced that other vendors will have to make sure their femtocells conform to a proprietary interface.

The Femto Forum hopes to get Nokia Siemens on board, but at present, any other vendors will have to rely on Nokia Siemens, which promises to "co-operate with femto vendors to ensure interoperability of their equipment to the Nokia Siemens Networks interface."

For more about Nokia Siemens' 3G femtocell:
- read this report from Techworld

Kiwi telecom, iPass ink secure network deal

Tue, 21 Mar 2006 19:01:37 -0500

This is important news for business travelers and the companies which employ them. Telecom New Zealand has signed an agreement with iPass to launch Telecom Office Anywhere, a service which would allow users to access their company networks and files securely from New Zealand and more than 160 countries. Telecom Office Anywhere provides users with access to their company networks and applications from their PC or laptop anyway they wish by using WiFi, broadband or dial-up on Telecom's 3G network in New Zealand and Australia and selected mobile data cards overseas.

As far as we can tell, this may well be the first secure solution which spans all of Telecom's available access technologies, provides a global footprint and enables single log-in to company networks. The Telecom Connection Manager is the interface which connects users to their company's network. Users follow a single secure log-in process. Available WiFi and mobile data networks are automatically presented to the user for wireless access.

For more on this global roaming service:
- see information at Telecom New Zealand's Web site

SPOTLIGHT: The competition cometh

Tue, 06 Dec 2005 19:01:33 -0500

Cingular Wireless has just launched a wireless network allowing customers to use 3G to access Cingular BroadbandConnect, which is available to nearly 35 million people in 52 communities around the US. Cingular's 3G network is the first service (or, rather, the first widely available service) in the world to use HSDPA technology. HSDPA is the high-speed evolution of GSM/EDGE. GSM is the world's most popular wireless technology, which is used by more than 1 billion people in "210" countries. (This particular claim by the GSM Association is puzzling: There are only 192 countries in the world.) Report