The Future of WiMax
The WiMAX technology has gain a lot of attention of recent from all stakeholders in the wireless communication industry, industry observers struggle to separate hype from reality. Explaining the market is a feat for anyone considering complexities such as fixed versus mobile WiMAX, product availability and timing, spectrum challenges, and the largely global nature of WiMAX.
WiMAX has been positioned not only as a technology, but also an organization comprising more than 170 vendors, service providers, system integrators and chip manufacturers. The WiMAX Forum has aligned an excellent breed of large and small companies. This will be a critical factor in the technology's enduring success.
The real excitement around WiMAX is not centered on the fixed version of the technology. Large-scale equipment and silicon makers are banking on mobile WiMAX to make their money.
There are a number of hurdles that must be overcome for mobile WiMAX to take off, including global spectrum availability and harmony, the development and adoption of mobile broadband applications, and a definition of the major differentiators of WiMAX products as compared to existing broadband and mobile technologies.
The broadband and mobile markets are moving targets, each shifting from the support of basic service sets to enhanced multimedia applications. Timing, pricing, and scale will be critical to WiMAX success, and vendors must prove that WiMAX can deliver much more than basic broadband.
Despite these obstacles, there are some interesting dynamics that could play out to make service providers invest in mobile WiMAX. As the war heats up between Telco’s and cable companies, triple and quadruple play service bundles are becoming critical. Many of these companies are now trying to figure out whether wireless data services will also become table stakes.
In regions such as Europe, Telco’s seem like a more likely investor in WiMAX. Providers such as British Telecom and France Telecom already participate in the WiMAX Forum. And Asia will be largely stemmed by the South Korean Wi-Bro initiative, which is now following the WiMAX technology trajectory.
One of the biggest market for WiMAX is in China, where IEEE and the Chinese government are already in discussion to make WiMAX the national standard for fixed broadband wireless access at 3.5 GHz. Intel has stated they will begin to make their Centrino laptop processors complete with WiMAX ability within the next two to three years. With a target date of 2008 for having all laptops equipped with this feature, the intel company has also put in place a plan to popularize wimax by putting Wi-Fi and WiMax on the same radio chip, code-named Ofer, in three years. Putting the two technologies on the same chip will allow consumers to switch between local hot spots and regional network, Making WiMax available in portable devices is the next goal for companies such as Intel, Motorola, Alvarion and several equipment manufacturers in the Wimax forum The technology already is finding greater acceptance in developing countries in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa that have no or spotty fixed-line broadband networks.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has outlined some of the factors that could define the success or otherwise of WiMax wireless networking, the OECD report revealed that WiMax depends critically on spectrum allocation, a process which is still incomplete worldwide. This fact makes the OECD conclude that despite all the excitement over WiMax, the ultimate role of WiMax in the wireless market is debatable. The report also cited concerns about competition from existing network operators, who it said are more likely to upgrade their 3G investments with High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) than roll out an entirely new network.
Other issues causing concern include the uncertainty about standards for mobile WiMax, the regulatory environment for connecting networks to the phone system, and the possibilities that operators may block ports rather than lose mobile phone revenue to voice over IP. If that doesn't happen, the report said, then WiMax may be useful if built into mobile phones.
Although there are misperceptions and legitimate impediments surrounding it, WiMAX will play a critical role in making broadband a more globally ubiquitous service. Wireless/wireline convergence will become a reality, and multiple broadband and mobile technologies, including WiMAX, will be needed for service providers to address different segments of the market.
WiMAX has been positioned not only as a technology, but also an organization comprising more than 170 vendors, service providers, system integrators and chip manufacturers. The WiMAX Forum has aligned an excellent breed of large and small companies. This will be a critical factor in the technology's enduring success.
The real excitement around WiMAX is not centered on the fixed version of the technology. Large-scale equipment and silicon makers are banking on mobile WiMAX to make their money.
There are a number of hurdles that must be overcome for mobile WiMAX to take off, including global spectrum availability and harmony, the development and adoption of mobile broadband applications, and a definition of the major differentiators of WiMAX products as compared to existing broadband and mobile technologies.
The broadband and mobile markets are moving targets, each shifting from the support of basic service sets to enhanced multimedia applications. Timing, pricing, and scale will be critical to WiMAX success, and vendors must prove that WiMAX can deliver much more than basic broadband.
Despite these obstacles, there are some interesting dynamics that could play out to make service providers invest in mobile WiMAX. As the war heats up between Telco’s and cable companies, triple and quadruple play service bundles are becoming critical. Many of these companies are now trying to figure out whether wireless data services will also become table stakes.
In regions such as Europe, Telco’s seem like a more likely investor in WiMAX. Providers such as British Telecom and France Telecom already participate in the WiMAX Forum. And Asia will be largely stemmed by the South Korean Wi-Bro initiative, which is now following the WiMAX technology trajectory.
One of the biggest market for WiMAX is in China, where IEEE and the Chinese government are already in discussion to make WiMAX the national standard for fixed broadband wireless access at 3.5 GHz. Intel has stated they will begin to make their Centrino laptop processors complete with WiMAX ability within the next two to three years. With a target date of 2008 for having all laptops equipped with this feature, the intel company has also put in place a plan to popularize wimax by putting Wi-Fi and WiMax on the same radio chip, code-named Ofer, in three years. Putting the two technologies on the same chip will allow consumers to switch between local hot spots and regional network, Making WiMax available in portable devices is the next goal for companies such as Intel, Motorola, Alvarion and several equipment manufacturers in the Wimax forum The technology already is finding greater acceptance in developing countries in the Middle East, Asia, and Africa that have no or spotty fixed-line broadband networks.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) has outlined some of the factors that could define the success or otherwise of WiMax wireless networking, the OECD report revealed that WiMax depends critically on spectrum allocation, a process which is still incomplete worldwide. This fact makes the OECD conclude that despite all the excitement over WiMax, the ultimate role of WiMax in the wireless market is debatable. The report also cited concerns about competition from existing network operators, who it said are more likely to upgrade their 3G investments with High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) than roll out an entirely new network.
Other issues causing concern include the uncertainty about standards for mobile WiMax, the regulatory environment for connecting networks to the phone system, and the possibilities that operators may block ports rather than lose mobile phone revenue to voice over IP. If that doesn't happen, the report said, then WiMax may be useful if built into mobile phones.
Although there are misperceptions and legitimate impediments surrounding it, WiMAX will play a critical role in making broadband a more globally ubiquitous service. Wireless/wireline convergence will become a reality, and multiple broadband and mobile technologies, including WiMAX, will be needed for service providers to address different segments of the market.
posted by iddy @ 2:21 PM
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