The GSM Association (GSMA), a trade association comprised of more than 800 mobile operators, called for Taiwan to quit developing WiMAX technology and focus on the development of LTE instead. This development only adds to the stress that WiMAX has been under lately. Both WiMAX and LTE allow for wireless high speed connectivity. WIMAX, which just celebrated its 10th year anniversary, has been under pressure recently as many carriers are making the switch to LTE. According to Chris Perera, GSMA director of spectrum policy and regulatory affairs for the Asia-Pacific region, “Although local demand will drive the WiMAX market, given the smaller market size in terms of lower demand, it is in Taiwan’s best interest to focus on the manufacturing of HSPA wireless networking and LTE equipment, rather than WiMAX equipment.”
Taiwan had their sights on becoming the largest exporter of WiMAX products, but confidence in the technology has been wavering ever since Intel shut down their 4G WiMAX Program office in Taiwan last year. Intel maintains that their office in Taiwan was always temporary and was created with the intention of getting WiMAX off the ground and into the market.
What effect this news will have on the WiMAX industry is questionable. Some believe that the future of WiMAX and LTE is that the two technologies will coexist and compliment each other. WiMAX is better suited for use in rural areas and has an enormous growth potential in developing countries. WiMAX can also play a major role by providing the backhaul connections for various wireless networks including LTE.
]]>Lately, more and more tech magazines and telecommunication journals are announcing that 4G LTE has taken the upper hand on the 4G market. In the USA, many operators and network providers join or switch to the LTE camp . Clearwire announced that it would join the LTE network once it was more mature and Sprint is the latest American operator to announce that it would soon present 4G LTE devices. And obviously, Verizon, the largest 4G network provider uses LTE technology and is expanding aggressively. But, it seems many are forgetting all the applications that WiMAX technology already has and all the manufacturers and 4G operators that believe in WiMAX technology and invest in it.
WiMAX technology is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year and has the ability to take on any market worldwide. It was implemented successfully in several different African countries (Zimbabwe, Cameroon…). The industry has reached a mature point and is broadly deployed worldwide, covering almost a billion potential users. The WiMAX ecosystem has gone through several transformations during its initial years and it has reached a robust position in terms of innovation, deployment, cost management and applications. All the world’s top manufacturers support WiMAX technology by designing WiMAX-compatible products (latest popular smartphones and tablets like Google’s Nexus S or HTC’s Evo 3D) or developing new sectors to use WiMAX in (for example, airports and smart grid technologies offer great potential).
WiMAX is still experiencing tremendous growth. By the end of 2010, it counted 13.5 million subscribers worldwide and expects to reach 25 million subscribers by the end of this year. An Infonetics report even forecasts 125 million subscribers by 2015.
All these elements really testify to the quality of the technology, its ability to cut costs and to stay relevant through technological innovations and new applications.
But, it would be a mistake to underestimate the growing success from its main competitor, 4G LTE technology. But rather than seeing it as a threat, WiMAX has to opportunity to coexist with LTE technology in the global 4G challenge. A Cisco report says that broadband requirements will increase 26 times by 2015 and neither 4G technology is able to handle such growth separately. Manufacturers have seized the importance to gradually have both mobile broadband services work together (among notable innovations Intel is developing dual-platform 4G-wireless chips and Sprint and Clear are developing equipement that could use both technologies indifferently).
]]>Intel is becoming quite the philanthropic organization. As a tsunami and an earthquake ravaged much of Japan about a month ago, aid organizations the world over rushed to provide much needed food, shelter, and medical assistance to the myriad of survivors of the disaster. Now that the situation is stabilizing, several technology companies have generously offered services of their own.
It occurred to Japanese employees of Intel that residents of the many shelters in Japan would like to get in touch with friends and family in Japan and elsewhere, and otherwise connect to the world outside once more, reported PC World. Many of the residents have Smartphones, but their capabilities are limited due to the small screen sizes and often slow connections. Wireless technology was hit particularly badly by the 9.0 level earthquake, which knocked out thousands of cellular stations. Wireless service remains largely unavailable throughout the disaster zone. Even locations as far away as Tokyo have experienced severely disrupted service for days, and only emergency calls to and from Japan were allowed through.
Intel is thus leading a group of technology companies in installing laptops, powered by Sprint’s WiMAX network, in evacuation centers in order to afford occupants a link to the internet. Sixty laptops have already been provided to 30 different centers. Intel is providing WiMAX service through the company UQ Communications, in which Intel has invested $43 million. I believe a round of applause is in order for Intel and WiMAX for the invaluable service they are providing to the survivors of the Japanese disaster.
]]>At this year’s GSMA MWC (GSM Association Mobile World Congress 2011) held at the Fira de Barcelona (Barcelona, Spain), Intel Corp exhibited a mosaic of momentous live technology demonstrations at their Hall 8 pavilion. Inside the pavilion there were several booths – however, Intel’s “Better Connected” booth included four individual kiosks:
1) Broadband on the Go with 4G
2) Media Streaming in Mobile Networks Using Cloud Data Center Technology
3) Live HD video stream from vehicles in field to Command Center at MWC booth
4) C-RAN FDD/TDD -LTE eNodeB Signal Processing
An in-booth 4G demo network was established using both a Motorola WiMAX base station (courtesy of Motorola Solutions) operating at 3.5GHz and an Ericsson LTE Evolved NodeB (courtesy of Ericsson) operating at 2.6GHz. To start, kiosk 1 (Broadband on the Go) had four unique demos:
1) Vidyo Video Conferencing over 4G with Tablets: This was the first public demonstration of VidyoConferencing on 4G network tablets in which a four-way conference was shown between a 2goPad SL10 tablet (with Intel® Centrino® Advanced–N + WiMAX 6250), an EXOPC Slate (with Intel® WiMAX), a Pegatron Lucid Tablet (with embedded ST Ericsson LTE PCI Express Mini card) all calling-in to a room using a Lenovo Thinkpad T510 (with Intel® WiMAX). All tablets were Intel® Atom™ Processor N450-based and Microsoft Windows 7 OS-based with broadband connectivity either to the Ericsson LTE infrastructure or Motorola WiMAX infrastructure.
2) Cubovision Smart TV over 4G: Telecom Italia’s Cubovision which is powered by the Intel® Atom™ Processor CE4100 series processor and a Meego-based OS had its interactive multi-media access demonstrated with its built-in Wi-Fi connected to a Wi-Fi/4G CPE device.
3) Online Gaming over 4G using 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ Processors. This demonstration showcased a Toshiba Satellite (with 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ Processor plus integrated Intel® HD Graphics and Intel® WiMAX) with Need for Speed Online interactive/multi-user on-line gaming, and an MSI Notebook (with 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ Processor plus integrated Intel® HD Graphics and GCT LTE USB Modem) with FIFA Online gaming. The Toshiba was connected to the Motorola WiMAX infrastructure and the MSI was connected to the Ericsson LTE infrastructure.
4) Ortiva iVOG Internet Video Optimization Gateway. In this demonstration, another MSI Notebook (with 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ Processor plus integrated Intel® HD Graphics and Intel® WiMAX) was used to showcase Ortiva’s outstanding product that enables 4G operators to provide a network layer-independent highly scalable video optimization solution which improves end-user experience while at the same time conserving network bandwidth (thereby increasing simultaneous users).
Other demonstrations at the “Broadband on the Go with 4G” kiosk included an MSI Netbook (Intel® Atom™ Processor N570 Processor with GCT LTE PCI Express Mini Card) and a 2go Classmate PC Netbook (Intel® Atom™ Processor N570 Processor with Intel® WiMAX). Both were used for general browsing as well as for checking Speedtest data rates and watching the bit rate adaptation using Microsoft* Smooth Streaming of Big Buck Bunny.
Finally, at a separate kiosk, there was a demonstration titled: “Live HD video stream from vehicles in field to Command Center at MWC booth.” HD video was transmitted by two PC clients, one notebook (2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i7 Processor plus 3rd party LTE) with Professional Video connected via the HDMI interface and one Tablet (Intel® Atom™ Processor N450 plus 3rd party LTE) located inside two vehicles traveling through Barcelona. The Notebook livecasted over Alcatel-Lucent’s FDD LTE system whereas the Tablet livecasted (LiveCast Duo) over Alcatel-Lucent’s TDD LTE system. After the 720p HD video and non-720p videos were sent to the Livecast* server, the HD video encoding quality of the 2nd Gen Intel® Core™ i7 Processor could be assessed at the Livecast Command Center (Dell Latitude E6520, 2nd Generation Intel® Core™ i7 Processor.
Video footage from the Intel Pavilion can be seen at the guptawimaxchannel
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November 23-24 were
November 23-24 were two days filled with further in-depth keynotes and lectures. A highlight was when the Intel 4G team, in collaboration with Packet One Networks (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd (P1), demonstrated live applications over the indoor WiMAX network (established by P1 engineers using two single sector ZTE picocells operating at 2.3GHz channel frequency) as well as the outdoor commercial P1 4G network (Kuala Lampur City Center). P1 is Malaysia’s premier WiMAX telco. P1 personnel made it clear to us while we were there that they were revolutionizing 4G (in Malaysia) in terms of their ability to provide 4G internet access at an affordable rate, anytime and anywhere; hassle free to the Malaysian populace. According to StarSpecial, 19 August 2010 issue: “By the end of 2009, the 4G WiMAX network had been deployed to provide 4G broadband coverage in over 25 towns; covering areas in Kuala Lampur, Selangor, Penang, Kedah, Perak, Terengganu, Pahang and Johor, representing over 35 percent of Peninsular Malaysian’s population. Today, it has over 40 percent 4G WiMAX coverage in Malaysia with an admirable 196,000 happy subscribers… P1 is on track to provide high capacity, high speed 4G broadband to 45 percent of Peninsular Malaysia’s population by the end of 2010, and 65 percent of the entire Malaysian population by the end of 2012, further contributing to the national broadband agenda of achieving a 50 percent broadband penetration rate by the end of this year.”
In light of the great advances made by P1, Intel’s 4G team together with P1 deployed two livecasters (two ASUS eePC ion Netbooks each equipped with a Microsoft HD Camera, a P1 4G UH235 Super Wiggy (Broadband on the go) USB adapter for WiMAX connectivity, and a GPS receiver). Two P1 engineers were chosen to walk around the Kuala Lampur City Center each with a backpack containing the aforementioned equipment with a web camera anchored in a sturdy pocket with a front view. In this way they were able to livecast, over the P1 4G network, the beautiful Kuala Lampur cityscape back into a Lenovo W510 w/Intel 6250 WiMAX at the P1/Intel booth inside the Ritz-Carlton Hotel. The Lenovo laptop was connected via VGA output to a 42” flat panel display showing the livecast streaming from the Kuala Lampur City Center as well as from the P1 headquarters – all viewed with Livecast Command Center perspective.
This location-based livecasting (video + VoIP + GPS) service was touted as a perfect example of how the P1 4G network can be utilized. Livecast allows one to instantly communicate/share data in real-time and is being used
2) by media and news organizations who can broadcast major news events as they happen,
3) by first responders who can improve results by instantly assessing emergencies/reducing response times,
4) by 4G operators who can provide subscribers with a reason to rely on their high-speed mobile data accounts to share quality video experiences each day, and
5) by families and friends who can check up on each other.
A remotely located Lenovo T510 with Intel 6250 WiMAX and Logitech HD Pro Webcam C910 were also used for a live video conference with the Google TV over WiMAX. P1/Intel also demonstrated some M2M devices:
1) a MSI U130 Netbook with a Feeney Wireless (http://feeneywireless.com/products/panasonic_toughbooks/) Skyus 4G WiMAX USB Adapter (Intel 6250 WiMAX inside) connected to the indoor P1 4G network,
2) a Yealink VP-2009P IP Media Phone, a Yealink SIP-T28P IP Media Phone, and a Yealink SIP-T20P IP Media Phone all connected to the indoor P1 4G network via a P1 4G DX230 (Broadband For Home) CPE device, and
3) a Yeastar MyPBX IP-PBX for small businesses.
1) a Samsung N210 Netbook w/Intel 6250 WiMAX connected to the indoor P1 4G network,
2) a Pegatron Lucid EXOPC Slate tablet w/Intel 6250 WiMAX connected to the indoor P1 4G network, a thin and light Lenovo T410S Thinkpad w/Intel 6250 WiMAX connected to the indoor P1 4G network, a Dell laptop and P1 tablet connected to the P1 WiFi/4G hotspot, another Dell laptop connected with ethernet cable to a P1 4G DX230 CPE device, a Lenovo laptop and a Dell Studio laptop connected to P1 4G network using a P1 Wiggy, a Dell laptop connected using a P1 4G UM230 (Casual Wiggy), and a Dell laptop connected using a P1 4G UH235 (Super Wiggy).
November 24th concluded with a tour of the MIMOS BHD & SIRIM WiMAX Testing Lab – for all WiMAX Forum SEA Regional Focus delegates. The legacy of Yang Amat Berbahagia Tun Dr. Mahathir bin Mohamad (fourth Prime Minister of Malaysia) can be felt in all aspects of 21st century Malaysian civilization – from its gleaming skylines, to its impeccable highways, to its fantastic metropolises, to its hard-working people, to its quality of life and to its power and communications infrastructure. 4G Broadband Technology with WiMAX at center stage is indeed an accomplishment for the world to envy! Some of the video coverage of the event can be viewed here and photos of at the exhibition can be viewed here.
The many whispers concerning Intel’s WiMax intentions had grown to a deafening roar since the company had shuttered its Taiwan WiMax Program Office in June of this year. The Taiwanese government feared the industry bigwig was withdrawing their support for the format altogether, which didn’t sit well with President Ma Ying-jeou, seeing as his nation had just invested $220 million in related technologies and applications for the high-speed standard. With a nice chunk of that money sunk into Intel’s Taiwan efforts, the nation’s plans to stay the WiMax course would surely take a huge loss if that were the case.
Well, it’s time for Taiwan to exhale as all is well in their WiMax world. Intel’s CEO Paul Otellini met with the president recently to ensure him that his chip-making business was staying the course with the development of the wireless broadband technology within the country.
In a separate announcement, Intel’s director of advanced technical sales and services in the Asia-Pacific region endorsed the format saying, “Intel is fully committed to WiMax” and that “user demand” would determine WiMax’s future as opposed to Intel’s technological whims. So despite what their previous actions may have indicated, for the time being Taiwan need not fear–its investment is safe as long as Intel continues to say the right things.
Taiwan hopes their relationship with Intel can continue to grow into something as strong as the nation’s previous partnerships with mobile network equipment makers in Ericsson and fellow chip-makers at Qualcomm.
]]>The many whispers concerning Intel’s WiMax intentions had grown to a deafening roar since the company had shuttered its Taiwan WiMax Program Office in June of this year. The Taiwanese government feared the industry bigwig was withdrawing their support for the format altogether, which didn’t sit well with President Ma Ying-jeou, seeing as his nation had just invested $220 million in related technologies and applications for the high-speed standard. With a nice chunk of that money sunk into Intel’s Taiwan efforts, the nation’s plans to stay the WiMax course would surely take a huge loss if that were the case.
Well, it’s time for Taiwan to exhale as all is well in their WiMax world. Intel’s CEO Paul Otellini met with the president recently to ensure him that his chip-making business was staying the course with the development of the wireless broadband technology within the country.
In a separate announcement, Intel’s director of advanced technical sales and services in the Asia-Pacific region endorsed the format saying, “Intel is fully committed to WiMax” and that “user demand” would determine WiMax’s future as opposed to Intel’s technological whims. So despite what their previous actions may have indicated, for the time being Taiwan need not fear–its investment is safe as long as Intel continues to say the right things.
Taiwan hopes their relationship with Intel can continue to grow into something as strong as the nation’s previous partnerships with mobile network equipment makers in Ericsson and fellow chip-makers at Qualcomm.
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Just last month, Intel disbanded its offices in Taiwan, scaring investors in Taiwan that the future of WiMAX might not be so stable. Intel told investors that it was just a “normal process that takes place as new technologies mature”, but not everyone was convinced. Taiwanese companies make approximately 80% of WiMAX devices; their investment in the technology is estimated to be upwards of hundreds of millions of dollars. The potential damage to Taiwan’s economy could be devastating.
Today, however, Azimuth Systems, a company that provides testing for wireless solutions such as WiMAX and LTE, announced that Taiwan’s Institute for Information Industry has chosen to use the ACE™ MX MIMO channel emulator for the purposes of WiMAX testing. Azimuth publicized their press release earlier today with numerous statements about the quality of their products and services, but investors should see this for the good news that it is. Taiwan is continuing to work with WiMAX, even without the Intel local office. WiMAX technology is still flourishing in Taiwan.… Read the rest
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Just last month, Intel disbanded its offices in Taiwan, scaring investors in Taiwan that the future of WiMAX might not be so stable. Intel told investors that it was just a “normal process that takes place as new technologies mature”, but not everyone was convinced. Taiwanese companies make approximately 80% of WiMAX devices; their investment in the technology is estimated to be upwards of hundreds of millions of dollars. The potential damage to Taiwan’s economy could be devastating.
Today, however, Azimuth Systems, a company that provides testing for wireless solutions such as WiMAX and LTE, announced that Taiwan’s Institute for Information Industry has chosen to use the ACE™ MX MIMO channel emulator for the purposes of WiMAX testing. Azimuth publicized their press release earlier today with numerous statements about the quality of their products and services, but investors should see this for the good news that it is. Taiwan is continuing to work with WiMAX, even without the Intel local office. WiMAX technology is still flourishing in Taiwan.
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TD-LTE, the latest standard of LTE, operates on TDD, or time division duplexing, the same way that WiMAX does. This would mean that they would share a bandwidth and spectrum. TDD is superior to LTE’s previous usage of FDD, or frequency division duplexing, because TDD uses unpaired spectrum channels and is able to split up work from uplink to downlink. This is much better for data because uplink/downlink rates [of action] are not fixed. FDD is better for mobile operators because uplink/downlink occurs on a paired spectrum channel and voice is symmetric in both directions.
Many companies, like Alvarion, use both TD-LTE and WiMAX because they run on the same spectrum and are therefore interchangeable in a way that both can be used by the same device. It would mean better 4G access for all companies that are smart enough to be using both technologies. Infrax just announced today th first upgradeable WiMAX/LTE base station. They seem to be getting at what most markets are looking for; people want the best everything and now they can get the best of both worlds.
TD-LTE, the latest standard of LTE, operates on TDD, or time division duplexing, the same way that WiMAX does. This would mean that they would share a bandwidth and spectrum. TDD is superior to LTE’s previous usage of FDD, or frequency division duplexing, because TDD uses unpaired spectrum channels and is able to split up work from uplink to downlink. This is much better for data because uplink/downlink rates [of action] are not fixed. FDD is better for mobile operators because uplink/downlink occurs on a paired spectrum channel and voice is symmetric in both directions.
Many companies, like Alvarion, use both TD-LTE and WiMAX because they run on the same spectrum and are therefore interchangeable in a way that both can be used by the same device. It would mean better 4G access for all companies that are smart enough to be using both technologies. Infrax just announced today th first upgradeable WiMAX/LTE base station. They seem to be getting at what most markets are looking for; people want the best everything and now they can get the best of both worlds.
Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint are the companies leading the way for this new product. They exude confidence during technology fairs concluding that the 4G revolution is upon us. They’ve developed products to help connect to the network such as portable modems, usb drives, and sim cards. They’ve even entitled their networks; Sprint’s being WIMAX (World-wide Interoperability for Microwave Access) while Verizon and AT&T’s shall be called LTE (Long Term Evolution). However, perhaps their confidence is missed guided and their promise of debuting in 2013 is unrealistic.
WIMAX developed by the Sprint and Clear companies respectively, seems to be losing ground in the United States amidst their attempt to bring WIMAX success domestically. Though they’ve raised 3.2 billion dollars in investments to produce the network, Sprint and Clear may have underestimated how expensive it is to blanket the country in connectivity. Sprint, the lesser of the three major telecommunications distributors in the country, may not have enough currency to continue production if the 3.2 billion isn’t enough, and investors Google, Time Warner, and Intel may grow weary of waiting and pull their investments early. Also those dependent on their WIMAX’s success is far less than those who are dependent on LTE”s success due to the fact that Verizon and AT&T are far larger companies. … Read the rest
]]>Verizon, AT&T, and Sprint are the companies leading the way for this new product. They exude confidence during technology fairs concluding that the 4G revolution is upon us. They’ve developed products to help connect to the network such as portable modems, usb drives, and sim cards. They’ve even entitled their networks; Sprint’s being WIMAX (World-wide Interoperability for Microwave Access) while Verizon and AT&T’s shall be called LTE (Long Term Evolution). However, perhaps their confidence is missed guided and their promise of debuting in 2013 is unrealistic.
WIMAX developed by the Sprint and Clear companies respectively, seems to be losing ground in the United States amidst their attempt to bring WIMAX success domestically. Though they’ve raised 3.2 billion dollars in investments to produce the network, Sprint and Clear may have underestimated how expensive it is to blanket the country in connectivity. Sprint, the lesser of the three major telecommunications distributors in the country, may not have enough currency to continue production if the 3.2 billion isn’t enough, and investors Google, Time Warner, and Intel may grow weary of waiting and pull their investments early. Also those dependent on their WIMAX’s success is far less than those who are dependent on LTE”s success due to the fact that Verizon and AT&T are far larger companies. If it were a track race, Sprint is trying to take a shortcut by cutting through the field while Verizon and AT&T have already lapped them. If Sprint’s WIMAX fails, it can be attributed to the fact that their company just isn’t ready or wealthy enough.
LTE developed by Verizon and AT&T is also having trouble breaking ground in the telecommunications industry. Though it has run several tests, and covers almost an equal amount of area that WIMAX does, it is far less mature. It is faster than 3G but is however slower than Clear’s WIMAX. Also the infrastructure of the technology is underdeveloped which can be fixed over time. The problem with LTE is the fact that the company is trying to rush the development of the 4th Generation network so that it isn’t overshadowed by WIMAX. LTE wants to be the fist to release their network in order to compete but at the same time it’s detrimental to the process of developing the technology.
The competition between companies seems to be unhealthy for their product. If they rush development to meet the deadline they set for themselves, it may lead to an unfinished, underdeveloped, product and lead to more problems than solutions. It is essential to that these companies slow the process down so that the network they establish is without problems and inconvenience in the future.
InfoTel might choose WiMAX over LTE in deploying 4G broadband services across India, according to a recent report. Indian telecom operators are deciding between the two competing technologies after the spectrum auction netted $8.22 billion.
IntoTel was the lone operator that was awarded spectrum space across all of India. They will lead the way in deploying 4G in India. Broadband penetration is less than one percent and the subscriber base is merely nine million people. Large international companies support the different technologies. Qualcomm supports LTE deployment while Intel supports WiMAX deployment in India.
Reliance Industries purchased a 95 percent stake in Infotel for Rs4,800 crore. It was thought that the company would choose LTE. A senior RIL official hinted at choosing devices that supports both WiMAX and LTE. Many companies rushed to establish themselves as device suppliers for the network deployments. Samsung will offer the migration of WiMAX devices seamlessly to LTE once the technology is mature in the market.
“LTE is a technology that is a future technology. It is expected to come in two years. What is available today is WiMax,” Hung Song, vice-president, global sales and marketing, telecom systems, Samsung Electronics, said, “The answer is a natural progression.”
Samsung is the only company offering LTE devices to TeliaSonera’s Scandinavian network. DoCoMo and Verizon Wireless are two carriers set to launch LTE services in Japan and the U.S. respectively. AT&T gave equipment contracts to Alcatel-Lucent and Ericsson for LTE deployment in the U.S. in 2011.
This shows that LTE isn’t far off, but the market hasn’t matured. WiMAX is now and the speeds are faster and more available that the 3G signal provided to Indian broadband users. They’re hoping the equipment providers can provide the dual-mode devices that cover both technologies. It is something that would work in India. The market is so valuable for all involved, from the operators to the equipment suppliers to the end users, the technology choices could make the operators millions of dollars.
Other operators are waiting for RIL to make their decision. They’ll pace the rest of the operator field because they have such an advantage over the rest of the operators that were awarded spectrum space. It’s important to get the deployment right. They’ll probably start out deploying WiMAX first and then migrate to LTE over time. Clearwire is also planning the same transition in the U.S., … Read the rest
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InfoTel might choose WiMAX over LTE in deploying 4G broadband services across India, according to a recent report. Indian telecom operators are deciding between the two competing technologies after the spectrum auction netted $8.22 billion.
IntoTel was the lone operator that was awarded spectrum space across all of India. They will lead the way in deploying 4G in India. Broadband penetration is less than one percent and the subscriber base is merely nine million people. Large international companies support the different technologies. Qualcomm supports LTE deployment while Intel supports WiMAX deployment in India.
Reliance Industries purchased a 95 percent stake in Infotel for Rs4,800 crore. It was thought that the company would choose LTE. A senior RIL official hinted at choosing devices that supports both WiMAX and LTE. Many companies rushed to establish themselves as device suppliers for the network deployments. Samsung will offer the migration of WiMAX devices seamlessly to LTE once the technology is mature in the market.
“LTE is a technology that is a future technology. It is expected to come in two years. What is available today is WiMax,” Hung Song, vice-president, global sales and marketing, telecom systems, Samsung Electronics, said, “The answer is a natural progression.”
Samsung is the only company offering LTE devices to TeliaSonera’s Scandinavian network. DoCoMo and Verizon Wireless are two carriers set to launch LTE services in Japan and the U.S. respectively. AT&T gave equipment contracts to Alcatel-Lucent and Ericsson for LTE deployment in the U.S. in 2011.
This shows that LTE isn’t far off, but the market hasn’t matured. WiMAX is now and the speeds are faster and more available that the 3G signal provided to Indian broadband users. They’re hoping the equipment providers can provide the dual-mode devices that cover both technologies. It is something that would work in India. The market is so valuable for all involved, from the operators to the equipment suppliers to the end users, the technology choices could make the operators millions of dollars.
Other operators are waiting for RIL to make their decision. They’ll pace the rest of the operator field because they have such an advantage over the rest of the operators that were awarded spectrum space. It’s important to get the deployment right. They’ll probably start out deploying WiMAX first and then migrate to LTE over time. Clearwire is also planning the same transition in the U.S., except they’ll transfer over to TD-LTE instead of straight LTE. WiMAX and TD-LTE work on the same frequencies, except TD-LTE speeds are much faster than WiMAX speeds. It isn’t readily available yet, but it should be ready towards the beginning of 2012. India is the most important
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