On Monday the GSM Association (GSMA), which represents the operators, released a study it had commissioned from analysts at Ovum. It showed that allowing 3G to be used over the 900MHz GSM spectrum band — a process known in the industry as “refarming” the spectrum — would let an additional 300 million people in Asia, Europe and Africa have access to the more advanced mobile technology. 3G currently operates around 2000MHz, but employing lower frequencies would allow transmission over greater distances, as well as better indoor penetration.
A 3G network operating in the GSM band would give 40 percent greater coverage than it would at 2100MHz — leading to a reduction in cost. Making 3G data services more cost-effective would, of course, help fend off rival technologies such as mobile WiMax — currently enjoying its greatest success in developing countries — but, interestingly, Ovum’s study “does not attempt to address the potential competitive effects of refarming”, according to the GSMA.
O2 and Vodafone currently use the 900MHz band for their GSM voice services, and both companies have previously called for refarming to be allowed. However, analysts say that, if those two operators were allowed to refarm their 900MHz spectrum for 3G services, rivals like T-Mobile and Orange — both of which use the higher frequency 1800MHz range for their GSM services — might object. The subject of 3G and the cost of its delivery is a sensitive one for operators, because of the multi-billion-pound cost of their licences.The Ovum study calls for international co-ordination in the opening up of the 900MHz band, particularly due to the interference problems that could otherwise arise. “900MHz is one of the most used spectrum bands in the world and regulators must be careful to avoid interference with existing GSM services or interference across national borders,” said Stewart Anderton, principal consultant at Ovum.
Tom Phillips, the GSMA’s chief government and regulatory affairs officer, said that “national governments need to co-ordinate their spectrum policies to enable the widespread rollout of HSPA [enhanced 3G connectivity] in the 900MHz band.”
Wireless Mobile Telecom Wireless News
Europe will have five million mobile broadband connections by the end of this year, a Swedish analyst firm has predicted.
The countries where people are signing up most quickly to HSDPA (high-speed 3G) services are Austria and Sweden. Overall, the firm predicts, the continent’s mobile broadband connections will have shot up to 30 million by 2011.
The availability of HSDPA — a technology which can deliver a download speed of up to 7Mbps — has coincided with falling prices for mobile internet access, boosting the popularity of the connection method. “Mobile operators like 3, A1 Mobilkom and Telenor are getting this right,” said senior analyst Tobias Ryberg last week. “Ordinary people have already replaced their old bulky desktop PC with a new, slim, widescreen notebook. Now, thanks to [HSDPA], they can also connect to the internet anywhere for just €20 (£13.50) per month.”
Berg Insight predicted that the European broadband market will be worth €3bn (£2bn) in five years’ time, compared with the €1.1bn (£742m) worth of devices and services last year. The analyst firm also suggested that the introduction of HSPA+ in 2009 — a further evolution of 3G which will see download speeds increase to 28.8Mbps — will further diminish the need for “alternative high-speed mobile broadband technologies”, such as mobile WiMax.
Wireless Mobile Telecom Wireless News
Mobile WiMAX will connect 8% of the world’s 1.1 billion mobile broadband subscribers by 2012, accounting for nearly 88 million users worldwide, according to Mobile Broadband Wireless: Path toward 4G. This new report from Parks Associates forecasts 52% of these subscribers will be from Asian countries while North and South America will account for another 28%.
“Today, most existing WiMAX deployments are the province of aspiring start-up service providers or incumbent telecom carriers looking to fill coverage gaps,” said Yuanzhe (Michael) Cai, Director of Broadband and Gaming, Parks Associates. “The imminent availability of commercial products and increasing availability of spectrum around the world will change the market for mobile WiMAX and make it viable among major service providers. Taiwan alone will have eight million mobile WiMAX subscribers by 2012.”
According to Mobile Broadband Wireless: Path toward 4G, approximately 160 million cellular subscribers, 6% of all cellular subscribers, were using a mobile broadband service at the end of 2006. Two-thirds of these mobile broadband subscribers used UMTS technology, and the remainder used CDMA EVDO.
“Both mobile WiMAX and UMTS/HSDPA technologies will gain market share in the next several years, at the expense of CDMA EVDO,” Cai said, “TD-SCDMA will also have a meaningful market share due to its strong foothold in China, the largest mobile market in the world.”
Mobile Broadband Wireless: Path toward 4G examines next-generation mobile broadband wireless solutions, including 801.16e/WiBro, FLASH-OFDM, and cellular solutions. It analyzes potential market opportunities, examines the competitive equipment and service industry landscape, shares consumer perspectives on mobile broadband wireless solutions, and provides market-sizing information.
Wireless Mobile Telecom Wireless News
Mobile WiMAX will connect 8 percent of the world’s 1.1 billion mobile broadband subscribers by 2012, accounting for nearly 88 million users worldwide, according to “Mobile Broadband Wireless: Path toward 4G,” a new report from Parks Associates. The report also forecasts that 52 percent of these subscribers will be from Asian countries while North and South America will account for another 28 percent.
“Today, most existing WiMAX deployments are the province of aspiring start-up service providers or incumbent telecom carriers looking to fill coverage gaps,” said Yuanzhe (Michael) Cai, Director of Broadband and Gaming, Parks Associates. “The imminent availability of commercial products and increasing availability of spectrum around the world will change the market for mobile WiMAX and make it viable among major service providers. Taiwan alone will have eight million mobile WiMAX subscribers by 2012.”
According to the report, about 160 million cellular subscribers, 6 percent of all cellular subscribers, were using a mobile broadband service at the end of 2006. Two-thirds of these mobile broadband subscribers used UMTS technology, and the remainder used CDMA EVDO.
“Both mobile WiMAX and UMTS/HSDPA technologies will gain market share in the next several years, at the expense of CDMA EVDO,” Cai said. “TD-SCDMA will also have a meaningful market share due to its strong foothold in China, the largest mobile market in the world.”
Wireless Mobile Telecom Wireless News
EetAsia writes…..Agilent Technologies Inc. has introduced a manufacturing test system for WiMAX consumer premises equipment (CPE) and PC card manufacturers seeking a calibration and tuning product optimized for high-volume environments.
The Agilent MXZ-1000 supports both fixed (802.16-2004) and mobile (802.16e-2005) last-mile broadband wireless access systems using a point-to-point or point-to-multipoint architecture.
This WiMAX manufacturing test system offers Beceem’s BCS120 chipset library. As a result, the MXZ-1000 is optimized to directly control Beceem’s BCS120 baseband and RF chipset and the WiMAX modem software, enabling the highest possible measurement throughput.
Beceem is a supplier of chipsets for the recently ratified IEEE 802.16e-2005 standard on which mobile WiMAX is based. Beceem will certify Agilent’s test systems for use by manufacturers that are developing mobile WiMAX products based on the BCS120 chipset.
Wireless Mobile Telecom Wireless News
Fresh calls for 3G over 2G spectrum
