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WiMAX a "disruptive
technology" for carrier ecosystems?
Other Topics: 3650MHz Band on WiMAX
Industry, WiMAX VoIP Acquisitions
ABI
July 15, 2005
WiMAX overlaps cellular technology significantly, and every cellular
operator will have to consider WiMAX, says ABI Research in a report
released today. Carrier WiMAX initiatives will disrupt the entire
carrier ecosystem, including infrastructure and access device makers,
phone vendors, and even chip makers, the ABI report suggests.
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According to ABI, Ireland's O2 recently trialed WiMAX as a way to
deliver broadband services to households and small businesses over a
broad area. Sprint and Motorola, meanwhile, will collaborate in 2005 and
2006 on tests of WiMAX for "future interactive multimedia services," ABI
says.
Other carriers are likely to test WiMAX as well, according to ABI
Principal Analyst Alan Varghese. "It may be true that the first step was
easier for Sprint because they have plentiful 2.5GHz spectrum. And for
O2, WiMAX was a natural extension of the WLAN hotspots they have
deployed across Ireland. But every cellular operator is going to have to
consider WiMAX in their strategic planning."
Varghese cites five reasons why he expects carriers to take an interest
in WiMAX:
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Cellular
network congestion due to high speed data
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Multimedia
take-rates
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Spectral
efficiencies and cost per bit of transmission
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Operator
frequency spectrum strategy
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The vision of
delivering personal broadband
Carrier interest
in WiMAX will have a disruptive effect on the whole carrier ecosystem,
Varghese says, including infrastructure manufacturers, CPE (customer
premises equipment) and handset OEMs, and even semiconductor vendors.
Varghese concludes that despite the considerable investments required to
bring WiMAX networks on-line, carriers can make money from WiMAX,
without cannibalizing existing business. The details are available in
ABI's new study, "WiMAX Semiconductors -- Chipsets, Technologies, and
Market Drivers," which examines market drivers for WiMAX, business
models, global WiMAX development, deployment schedules, and worldwide
frequency plans. |
