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In this on-line publication, we share our analysis, opinions and direction on the interactive television news and views that we believe will be of interest and use to our friends associated directly or indirectly with independent telephone companies. For more information as to the various ways Viodi works with independent telephone companies, please go to http://www.viodi.com/alliance/

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Weissberger's Wireless World & More

Introduction

Dr. Alan Weissberger is a renowned researcher in the telecommunications field. Having consulted for telcos, equipment manufacturers, semiconductor companies, large end users (the EC), venture capitalists, and market research firms, it is good to have his critical eye examining new technologies. The Viodi View has been fortunate to be able to publish many of Dr. Weissberger’s articles. What follows are brief introductions and linkage to the complete articles.

For the latest posts by Alan Weissberger, please go to:

http://viodi.com/author/alanweissberger/


Juniper CEO Scott Kriens Thoughts on Leadership and Corporate Culture Transformation

Will SPRINT Scale back its WiMAX deployment?

Is the Telecom Market in Turmoil because of a Price War? Click here to read more

IEEE ComSoc SCV Telecom and Networking Newsletter- Part II. C-Scape Conference

As the end of the year approaches and everyone is pressed for time, we are going to cover only a few sessions of this excellent conference: Big Picture Mega-Trends, Internet traffic growth, Cisco’s WiMAX strategy resulting from their Navini Networks acquisition, and an informal chat about Cisco’s Service Provider mobility strategy. Click here to read the rest this article.

Speculation Mounts as FCC's 700MHz Auction Application Deadline Nears

We have earlier written about the potential and power resulting from the FCC’s upcoming 700 MHz spectrum auction (http://www.viodi.tv/2007/04/10/wimax/). The recent rhetoric and speculation have heated up to a boiling point, such that we are compelled to provide an updated analysis, the auction details and selected analyst’s opinions. This auction could have a profound effect on the landscape of the mobile tele-communications market by opening the door to one or more new mobile operator(s). There is a lot of talk that Google will bid for this spectrum- either with a partner or alone. The gossip has reached a fever pitch with excerpts included in this article. Click here to read this thorough analysis of what's going on with 700 MHz.

Trends of Wireless World by Alan J. Weissberger

Alan Weissberger reports on the 2007 UTHF Annual Conference: Trends of the Wireless World at this link. Topics of this conference included Telco 2.0, converged mobility and wireless healthcare from speakers representing companies, such as Microsoft, Google and Nokia. Click here.

Muni WiFi….Alive and Well by Alan J. Weissberger

"Rumors of my Death have been greatly exaggerated," by Mark Twain.  That quote best summarizes the Muni Wireless Conference held in Santa Clara, CA this week.  Approximately 450 attendees heard that the market was alive and well from city officials, network providers, vendors, and systems integrators.  The new emphasis is on sustainable business models and viable applications.  Hype has been replaced with a focus on enhancing productivity of city workers and (in some cases) economic development. Click here to read more.

Wireless Rules - 2007 SVC Wireless Annual Conference (pdf)

Alan Weissberger reports on the 2007 SVC Wireless conference in this article. He hones in on the keynote speech by Arun Bhikshesvaran, Vice President Strategy & CTO North America, Ericsson Inc, who spoke about Global Competition and Collaboration in the Mobile/Wireless Ecosystem. Weissberger’s report provides good insight into how many people are using wireless, how they are using it and where it is going.

Majority of TV Watching is on PC in China by Alan J. Weissberger

At Cinacon 2007, Priscilla Lu, CEO of Videonline (with offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, and Redwood City, CA) gave a most interesting presentation on the state of New Media in China.  One of the most surprising facts was that more than 70% of TV and movies in China are watched on users PCs, rather than their TVs.  This is because there is a strict limit on the number of foreign films and programs that can be shown on TV in China. 

For TV watchers, conventional Set-Top Boxes (STBS) serves up digital video to approximately 17 M subscribers. Three or four licensed companies (dominated by Shanghai Media Group) offer VOD via IPTV (over 2 M bit/sec DSL).  There are less than 1M IPTV subscribers, all of whom have IP STBs.  User generated content is starting to progress very rapidly in China and offers a huge market opportunity when combined with advertising.

Please contact the author directly at alan at viodi.com if you are interested in retaining him to research the new media in China.

Weissberger’s Take on MuniWiFi - by Alan J. Weissberger

In this news summary, we take a critical look at Municipal WiFi networks in light of recent cancellations and uncertainty, we revisit the mobile broadband and WiMAX markets, check out VoIP and IEEE 802.11n developments.  We also report on a new startup pursuing services for  rural broadband customers.  Finally, we quote  the opinions of Vince Cerf on the Internet remaining open (now working for Google, he is obviously a proponent of net neutrality and an open Internet).  To read the rest of the article, click here.

WiMAX Roundup: Market Gathering Momentum as Deployments Advance

During the past two weeks, there has been quite a bit of positive press about WiMAX deployments and resolution of critical issues. Most if it is not the usual hype and spin we’ve heard for years, but hard news about deployment plans and vendors selected for build-outs. We attempt to summarize these developments in this article and provide links for the interested reader to pursue those topics in more detail.

Mobile Broadband Revisited: HSPA vs Mobile WiMa

As referenced above, Copper Valley Telecom is among the first U.S. telecom carriers to implement EVDO-Rev A to provide high-speed Internet access to cell phones and PCs. In this article, Alan Weissberger looks at what three telecom market research analyst firms are saying about the evolving 3G+ technologies for mobile broadband access.  They are not very optimistic about mobile WiMax (see italicized comments below).  Finally, we contrast these predictions with the perennially optimistic WiMax forecasts of Trendsmedia (now part of Yankee Group). Click here to read Alan’s analysis.

Is Google the New 800 Pound Wireless Gorilla? by Alan J. Weissberger

Last week there were two very important announcements from Google regarding the 700 MHz spectrum auctions and a partnership with Sprint. These announcements re-enforce their commitment to broadband wireless networks (they are already the WiFi provider for the Mt. View Municipal Wireless Network and are collaborating with Earthlink for the S.F. Muni WiFi Project, if approved by the city). This article puts these two announcements in perspective and speculates on what they could mean for Google and WiMAX. It also looks at an investment Google just made in a technology to improve indoor coverage for 3G cell phones. Click here to read more.

Wireless Mobility Expense Management by Alan J. Weissberger

In today’s fast pace, multi-tasking environment, enterprises must support “on the go” workers that are running multiple applications (e.g. email, contacts, calendar scheduling, CRM, ERP), creating financial reports and accessing sensitive corporate data on their wireless devices. Escalating spending with common carriers and increased costs to support mobile devices are putting pressure on IT departments to manage wireless expenses. In an industry white paper entitled, Mobile Wireless Communications Management and Enterprise Telecommunications Management, Rivermine Software states: T he costs and risks associated with mobile wireless communications are in an unrestrained spiral." We would certainly agree with that! Click here to read the rest of this article.

Bull and Bear Debate Part III: Enterprise Wireless LANs - Are the advantages worth the risks? by Alan J. Weissberger

Cisco continues to push its Unified Wireless Network for enterprises, which was their main message at the June 26th IT Roadmap Conference in Santa Clara, CA.  While probably 70% of enterprises have some WiFi, less than 10% have pervasive access everywhere within their building or campus.  Cisco would like to greatly increase Enterprise WiFi penetration by offering features like: enhanced security, location and tracking services, and secure guest access.  But others see problems with company wide WiFi and wonder if the benefits are worth the risks- financial, security, scalability, availability.  In an article entitled, "Helpless, Hopeless, Wireless,"  the June 26, 2007 Wall Street Journal (again) takes a pessimistic view of this technology stating that, "in many offices, Wi-Fi has been a headache."  The Aberdeen Group weighs in with a recent research report that endeavors to measure enterprise WiFi value proposition to companies.

WiMAX Update: Bull and Bear Debate Part II.

Alan J. Weissberger writes of the mixed signals surrounding the prospects for WiMAX in this follow-up to his article in the previous Viodi View. Of particular interest to independent telco readers, will be his reporting on Digital Bridge Communications. What is interesting about this entity, which focuses on serving rural areas, is that it funded by venture capitalists. Click here to read the rest of his article.

IMS Update: FMC, SIP Interoperability, ATCA, and AIN by Alan J. Weissberger

In our last article, we noted that fixed-mobile convergence (FMC) is one of the big drivers for IMS. Recall that IMS is designed to deliver ubiquitous IP multimedia telecommunication services to any user, connected through any device, across any access network (fixed wireless/wireline or mobile). However, a recent Yankee Group Survey indicates that large enterprises are still cautious about the viability of FMC. Click here to read the rest of the article (PDF Format).

IMS Opportunities, Markets, and Potential Roadblocks

In our last article on IMS and Push to Talk over Cellular we provided several scenarios for IMS (IP Multimedia Subsystem) deployments and highlighted the interoperability challenges faced by IMS applications. In this article, we dig deeper and drill down into the real opportunities and potential markets for IMS. We also identify problem areas that need to be resolved rather quickly for IMS to be a commercial success, notably security. Fresh insight on this topic was obtained at the May 14-17 Communications Developer Conference where several participants offered opinions.

IMS and Push To Talk Over Cellular – by Alan J. Weissberger

At the IEEE ComSoc- SCV chapter’s April 11th, 2007 meeting, Sonim Technologies CTO Joakim Wiklund presented an enlightening and pragmatic view of IMS (IP Multimedia System). Included were the origins, current status and future directions for this much hyped panacea technology for service convergence over IP networks. Click here to read more.

Is WiMAX Market success dependent on new Consumer Electronic (CE) devices? A Prescription for WiMAX Success – by Alan J. Weissberger

During an April 18th telebriefing, the Yankee Group predicted a proliferation of WiMAX enabled CE devices in 2008-09. The hypothesis is that WiMAX device strategies aim to disrupt the status quo for service distribution- away from traditional CPE (modems, integrated adapters for notebook PCs) and into Consumer Electronics products (new gadgets). While low cost computing devices (e.g. $100 Computers) will be critical for emerging market economies, it is unclear whether integrated WiMAX will be chosen over current WiFi solutions. –

Click here to read the rest of this post.

A Potential WiMAX DoublePlay in the 700 MHz Band

Alan Weissberger reports on the potential double play use of Mobile WiMAX in the 700MHz band. To read the full article, click here.

Voice Over WiMaX by Alan J. Weissberger

Joint Venture Silicon Valley Wireless project moves into test phase

Weissberger on IP Video Surveillance, Business Ethics & ATCA

On March 12th Alan Weissberger attended a seminar on IP Video Solutions from Industrial Video Control Corp (IV &C).  Scalable IP video surveillance systems for various applications were described.  The applications included: industrial security, marine and maritime surveillance, traffic monitoring, water works and other remote monitoring, homeland security, and surveillance of public buildings- including schools, hospitals, and prisons. 

Weissberger was also an invited guest at Santa Clara University's prestigious Business Ethics Conference on India and China .  The three day conference explored the cultural, economic, and social factors that form the ethical business practices in these countries and the challenges facing global business organizations in creating a consistent and effective ethical culture capable of crossing national boundaries.

On March 7th, Alan Weissberger attended a full day Light Reading seminar on ATCA, AMC, & MicroTCA 2007: Moving to Deployment.  Advanced Telecom Computing Architecture (ATCA) is a new series of industry standard specifications for components and sub-systems to be used in next generation carrier grade communications equipment. Instead of all the proprietary card and chasis interconnects, the objective here is to provide a common platform for high-availability telecom and computing applications.

For further details on the presentations and talks referenced abouve, please contact Alan directly at 408 247 9102  or [email protected].

IEEE ComSoc Feb 21, 2007 meeting  on Metro-Scale Mesh Networks

Alan Weissberger, Program Chairman of the IEEE ComSoc SCV chapter, reports on their February 21 st, 2007 meeting on Metro Scale Mesh Networks.  Narasimha Chari, Tropos Networks' Chief Architect and Co-Founder, provided some very keen insights into the current architecture of WiFi mesh networks for the metropolitan area.  Mr. Chari also shared his insights as to what the future might hold for metro wireless networks, including the role that WiMAX might play– both for backhaul and, also, for a pico-cell coverage scenario that might replace the WiFi mesh router based sub-network.  As a follow-up to the meeting, Weissberger and Chari provide additional information on the tradeoffs and potential advantages of WiMAX pico-cells, when compared to the more publiced and promoted Macro Cell approach Click here to read this article.

Municipal Wireless Lessons Learned, New WiMax Players & Much More

Alan Weissberger provides an exclusive report from the WCAI Symposium which took place in San Jose, CA a couple of weeks ago. As always, he has some very keen insights and take-aways from this broadband wireless conference. There are some good gems in this report, including an update from Google on their municipal wireless network in Mountain View, CA, an ambitious Sacramento regional municipal wireless network (which will be 60% rural and 40% urban), a look at the U.S. carriers likely to deploy WiMAX, and an Intel executive's demonstration of a personal mobile Internet device. Click here to read Weissberger's full report.

Europe - the Biggest Telecom Market?

According to a report from TIA, that is the case. To find out which region is number two, read Alan J. Weissberger’s report regarding a recent TIA webinar he attended. To read this article, click here.

All-In-One Devices Fueling Wireless Telecom Growth

Alan Weissberger reports that the TIA’s latest forecasts portend a positive future for Wireless Internet Service Providers around the world. To read this article, click here.

Update on IEEE 802.11n and Related Companies

In this article, Weissberger provides an update on the 802.11n standard, which promises four times or greater performance improvement as compared today’s WiFi standards. Click here to read about highlights from an 802.11n webinar, WiFi Alliance Plans for 802.11n Standardization, 802.11n Company Developments, and look at "smart WiFi" and 802.11n for in-home IPTV distribution.

Who Will Deploy WiMAX? - By Alan Weissberger - alan at viodi.com

Alan Weissberger attended ISPCON (see last issue of Viodi View) and concludes that Mobile WiMAX will not be used by WISPs or Municipal Wireless networks anytime soon. And no one at ISPCON was talking about use of Mobile WiMAX to support mobile users. Please see his previous Viodi article: "Will the Real Mobile WiMAX Please Stand Up!".Click here to read more of Alan's observation from ISPCON.

Radio Over Fiber Architecture – A More Reliable, Lower Cost Way Wireless Transport?

The first part of this article dealt with different applications and approaches surrounding the deployment of wireless technologies. This article describes a Radio over Fiber Ring architecture that is being built and now in field trials. It combines the best of broadband wireless access networks with a high-speed fiber optic ring and backbone network. Both fixed and mobile wireless access might be offered in the future. Click here to read more.

ISPCON – WiMAX Alternatives & More

Last week Alan Weissberger attended several excellent panel sessions at ISPCON at the Santa Clara Convention Center. The sessions included: Wireless Internet Service Provider (WISP) best practices and rules, Business Models for Municipal Wireless Networks, Alternatives to WiMAX that can be deployed now, Internet 2 issues and attributes. Please email him at alan at viodi.com indicating which of these topics you are interested in for a forthcoming article in Viodi View.

Advanced Wireless Architectures to Facilitate Convergence of Services – Part 1
By Alan J. Weissberger

Two very stimulating and enlightening presentations on advanced wireless architectures for metropolitan and wide area networks were the highlights of the Wireless Communications Alliance (WCA) October 17, 2006 meeting. New wireless backhaul architectures are being built with off-the-shelf WiFi components and modules and are attracting the participation of industry heavyweights, such as Cisco, IBM and Motorola. In part one of this two part article, Alan J. Weissberger reports on some interesting new wireless projects that include rural areas, such as a 3,700 square mile swath of New Mexico that is currently blanketed with WiFi. Click here to read more.

WCA Leadership Briefing Highlights Interoperability From Mobile WiMAX PlugFest and Sprint Nextel’s Next Generation Wireless Network

WCA’s one-day Carrier & Enterprise Leadership Briefing was co-located with WCA’s Fall 2006 Board of Directors meeting. It was held on October 4, 2005 in Reston, VA. The purpose of the one- day conference was for industry leaders most active within the WCA to share insights with one another following a summer of momentous developments in the broadband wireless industry. Selected members of the trade press were also invited to attend this important one-day conference. Click here to read about Sprint Nextel's plan for implementing WiMAX.

Will the Real “Mobile WiMAX” Please Stand Up! - by Alan J. Weissberger

When will "Mobile WiMAX" actually be used to provide service to mobile users? Perhaps, later then you think. What WiMAX applications do operators favor in the near term?Alan Weissberger recently attended a press briefing and seminar on the impact of the various approaches for broadband wireless data. He has some useful analysis on the initial applications for “Mobile WiMAX” and some of the potential competing technologies it faces, including Fixed WiMAX and 3G data technologies. We note with interest that Intel has started to hedge its WiMAX bets by planning to offer HSPDA technology designed by Nokia. Click here to read this article.

Wireless Gadgets & Gizmos

Weissberger also penned an interesting piece for the WCA on their view of what some of the current future gadgets and gizmos will be. It can be found at

http://www.wca.org/year2006/summary/WCA-091906.pdf

He writes of a low-cost mesh WiFi networking solution, a VoIP over WiFi system that features phone badges and an attendent-free, wireless parking lot.

TIA Advocates Video Franchise Legislation Reform at September 14th Press Briefing

At a September 14th Press Briefing, Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) executives and representatives from three communications technology member companies (Tellabs, Corning, and ANDA Networks) urged the U.S. Senate to pass Senator Ted Stevens’ (R-Alaska) video franchise legislation. That legislation would relax the existing rules requiring telcos to obtain video franchises for each community served. [The telcos would like to just get one national franchise and be able to serve all communities.] Moderator and incoming TIA President Robert Pullen of Tellabs (Senior VP of Global Sales) stated that the TIA would like the Senate to pass the bill this year.

It was claimed that if this legislation becomes law, it would help the United States increase broadband and video deployment, bolster innovation, give rise to new services and more competitive pricing.

Privacy Versus Security – A Special Report by Dr. Alan Weissberger

Striking the balance between personal privacy and public safety is becoming a bigger and bigger challenge in this ever-connected web of electronic data that we weave. In this issue, Dr. Alan Weissberger reports on an interesting seminar organized by Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network, Privacy and Security in a Wireless World. This seminar brought together a diverse set of view points to discuss this topic. Speakers included representatives from the ACLU, the Atherton Police Force (a detective with an IT background), Next Web Wireless (a subsidiary of Covad - a network provider that did not bid on the JVSVN project), Stanford Law School Center for Internet and Society, Secure Content (a consultant to public schools), and the San Jose Public Library.

To read Dr. Alan Weissberger’s report on this important conference, click here.

In related news, Joint Venture: Silicon Valley Network just announced, “the selection of Silicon Valley Metro Connect, a collaboration of IBM, Cisco, Azulstar, and SeaKay to build, own, and operate a high-speed, outdoor, wireless network that will serve 42 entities and 2.4 million people in Silicon Valley.” One of the interesting applications that may result from this network are machine to machine applications for monitoring things like reservoir levels, providing real-time information for public safety applications and monitoring energy efficiency. It will be interesting to see if applications develop that cannot already be cost effectively be provided by other telecom means.

Click here to read more of Weissberger’s report and commentary

A Real Market Exists for Fixed WiMAX:

Alan Weissberger writes a very timely article on the outlook of fixed WiMAX. It is especially relevant given Sprint’s announcement that they are adopting the 802.16e mobile WiMAX standard to create a “4G” network. Click here to read his insight into this technology that could eventually provide customers with another broadband alternative.

WiMAX, Where Are You?
By Alan J. Weissberger [email protected]

We have previously written about Fixed WiMAX (IEEE 802.16-2004 and certified by WiMAX Forum) gear being used to provide broadband wireless access in developing countries (e.g. India, Russia, Brazil, etc). Other applications include DSL fill in, WiFi hot spot or Muni WiFi backhaul, n x DS1/E1 wireless tail circuits, and even cellular voice backhaul. While we still think those applications are viable, we are concerned that there have been no large fixed WiMAX networks deployed or announced in the U.S. Is it because 3.5GHz licensed spectrum is not widely available, the applications do not present a good ROI for operators, or some other reason? We would like to hear something beyond a trial from Sprint-Nextel, AT&T, Bell South, or Clearwire. Click here to read more.

Why Intel Invested $600M in Clearwire:

Clearwire, a network operator which has only installed proprietary fixed wireless networks from subsidiary NextNet Wireless, announced that it has received $900 million in financing from Intel and Motorola. Intel Capital, which had earlier invested in Clearwire, will put $600 million more into the company. That represents the single biggest investment for Intel Capital ever. Motorola will buy NextNet Wireless from Clearwire. Motorola Ventures is also buying an unspecified stake in Clearwire. The three companies will cooperate on research, development and deployment of future wireless broadband networks. Motorola will sell NextNet equipment to Clearwire, and Intel will concentrate on getting mobile WiMax chips designed into future notebook PCs.

[Clearwire's press release announcing this additional infusion of capital can be downloaded from: http://clearwire.com/company/news/07_05_06.php]

Will this initiative create a new food chain that dominates the mobile WiMAX market? That is, Intel selling their Rosedale WiMAX chips to Motorola (and other network equipment companies) which in turn sell their gear to Clearwire. Maybe, but we think that other semiconductor manufacturers will also benefit. This funding and collaboration announcement shows that three major players are intensely focused on getting the mobile WiMAX standard - IEEE 802.16e-2005 -deployed around the world. Ultimately, mobile WiMax will connect notebook computers to the Internet (the mobile computing market) as well as carry steaming video, data, and VoIP traffic to various gadgets (the handheld communication market). Motorola, which sells the Canopy fixed wireless product, is quite keen on mobile WiMAX. Intel aims to get their mobile WiMAX chips designed into notebook PCs sold in 2008.

Where does this leave fixed WiMAX (IEEE 802.16-2004)? Suprisingly, that technology has a lot of potential and power, which we will explore in the next issue of the Viodi View.

Municipal Wireless: Business Models, Privacy, and Missing Applications [Premium $Fee]

Recent press coverage of Municipal Wireless networks has given rise to a number of questions, many of which we have been thinking about for quite some time. Is there a sustainable business model for municipal WiFi networks (Evidently not, judging by recent articles in the Wall Street Journal and New York Times)? Is privacy really such a big issue? In particular, what is Google planning to ensure privacy of muni WiFi users? Will municipal wireless network applications consist of just web browsing, email and Instant Messaging, or are there undiscovered, new applications that can take advantage of the nomadic nature of multiple users within a community? Such applications could attract more users to those same municipal wireless networks.

Weissberger provides an update on Google's latest response to the privacy issues they face in moving forward with their San Francisco municipal WiFi project. He also offesr a prescription for how municipalities might attract more users to their wireless networks. Finally, a perspective on municipal wireless applications and their social implications is provided. Click here to purchase this article.

EPON Seen as Key Enabler of IPTV market

One answer to more video traffic is more fiber – fiber in the backbone, fiber in the metro network and fiber in the last mile. Focusing on the last mile, the question is will it be some variation of a star network or will it be a Passive Optical Network? Within PON, which technology will be the winner; G-PON or E-PON? Allan Weissberger provides insight into this question in this article that he penned for the Viodi View regarding what could be the beta-VHS wars of fiber. Click here to learn more.

Flash Can Impact Everything

On May 25th, Alan Weissberger attended an IEEE Magnetics-Consumer Electronics seminar where Dr. Eli Harari, CEO of SanDisk, spoke about current trends and applications of Flash memories. It's widely recognized that consumer electronics has been the main engine of tech growth, but the influence of dramatically improved price-performance of Flash memories have been underestimated by most analysts. Flash technology has advanced to unlock much greater price elasticity, which is accelerating growth in the consumer electronics market -especially smart phones capable of receiving streaming and real time video. Click here to read the complete article.

Mobile IP Networks?

Another Viodi View contributor with a great deal of relevant Silicon Valley experience is Alan Weissberger. Weissberger listened to a webinar on May 16th produced by Cisco called, Evolution of Mobile Networks to IP NGN. He was able to generate a quick overview of this webinar, but there was a lot more information provided. If you would like a follow up article on this topic, please call or email him indicating what aspects you'd like him to cover. Alan is actively seeking funding for his broadband wireless technology research and analysis. Click here to read Alan’s article.

Vodafone Bullish on 3G, Cautious on VoIP, Public WiFi and WiMAX

Alan Weissberger had a chance to listen to Dr. Stanley Chia, Senior Director of Vodafone’s US R&D Group at the April 20th IEEE East Bay ComSoc meeting. Dr. Chia examined how 3G might co-exist with all of the rapidly developing technologies related to broadband mobile networks, such as VoIP, WiFi and WiMAX. Click here to read this informative look at wireless from the world’s largest revenue producing wireless carrier.

Please email or call Alan if you are interested in discussing broadband wireless research projects, technology assessment, or competitive product positioning with him. - Phone: 408 247-9102 - [email protected]

49 Square Miles of Wireless & More

Alan Weissberger provides exclusive coverage of Google’s plans to blanket Mountain View, CA and San Francisco with wireless in the second part of his coverage of a March 21st Wireless Communication Association meeting. Click here to read his insight on this potentially disruptive communications channel.

1,500 Square Miles of Wireless?

In Silicon Valley, we are fortunate to have an organization that is comprised of industry, government, academia and other local institutions that, in short, is trying to keep this region competitive in today’s world where intellectual and investment capital flow free and a region can go from being the leader in technology to an also-ran in a virtual instant. Alan Weissberger had a chance to catch up with Silicon Valley Joint Venture's Seth Fearey at a recent WCA (Wireless Communications Association) meeting where he described their plans for Wireless Silicon Valley, which promises wireless connectivity to 2.5 million people and 1,500 square miles (larger than Rhode Island).

Click here to read Weissberger’s exclusive coverage of this meeting.

Alan Weissberger on the AT&T-BellSouth Deal - 3/8/06 Issue

It will be interesting to see if the old SBC (the new AT&T) entertainment video initiatives will be extended to BellSouth. Project Lightspeed aims to deliver IPTV as part of a triple play service bundle over a hybrid fiber-copper access network. HomeZone (a venture with EchoStar Communications Corp) plans to introduce a new set-top box that will enable consumers to get both satellite-TV and movies, programs and other content via the Internet.

Weissberger's Wireless World - A WiMAX Update - 3/8/06 Issue

Trendsmedia and Heavy Reading (Light Reading Inc.'s market research division) have just provided new insights into the future of WiMax. In separate reports, they examine WiMax market dynamics, vendor positioning, service provider plans, and WiMax Forum activities. On March 1st, Trendsmedia held a webinar for analysts, while Heavy Reading provided selected results of their WiMax service provider study via email. Both organizations announced the availability of their new WiMAX market research reports. Click here to read the complete article.

Telecom is Back - 2/15/06 Issue

TIA invited selected media members to what turned out to be a very informative conference call on the status of the telecom market. The purpose was to promote the release of TIA’s 2006 Telecommunications Market Review and Forecast book. A few highlights are presented here. A follow on report will depend on readers communicating their interests to this author. Click here to read entire article.

700 MHz WiMAX & More? - Special Report from Alan Weissberger

The operator carrying that high def shopping channel might someday be your friendly WiMAX provider. Alan Weissberger had the chance to hear first-hand the well reported words of Michael D. Gallagher, Assistant Secretary of Commerce and NTIA Administrator.

WiMAX may be able to be deployed in the 700MHz band in a few years:

  • Current broadcast industry will transition out of that band by Feb 19, 2008.
  • FCC will be defining "service rules" for the private sector to acquire that spectrum. Service Providers will have the flexibility to provide whatever services the market dictates. The government will step aside and let the private sector determine what technologies and applications will be used.
  • Currently, 24MHz of the 700MHz spectrum is reserved for public safety applications.
  • The balance of the spectrum is to be auctioned and licensed by the FCC, paving the way for greenfield telcos and WISPs to use it for WiMAX (or other broadband wireless technologies).

Click here to read more of Weissberger's report.

WiMAX Related Sessions at Telecom 05 - Part 2

In the last issue, Alan Weissberger reported on the WiMAX sessions at TELECOM 05. This issue contains the second part of his analysis of those sessions, as well as summaries of the presentations from speakers from service providers BT, Qwest and Sprint-Nextel. Click here to read his comments regarding this very important technology and why one panelist suggested that it could create new mass markets for broadband in developing countries.

WiMAX Related Sessions at Telecom 05

TELECOM ’05 had so much content that I completely missed the wireless sessions. Fortunately, Alan Weissberger was there, took copious notes and shares his analysis of the sessions in this issue of the Viodi View. Click here to read Alan’s article.

Wireless ISP Highlights from Alan Weissberger

With his extensive consulting experience, Alan Weissberger is always good at mining the gems from a conference. In this article, Weissberger provides a sharp analysis of the trends in the wireless ISP world as seen at last month’s Wireless Communications Alliance meeting at ISPCON. Weissberger’s article has some good tidbits for any independent telco that is using or considering the use of wireless for broadband distribution. Click here to read his account.

Weissberger on the Promise of a Cable-less House

The October 12th, 2005 issue of the Viodi View, provided an overview of the HomePlug conference and the promises of that interesting technology to solve home networking issues. While I was attending that event, Alan Weissberger was attending a Wi-CON Americas conference that promises to use wireless technology to free us at long last from the spaghetti nest of wires required to connect our home electronics gear. Click here to read why Weissberger believes that two emerging wireless broadband technologies hold great promise for multi-media distribution within the digital home and multi-dwelling units: IEEE 802.11n and Wireless USB.

802.22 Wireless Regional Area Network (WRAN) WG Update

The reality is that, even with the rise of MVNOs, there still needs to be entities that build and operate the telecommunications’ infrastructure. One of the promising new approaches for last mile infrastructure, which could be critical for independent telcos and their efforts to use wireless to broaden their reach, is represented by the work that is being done in the 802.22 Working Group. In this issue, Alan Weissberger of Data Communications Technology reports on the progress of the Working Group in defining a Functional Requirements document for this future standard. Click here to read about this important work.

Dr. Alan Weissberger’s Take on WCAI

I will give more of my spin on this show in the next issue. In the meantime, please allow me to introduce Dr. Alan Weissberger of DCT who wrote an article for this issue of the Viodi View regarding the WCAI conference. Dr. Weissberger is a long-time industry stalwart having consulted with numerous standards bodies. Alan provides consulting services and could be a good representative for suppliers needing representation on standards bodies or assistance with product definition and direction.

Please click here to read his observations regarding some potential applications of WiMAX for both traditional carriers as well new potential entrants like AOL and Disney.

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