Wireless Broadband: Conflict and Convergence

Foreword xiii

Acknowledgments xvii

List of Figures xxi

INTRODUCTION 1

1 WHERE WE ARE—WIRELESS MEETS THE BROADBAND INTERNET 5

Where We Are 5

How We Got Here: Reintegration of the Telecom Oligopoly and Cracks in the Walled Gardens 6

Flexibility Comes to Wireless Spectrum 22

The Wireless Technology Diaspora 23

Cellular Carriers: Stuck on Stickiness 26

Managed Network Services: The Outsourced Network 30

Enhanced Broadband Voice 31

Fixed Mobile Convergence 33

Boundary Blurring 34

References 35

2 BROADBAND AND THE INFORMATION SOCIETY 37

Impact of Telecommunications on the Economy 39

Wireless Versus Wired Network Economics 40

Broadband Matters 42

So What of Broadband Wireless in All This? 42

How Does the United States Rank Against the Rest of the World? 44

Expansion of the DOI 47

References 49

3 GLOBAL WIRELESS MARKET ANALYSIS 51

Macro Trends 52

The Era of ‘‘Mass Specialization’’ 61

Review of Major Markets 68

The Developing World is Catching Up Rapidly 75

References 76

4 THE VIRTUAL DISPLACES THE PHYSICAL 77

From Circuits to Packets 78

‘‘Lies, Damn Lies and Statistical Access Networks’’ 79

Moore’s Law Finally Reaches Telecom 80

The ‘‘New Broadband’’ Eclipses ‘‘Neo Broadband’’ 82

Regulatory and Public Policy Collide with Technology Shifts 83

References 87

5 CONVERGENCE FINALLY ARRIVES 89

The Quad Play: Voice, Data, Video, and Mobility 89

The Quad-Play Advantage 90

Fixed Mobile Convergence and Unlicensed Mobile Access 93

Broadband Market Overview 100

6 DRIVERS OF BROADBAND CONSUMPTION 105

Trends in Mobile and Converged Content Markets 105

User Interface 105

Handset Display Graphics 107

Mobile Video Content 109

Music 109

Audio 110

GPS/Location-Based Services 110

Messaging and Hosting 113

Internet 2/Web 2.0 Social Networking 115

User Device Form Factors 116

Processing Power 117

Data Management 117

Camera/Video Management 117

Mobile Advertising 118

Voice 119

Video 122

Video Compression Technologies 123

Fixed Digital Video Services 127

Traditional Data Services 131

SCADA (Supervision, Control, and Data Acquisition) 131

Gaming 132

Sensor Networks 132

7 THE EMERGING INFLUENCE OF THE COMPUTER INDUSTRY 135

Wireless Local Area Networks Grow Up and Out:

Municipal WiFi 135

Organic WiFi Networks 138

Public Safety WiFi Derivative 140

License-Exempt Spectrum 140

The Coordinated ‘‘Shared Commons’’ 141

The WiFi Alliance 142

WiMAX Forum 143

8 ALWAYS BEST CONNECTED 145

Product Definition for Broadband Wireless Systems 145

Technology Drivers 146

Evolving Wireless Broadband Market Segments 150

Open Systems and Intelligence at the Edge 152

Radio Network System Engineering 153

References 154

9 BROADBAND IP CORE NETWORKS 155

User Authentication and Log-In 155

Provisioning 156

Fixed- and Mobile-Converged Services Over a Unified Packet Network 157

Fixed Broadband Wireless Networks 159

10 WIDEBAND 3G TO BROADBAND 4G—COLLISION AND CONVERGENCE OF STANDARDS 167

Collision of 3G and WiMAX Standards 168

3GPP and Long-Term Evolution 169

WiMAX and Mobile WiMAX 175

11 RADIO TECHNOLOGY—MOVING THE GOAL POSTS 191

Enabling Technologies 191

Generic Radio Devices 195

12 CONTENTION AND CONFLICT—REGULATORY, POLITICAL, FINANCIAL, AND STANDARDS BATTLES 199

Regulatory Drivers 200

Radio Spectrum Allocations 202

Radio Spectrum Auctions: A Failed Policy? 203

Financial Realities 205

The Standards Wars: Proprietary Versus Open Standards 207

The Many Faces of the Standards Process 208

13 CONCLUSION 213

Economic Growth 214

Public Policy 215

A WIRELESS BROADBAND GLOSSARY 217

B A SCENARIO OF A BROADBAND WIRELESS CUSTOMER, CIRCA 2012 231

2012 Scenario 231

C SPECTRUM TABLES—WIRELESS BROADBAND 235

Mobile Network Spectrum Allocations 235

Index 237

About the Authors 251