While DS CDMA does not for the moment provide Q with an opportunity to obtain revenue from ASIC sales, I think (corrections welcome) that the same is true for any manufacturer. If my understanding is correct, no one has yet developed a DS CDMA ASIC.
From the little I know, there are significant technical issues to be resolved before anyone can say that they can market a workable DS CDMA chipset. The same is not true of chipsets based on CDMA2000.
For the Japanese to go forward with whatever flavor of DS CDMA they select is to make a choice between a proven, workable technology with available ASICs which I understand is cheaper to implement and an unproven one that has no ASICs on the market and which is also more expensive. Moreover, the time factor clearly works against any flavor of DS CDMA.
The question is why would the Japanese do something so economically irrational? The clear answer is: They won't, unless something radical has taken place. What are the odds of something paradigm-shattering taking place? In my opinion, nil.
Second question, why is the Q going to form a consortium to bid on spectrum in Japan? The answer to this question in large part depends on the answer to the first question. If nothing radical has happened about which the layman knows nothing, then Q's move is an attempt to get the Japanese to stop bluffing and to involve the US gov't in a trade negotiation. If something radical has taken place from a technology standpoint, then all bets are off.
It should not be forgotten that the Q loves DS CDMA because it gets royalties from its use, regardless of the flavor, Japanese included (I think). The Q, however, loves CDMSA2000 a lot more because it can supply the ASICs and the IPR.
Bottom line: Lots of FUD going around, probably. |
