FCC rules to speed up home networking:
by Rex Crum
August 31, 2000
The battle to create ultrafast networking standards for the home is about to speed up following a decision today by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
The FCC ruled that a coalition of companies, known as the HomeRF Working Group, could quintuple the speed of its wireless technology, called HomeRF. The group, which consists of companies such as Intel Corp. (INTC), Proxim Inc. (PROX), Siemens Corp. and Motorola Inc. (MOT), will be able to increase its wireless transmission speeds from two megabits per second to 10 mbps, and offer better connections for broadband data delivery in the home.
Such an increase would give HomeRF a serious boost against the 802.11B standard, also called "Wi-Fi," which runs at 11 mbps, and is supported by Lucent Technologies Inc. (LU), Apple Computer Inc. (AAPL) and 3Com Corp (COMS).
"We're very excited and have been anxiously awaiting this ruling," said Ben Manny, HomeRF chairman and residential communications director at Intel. "The FCC provided us with everything that we requested."
The concept of wireless home networking as its stands now mostly revolves around technology that will let people link more than one home computer together over a single Internet connection and allow laptop computers to operate freely from anywhere in a house.
International Data Corp. has estimated that the number of American homes with wireless network capabilities will increase from 4.1 million this year to 17.6 million in 2004.
Like VHS and Beta?
The market for a wireless home-networking technology is often compared to how VHS and Beta competed for the home-video standard in the early 1980s. HomeRF's opponents came out against increasing the technology's transmission speed, but the Commission rejected those arguments on the grounds that more competition would result in better choices for the home consumer.
But unlike Beta video players, which were quickly consigned to the garage as VHS took over the living room, both wireless standards are likely to stick around for a while.
"I'm not sure if one or the other technology will really be obsolete," said Brian Riggs, a Gartner Group analyst. "But HomeRF seems to have a better grasp of the home market."
FCC Chairman William Kennard said that in giving HomeRF approval increase in its transmission rates, the Commission was responding to the evolution of technology.
"(This decision) will foster small business development and further innovation," said Kennard in a statement. "The more diverse product selection will provide greater flexibility in designing wireless networks."
Although products that utilize the wireless-networking standards, other than computers, are not expected to be on the market for another year, the FCC nod of approval will give a necessary boost to the HomeRF companies. Analysts said the decision was crucial to the survival of HomeRF, which had been looking to close the gap with its Wi-Fi competitors.
"It's definitely a big deal for HomeRF," said Schelley Olhava, an analyst with IDC. "The higher data transmission rate is what it needed in order to compete. Without the approval, Home RF would have been hurting."
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