WCDMA Cellular PC Card's 1st: Then Handsets.
Qualcomm, long a thorn in the side of the GSM community with its proprietary CDMA technology, is now profiting from the GSM camp through its W-CDMA or UMTS chipsets, ... Of Qualcomm's 17 UMTS partners, two are the CPC vendors Sierra Wireless and Option.
The Novatel Wireless Merlin U530 is also Qualcomm powered:
cdmatech.com
I think the the VC701SI Vodafone KK card by Seiko is Qualcomm powered as well but I don't have a confirmation:
3g.co.uk
>> 3G Card Connectivity a Red-Hot 3G Opportunity
15/03/04
Tim Marshall
CommsDay
telecomtv.com
Of course, the majority of the investment community won't be convinced of the value of 3G until it hits the streets and kids can been seen watching the UEFA Champions League final on their fancy new handsets. But such a view ignores the fact that due to strict rollout deadlines, operators in many markets already have UMTS networks up and running and it's now just a matter of finding a way to use them before handsets become more widely available.
According to some pundits, the delay in 3G handset arrivals can only be a good thing for operators, allowing them to fully test everything from call handover to marketing strategies before the big game begins. But that doesn't mean there is no money to made, right here, right now. A new ABI Research report points out that handset delays may have even created a whole new industry sector providing technology to connect laptop computers to UMTS networks.
While the market for enterprise connectivity over 3G networks is still being ignored by some new entrants to the market, others, such as Vodafone in Europe, have seized this opportunity and already providing services for business customers using Cellular PC card (CPC) modems. According to ABI, the unexpected focus on business connectivity by 3G operators could be a boon for CPC vendors, such as Sierra Wireless, Option and Novatel Wireless.
"Traditional CPC modem vendors are gaining some attention and getting a chance to display their capabilities as a result of this development," says ABI analyst Kenil Vora. "This could provide a solid boost to some of these smaller vendors who successfully leverage this opportunity." ABI reckons around one million CPC modems were sold worldwide last year, although with companies like Vodafone now putting their weight behind 3G laptop connectivity, that number is expected to increase substantially this year.
On the handset front, ABI suggests that reliable and suitable 3G handsets are unlikely to make it onto the market in large quantities until late 2004 at the earliest. It adds however that demand for efficient UMTS chipsets, especially in Europe, is helping a somewhat unlikely player take the lead. Qualcomm, long a thorn in the side of the GSM community with its proprietary CDMA technology, is now profiting from the GSM camp through its W-CDMA or UMTS chipsets, ABI says. In fact, of Qualcomm's 17 UMTS partners, two are the CPC vendors Sierra Wireless and Option. Qualcomm has taken an early lead in the UMTS chipset market, driven in part by these early wins. <<
- Eric - |
