1xEV as an alternate pathway to UMTS services could provide 3G providers with a pathway to 3G by the end of this year and turn to profitability next year according to QCOM.
QCOM is clearly in position to offer 1xEV for GSM. Read the last paragraph in this press release.
Qualcomm targets GSM operators with cdma2000 solutions
By Anne Young and Emily Bourne, Total
Telecom
22 February 2001
Qualcomm Inc. is stepping up its bid for cdma2000 world domination by targeting
GSM operators in Europe with an early version of the third-generation wireless
technology. And the company's CEO, Irwin Jacobs, is touring Europe in an effort to
sway operators frustrated by equipment delays to the cdma2000 3G standard.
1xEV as a route to Europe
Speaking at the 3GSM Congress in Cannes, Clint McClellan, Qualcomm's director
of strategic marketing, said that by concentrating on data services only, cdma2000
1x Evolution (EV) could offer speeds of up to 2.4 megabits per second well before
the arrival of wideband CDMA, Europe's choice for third-generation mobile services.
Although not part of the IMT-2000 family of 3G standards, 1xEV is widely regarded
as a 3G technology because it fulfils all the necessary criteria. McClellan said a
proposal to bring 1xEV under the IMT-2000 umbrella has now been submitted to the
ITU and he hopes to see a favorable outcome this year.
Currently, IMT-2000 standards include W-CDMA, cdma2000 and UWC-136. 1xEV is
a data-centric standard in the cdma2000 family, while pure 1x provides the migration
path for existing cdmaOne network operators towards 3G.
Qualcomm CEO Jacobs, speaking in London, said the company may gain its first
European presence through 1xEV. "Until recently there was really no hope of doing
anything here." But now, he added, "on the marketing and support sides we are
beefing up the operation."
McClellan claims that the use of 1xEV could open up a whole new strand for GSM
operators and either complement or replace future W-CDMA networks. A key
attraction for GSM operators right now, he said, is that 1xEV will be commercially
deployed by the end of the year, and making money for operators in 2002.
This would allow GSM operators to target the fixed Internet market in areas where
speeds are excessively slow, as well as the high-speed mobile Internet market.
Trials are currently taking place in Korea, the United States and Japan. Voice could
eventually be brought into the equation, added McClellan, by integrating the 1x air
interface with the GSM-MAP core network by around 2003.
So if W-CDMA is late, GSM operators could use this as an alternative route.
cdma2000 in Europe?
The company is also touting its full-grown 3G solution, cdma2000, or 1x, in Europe.
"If six months from now, I've got investment in new spectrum, problems with
financing, manufacturers saying 'I need more time'..." said Jacobs, a readily
available alternative might be attractive.
If all goes to plan, he added, W-CDMA will be commercially available in 2002, with
mass deployment in 2004-5, and, he claims, Qualcomm will be happy if the
standard meets its target (the company also receives royalties for W-CDMA
handsets and base stations). However, he considers it "highly likely" there will be
delays in the delivery of equipment.
The company's own cdma2000 technology, on the other hand, should be in the
networks by next year, he said. Korea's SK Telecom and KT Freetel are deploying it
now in a limited rollout (though it is called 2.5G because it uses existing spectrum
rather than that set aside for 3G). In Japan, KDDI plans to roll out before the end of
the year, using kit from Motorola, and Verizon and Sprint plan to deploy cdma2000
in the U.S. next year.
Jacobs claims the company has received some expressions of interest from
European operators. Two years ago, there was "zero or less interest" in
Qualcomm's offerings. But, he said, the problems with GPRS handsets have driven
some providers to consider other options. "If there is a delay then I think operators
will be looking for alternatives."
Installing 1xEV
According to a Qualcomm white paper, a GSM operator can deploy 1xEV alongside
its current network. To add 1xEV an operator would need to install a cdma2000
base station with a 1xEV channel-card, a packet data serving node and an IP router.
The paper claims that W-CDMA could then be deployed in parallel or at a later date.
McClellan insists that the deployment of early-version cdma2000 could be
completely complementary to the current GSM migration path towards 3G - that is,
GSM - GPRS/EDGE - W-CDMA - by installing 1xEV on the GSM/GPRS network.
According to the white paper, GPRS would not be necessary in this migration path,
but could work in parallel.
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