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Technology Stocks : Qualcomm Moderated Thread - please read rules before posting -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: JohnG who wrote (16503)	11/10/2001 10:49:22 AM
From: JohnG	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 197297

Sprint lauds FCC decision to allow flexible use of MMDS spectrum. eprairie.com CHICAGO – Sprint Broadband Direct's high-speed fixed wireless service and its employees are currently under duress, sources tell ePrairie, as the company reacts to a recent FCC verdict. The Federal Communications Commission decided last Monday to give greater flexibility to the owners of fixed wireless spectrum by allowing them to use the communications frequency for mobile communications as well. Carriers that use the band, which they purchased inexpensively and are now finding to be very valuable, are targeting the asset for use with high-speed third-generation (3G) wireless systems and applications. "The idea behind this decision is we're looking for a home for 3G mobile applications ... by giving flexibility for it without guaranteeing it," said Rodney Small, an economist in the FCC's office of engineering and technology. Though the FCC said last Monday that it "promotes the continued introduction of fixed wireless broadband services," Small says, "This could lessen the use of fixed wireless [and increase mobile], but that would be in the public interest because it would mean mobile has more value." He adds that this decision displeases hardcore 3G proponents, such as those at Verizon who wanted the FCC to require companies to do away with their fixed wireless spectrum and have it auctioned off completely. Small also said that Sprint and WorldCom, which thought they were already making good use of their fixed wireless spectrum, were influential with the FCC in preventing the complete reallocation of the spectrum to mobile systems. The FCC sees this decision as a first step and a compromise between people who wanted to reallocate the spectrum and others who didn't want to change anything at all. Small warns that no true mobile applications can yet be performed on this band until further rulemaking takes place. The FCC said last month it intends to delay an auction for additional 3G spectrum by nearly two years, which has added to the urgency of some carriers for more spectrum. Sources tell ePrairie that Sprint has spent nearly $1 billion on its fixed wireless spectrum and significant funds lobbying for the FCC's decision. Small says that carriers have spent nearly $10 billion total for all available fixed wireless spectrum. Carriers like Sprint are now faced with the quandary of whether to keep their fixed wireless service alive or boost their mobile side. While some, like Sprint, have already invested heavily in fixed spectrum, most industry experts agree that mobile offers much greater potential. Sources within Sprint say there's little question that the company will make the move to mobile. One source said there is "100-percent probability" that Sprint will reallocate the spectrum to mobile uses because there's "more value in mobile." The source warns that all fixed wireless may be facing a "telecom Vietnam" that could eventually end in its near or total elimination. This of course would be a boon for high-speed cable and DSL providers because they'd have one less competitor to face in the margin-crushing market for high-speed Internet access. Consumers, on the other hand, will likely face increased broadband prices and fewer provider choices. Sprint last Monday issued a statement lauding the decision: "Sprint commends the FCC for its decision against relocating current users of the 2,500 to 2,690 MHz spectrum band and allowing continued use for fixed wireless services by MMDS ... licensees. Sprint agrees with the FCC's decision to protect incumbents from interference while allowing market forces to determine the feasibility of using this spectrum for additional services." MMDS, or "Multichannel Multipoint Distribution System" technology, is used by carriers such as Sprint Broadband Direct in Chicago, which beams a signal out 35 miles in all directions from a large dish atop the Sears Tower to small dishes on homes. Cellular technology typically uses the 800 MHz band, whereas PCS (Personal Communications System) typically utilizes the 1,900 MHz band. By ADAM FENDELMAN Associate Editor Telco/Personal Tech Reporter adam@eprairie.com AOL/AIM screename: PureAdam11

To: JohnG who wrote (16503)	11/10/2001 10:53:21 AM
From: JohnG	Respond to of 197297

Sprint had planned to bypass Baby Bells by using 3G CDMA for last mile data--now apparantly this will me also used in a mobil strategy cnn.com May 3, 1999 Web posted at: 12:10 p.m. EDT (1610 GMT) by Jason K. Krause (IDG) -- While AT&T is buying its way into your home via cable, MCI and Sprint have found a cheap end run into the residential and small-business market. Today, both companies have to pay the Baby Bells for access to that final golden mile. But they may have found a useful alternative: wireless cable, an obscure broadcast technology. Wireless cable is an odd business that's been suffering a slow death for the better part of the 1990s. The wireless-cable industry, based on the Multichannel Multipoint Distribution System, or MMDS, spectrum, has been in use for analog TV since the 1960s. The original idea was that educational institutions would use these frequencies for long-distance learning. But this part of the spectrum, with the capacity for roughly 30 analog TV stations, was later deployed by private companies planning to compete with cable franchises. The industry looked promising in the early '90s and launched some of the hottest public offerings in pre-Internet times. However, the companies ended up hemorrhaging money for years in the struggle to compete with cable TV. "We tried to give the cable monopolies a run for their money, but by the time we could deploy the capital raised by going public, it was too late," says Matt Oristano, CEO of Phoenix-based SpeedChoice, a company that Sprint purchased a few weeks ago. "Then, between 1993 and 1995 all the wireless-cable companies, us included, raised high-yield debts." Many wireless companies succumbed to their high-cost borrowings. But, in 1995, the FCC deregulated the spectrum and enabled some companies to leap into digital-data services. Two weeks ago, a small bidding war erupted between Sprint and MCI for the most attractive companies. MCI quietly started buying up more than $200 million of SpeedChoice's debt. Sprint retaliated by buying SpeedChoice's parent company, People's Choice TV. Then MCI agreed to buy CAI Wireless Systems at $24 a share – and a week later increased the offer to $28. Sprint followed suit by agreeing to buy American Telecasting of Colorado Springs, Colo., for $167.8 million and the assumption of $281 million in debt. The time is ripe for telcos to snap up MMDS companies. The FCC has largely deregulated the industry, the technology has matured and the companies are saddled with debts they incurred earlier in the decade, which makes them relatively easy acquisition targets. In 1996, SpeedChoice downsized from 900 to 300 employees while transitioning away from the TV business. CAI emerged from Chapter 11 protection last October. The wireless-cable spectrum is useful because it is wide enough to carry high-bandwidth data applications, including video-over-data and voice-over-data. It has drawbacks as a shared spectrum, though; if too many people are logged on, they sap bandwidth from each other. So the spectrum's best implementation is small-business and residential access. The nearest complementary standard is the Local Multipoint Distribution System, which is useful for serving large, concentrated numbers of customers. However, LMDS is a more expensive technology. MCI and Sprint will probably deploy both standards as wireless networks evolve. Sprint plans to use SpeedChoice to access wireless broadband for its ION network to homes and small businesses. DSL technology is still preferred, but the regional Bell companies make it difficult to roll out DSL. As a result, Sprint and MCI depend on a wireless alternative. And it doesn't hurt that MMDS offers several times the bandwidth of DSL. It's also flexible enough to be an alternative to T1 data lines, a carrier for phone service and a cellular-phone technology. Service starts at $50 a month, and is unaffected by nasty weather. One problem with MMDS is that it creates a local monopoly. Once one company gets the rights to the spectrum in a region, it has an exclusive hold on that franchise. Analysts expect that either the FCC will deregulate the industry further to encourage competition or Sprint and MCI will form a joint venture to provide national coverage with the wireless spectrum. AT&T's own Project Angel, a wireless technology many outsiders assumed the company had shelved, is apparently alive and well. It's slower than MMDS, and will only be used where no land lines exist, but even AT&T now wants to hedge its bets with wireless data.