re: GPRS/EDGE & Wi-Fi with 1xRTT & WiFi To follow?
VoiceStream's Stanton noted the role of "entrepreneur insurgents" in driving the industry forward. Just as Craig McCaw deployed one of the first wireless networks and Qualcomm founder Irwin Jacobs turned CDMA from idea to reality, so are Wi-Fi companies fueling wireless innovation.
<< 802.11 was supposed to be a disruptive technology >>
Disruptive
You betcha!
Boingo (with its spectrum-constrained investor Sprint PCS) is IMO one to watch ...
Although Sprint Corp. demonstrated its interest in 802.11b by investing in Boingo, VoiceStream-by virtue of its purchase of bankrupt 802.11b provider MobileStar-is the first carrier to make a line in the sand on the issue of Wi-Fi.
... and Flarion as well:
The CTIA keynote session stage also was a good place to discuss Wi-Fi technology, since the trade gathering is the site of a 1-million-square-foot 802.11b network, believed to be the largest public Wi-Fi network ever deployed.
The interlinking of 802.11b and traditional wireless technology was underscored by demonstrations Intel Corp. and Flarion Technologies conducted during the keynote session. Two-year-old Lucent spinoff Flarion demonstrated a flawless handoff between its flash-OFDM technology and Wi-Fi.
>> Wi-Fi: Threat Or Opportunity?
Margo McCall
Sue Marek
Wireless Week
CTIA Wireless 2002
Official Show Daily
March 19, 2002
CTIA President and CEO Tom Wheeler brokered something of a peace deal Monday, getting a traditional wireless carrier and a Wi-Fi provider to agree that both have much to contribute to the dream of "anytime, anywhere" wireless access.
John Stanton, CEO of VoiceStream Wireless Corp., a company leading the drive to incorporate 802.11b technology into its offerings, shared the stage during yesterday's keynote session with Sky Dayton, CEO of the upstart Wi-Fi provider, Boingo Wireless.
Wheeler also asked the government to be "part of the solution, not part of the problem," lambasting it for its policies that he said are pushing up consumers' monthly wireless bills and potentially delaying much needed advanced services. "Government policy should encourage investment to improve services," Wheeler told the audience in the packed auditorium at yesterday's keynote address to open CTIA's Wireless 2002 annual convention.
To solve this dilemma, Wheeler called upon the government to "give us the tools and we will do the job." Topping the list of tools necessary? Spectrum.
According to panelist Nancy Victory, assistant secretary for communications and administrator of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, the industry's plea for spectrum may soon be answered. "We're working on it," Victory says. The NTIA is conducting a viability assessment that should be completed later this spring that will look at 60 megahertz of government spectrum and 60 megahertz of commercial spectrum. The assessment will determine how fast the spectrum can be cleared, if it can be shared and how much it will cost. That assessment will then go the FCC for review.
While the government works on watering the spectrum drought, the CTIA keynote session stage also was a good place to discuss Wi-Fi technology, since the trade gathering is the site of a 1-million-square-foot 802.11b network, believed to be the largest public Wi-Fi network ever deployed. In addition, Wi-Fi runs on unlicensed spectrum.
Acknowledging his own progression from wireless raconteur to member of the wireless establishment, VoiceStream's Stanton noted the role of "entrepreneur insurgents" in driving the industry forward. Just as Craig McCaw deployed one of the first wireless networks and Qualcomm founder Irwin Jacobs turned CDMA from idea to reality, so are Wi-Fi companies fueling wireless innovation.
But, Wi-Fi is viewed by many as a direct threat to traditional carriers. Besides offering speeds comparable to those of planned third-generation wireless networks, Wi-Fi runs on unlicensed bands, meaning operators aren't bogged down by billions in spectrum costs. But besides being a threat, it might also provide carriers with a sweet opportunity.
Although Sprint Corp. demonstrated its interest in 802.11b by investing in Boingo, VoiceStream-by virtue of its purchase of bankrupt 802.11b provider MobileStar-is the first carrier to make a line in the sand on the issue of Wi-Fi. Stanton says he views MobileStar as an integral part of the VoiceStream network, providing high-capacity, high-density service in public hot spots such as Starbucks and college or corporate campuses.
But since Wi-Fi is designed for stationary, rather than truly mobile uses, customers will continue to rely on traditional wireless networks for truly ubiquitous coverage. "The key element in our strategy is to give customers whatever they want, wherever they want," Stanton says.
Dayton compares the state of the wireless Internet today to the wired Internet in 1993. Competition is increasing and prices of access cards (which he predicts will soon be standard on laptops and mobile phones) are coming down fast. Most carriers are currently studying the technology, he says.
Terming the short, 300-foot range of Wi-Fi both "a curse and a blessing," Dayton also agrees that both Wi-Fi and other technologies will be needed to deliver the wireless Internet. "At some point, it's your chocolate in my peanut butter and we've got a combined network that's good for everybody," says Dayton.
Quipped Wheeler: "The question is, "is it Butterfinger or Baby Ruth?"
The casually attired Dayton- who founded the Los Angeles-based EarthLink Inc. after recognizing the potential of the Internet early on-showed a Boingo promotional video a Hollywood actor friend helped make. The actor lauded the freedom of Boingo inside the lobby of a Santa Monica hotel, inside the Four Seasons and at IHOP, where he ordered a Rooty, Tooty, Fresh and Fruity and discussed the untethered lifestyle with a waitress.
The interlinking of 802.11b and traditional wireless technology was underscored by demonstrations Intel Corp. and Flarion Technologies conducted during the keynote session. Two-year-old Lucent spinoff Flarion demonstrated a flawless handoff between its flash-OFDM technology and Wi-Fi. Intel demonstrated games, a news clip from Japan and location-based services using a handset powered by an Intel StrongArm processor. When it came time to demonstrate a streaming video stream of Intel Chairman Andy Grove, however, the difference between 802.11b and traditional wireless networks was most evident. Grove's words were indecipherable during the first-ever live video feed over a GPRS network, but became immediately clear when the feed was streamed over 802.11b.
That should send a clear message to the industry at large. <<
- Eric - |
