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

To: Eric L who wrote (57808)	12/17/2006 2:28:57 PM
From: waitwatchwander	Respond to of 197701

Europe's wireless industry is on the brink of disaster By Ira Brodsky Network World, 05/28/01 European telecom ventures have spent more than $100 billion on licenses for 3G wireless networks. Now some want their money back. They say they paid too much. That may be true: Spectrum auctions in the U.K. and Germany garnered winning bids totaling $35 billion and $46 billion, respectively. But license winners have been less than candid about their sudden change of heart. The real problem is that Europe's Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) operators have committed to a technology that isn't ready: Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (W-CDMA). W-CDMA is touted as superior to Qualcomm's CDMA2000, the CDMA technology used by U.S. operators such as Verizon Wireless and Sprint PCS. The first commercial W-CDMA services were to be launched this month in Japan and the U.K. This had been widely reported as proof that W-CDMA was ahead of CDMA2000. Now that the first two W-CDMA launches have been postponed, perhaps the industry will notice CDMA2000 has been in commercial service in Korea since late last year. In the face of a lengthy W-CDMA delay, Europe's 3G operators have three main options: deploy a 2.5G technology known as general packet radio service (GPRS) as an interim solution; convince their governments to relax license payment terms and simply wait; or switch to CDMA2000. The first option would let UMTS operators begin acquiring customers right away. And they would have good company: AT&T Wireless also has decided to deploy GPRS as a first step toward W-CDMA. Even though a second software upgrade will let CDMA2000 users communicate at roughly 150K bit/sec - about five times faster than GPRS - the slower GPRS could prove fast enough. The one hitch for UMTS operators: Europe's existing 2G operators, which use the popular global system for mobile communications (GSM) standard, have already begun deploying GPRS. This is also why the second option - convince governments to relax payment schedules and just wait - is a bad idea. It gives GSM operators more time to enhance their networks, making UMTS a tougher sell. The last option - switch to CDMA2000 - makes the most business sense. It would let UMTS operators begin deploying networks immediately based on proven technology. It would also facilitate roaming between Europe and countries that don't support GSM, such as Korea and Japan. And it would be less expensive, because CDMA2000 is based on hardware that is already in volume production. The problem is that Europe has benefited greatly from the success of its home-grown wireless technology. It would be extremely difficult for a UMTS operator to break ranks and switch to CDMA2000. But history suggests that when countries deny users better solutions just to protect domestic suppliers, the users and suppliers end up losing. Brodsky is president of Datacomm Research of Chesterfield, Mo. He can be reached at ibrodsky@datacommresearch.com. networkworld.com

To: Eric L who wrote (57808)	12/17/2006 4:16:22 PM
From: rkral	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 197701

Restrictions and RESTRICTIONS "There's still a 3G license available in France and Framce has made it abundantly clear that they'd be delighted to award it to a CDMA2000 network operator if one wants to step to the plate and make the ante others made. " There are written restrictions and unwritten RESTRICTIONS. My read is that no one wants to "step to the plate" to run the risk of being economically blackballed by the GSM community. IOW their perception is the LRRC (Lucrative Roaming Revenue Club) would just shut them out.

To: Eric L who wrote (57808)	12/17/2006 8:40:35 PM
From: Maurice Winn	Respond to of 197701

EricL, the best conspiracies stem from a confluence of interest where nobody needs to even hold a meeting. There is also network effect and legacy effect. If, in the early days, it had been open slather, with spectrum sold at auction without restrictions, there would perhaps have been quite a different outcome. Now, people in Europe will suffer a 12% W-CDMA royalty and technological deficit to get roaming and compatibility in general. Note that in Japan and New Zealand, where there is actual full-scale competition, Au [KDDI] using CDMA2000 is doing very well vs W-CDMA D'Oh!CoMo and Telecom is mauling Vodafone in NZ rather well [after a decade of disaster]. The technological marketing wars are a LOT of fun. Vodafone got stuck in NZ in 2GHz while Telecom is mowing them down in 800MHz and ignoring their 2GHz spectrum. Mqurice