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Technology Stocks : Spectrum Signal Processing (SSPI) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Bradley W. Price who wrote (2172)	1/27/1999 10:47:00 AM
From: Frank Ferrari	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 4400

Anybody know when the next earnings release is? I couldn't find the date on their website. Thanks Frank

To: Bradley W. Price who wrote (2172)	1/28/1999 11:15:00 PM
From: nord	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 4400

Bradley LMDS/MMDS coming along. Hope they use DSP boards! For a background to LMDS (Local Multipoint Distribution Services) you can check out the International Engineering Consortium's WebProForum tutorial at webproforum.com. Here is a brief definition of LMDS, the markets for LMDS technology, and therole of DSP in LMDS microwave basestations. LMDS Defined Local multipoint distribution system (LMDS) is the broadband wireless technology used to deliver wireless point-to-multipoint communications for voice, data, Internet, and video services in the 25 GHz and higher spectrum (depending on licensing). Due to the propagation characteristics of signals in this frequency range, LMDS systems use a cellular-like network architecture, though services provided are fixed, not mobile. In the United States, 1.3 MHz of bandwidth surrounding the 28-GHz band (also known as the Ka-band) has been allocated for LMDS to deliver broadband services in a point-to-point or point-to-multipoint configuration to residential and commercial customers. Baud rates will be in excess of 1 gigabit per second downstream, 200 megabits per second upstream. Proponents said they believe it will be easily deployable, especially with no wires or cables to be laidor maintained. Point-to-point fixed wireless networks have been commonly deployed to offer high-speed dedicated links between high-density nodes in a network. More recent advances in a point-to-multipoint technology offer service providers a method of providing high-capacity local access that is less capital-intensive than a wireline solution, faster to deploy than wireline, and able to offer a combination of applications. Moreover, since a large part of a wireless network's cost is not incurred until the customer premise equipment is installed, the network service operator can time capital expenditures to coincide with the signing of new customers. LMDS provides an effective "last mile" solution for the incumbent service provider and can be used by competitive service providers to deliver services directly to end users. DSP in LMDS Signal processing technology is used in the radio modem portion of a LMDS microwave basestation. The RF front-end of LMDS is considerably different than the 1900MHz PCS Basestations (since LMDS uses a much higher frequency 28GHz portion of the microwave spectrum). These RF front-ends translate signals to and from baseband frequencies (which can be sampled at rates which are slow enough to be handled by traditional signal processing technologies). The TDMA (time-division multiple access) modulation schemes which LMDS uses at baseband are similar to those used by certain PCSstandards (such as GSM and IS-136 D-AMPS, but not CDMA which uses spread spectrum). The signal processing requirements of LMDS are not nearly as intensive as the huge MIPS requirements for the IMT-2000 W-CDMA (wideband CDMA) for 3rd generation cellular and can typically be handled by dedicated chipsets from vendors such as Stanford Telecom, CommQuest and others. Here is some further background with reference to the article which David Greenfield wrote on Newbridge's LMCS solution. The modem functionality Newbridge is integrating into its broadband wireless solution is based on the TDMA (time division multiple access) technology. TDMA effectively shares bandwidth among a number of users and is optimal forboth variable rate connections, where potentially hundreds of Ethernet or other bursty traffic users can share the bandwidth up to wire speeds, and fixed data rate connections (n X T1/E1 or n X 64 kbits/s). Stanford Telecom has developed field-proven solutions for TDMA in the broadband wireless environment, based on its expertise in both military and satelliteapplications. Newbridge, in its capacity as an end-to-end solution provider to broadband wireless operators, will benefit from Stanford Telecom's expertise and innovation in modem and customer interface technology, and the opportunity to jointly develop advanced solutions for operators. Stanford Telecom will gain access to a worldwide installed base of Newbridge equipment, and the opportunity to integrate its technology with the industry-leading Newbridge asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) platform. "Stanford Telecom has enjoyed an excellent development relationship with Newbridge," said Dr. Val P. Peline, President and CEO, Stanford Telecom. "Marrying the strengths of the two companies enables us to offer an optimal solution to operators and immediately address global opportunities." Stanford's modem technology will be used in the Newbridge broadband wireless solution which is based on the Siemens / Newbridge MainStreetXpress(tm) 36170 Multiservices Switch, the first ATM platform with integrated broadband wireless capability. The Newbridge solution for broadband wireless operatorscomprises both base-station and customer premise equipment. The ATM radio interface card (ARIC), integral to the MainStreetXpress 36170 Switch, provides an interface between the wire-line backbone and the wireless accessportion of the network. The Stanford Telecom modem is integrated into the ARIC. Transmission and reception of the wireless signals is performed by a transmitter/receiver at the base station and a transceiver at the customer premise. Customer interface units provide connectivity to the wire-line network within the customer premise. Markets for LMDS There is considerable controversy concerning the growth of the LMDS markets. Possible obstacles to LMDS services growth include: * Limitations of LMDS technology (LMDS requires customers have line of sight to a transmitter. Customers will also need to install a lot of subsystems -- transceivers, interfaces, and nodes. Furthermore, obstructions as small as the foliage on trees can impede signals, as can rain -- a phenomenon called "rain fade." ) * Competition with incumbents* Competition with ISPs* Competition with PCS Wireless service providers * Competing technologies such as: xDSL (ADSL,HDSL,SDSL,VDSL), Cable Modems, Direct Broadcast Satellite, and MMDS/MDS. * Accessing Tower Building sites for antenna deployment (must be line-of-sight). * Standards and Regulation. One obstacle which has been holding up LMDS to some extent is the delay in auctioning spectrum in the US and Canada. Finally this seems to have been resolves with the auctions for the 28GHz band which took place in 1998. Here are a couple of articles which discuss markets for LMDS with some diversity of opinion: 1. "Local Multipoint Distribution Service: Wireless Wonder Or Broadband Bust?" By George Leopold and Brian Santo, EE Times. techweb.com 2. "Study bullish on LMDS" By George Leopold, EE Times edtn.com Can Spectrum Play in LMDS? While Spevtrum could apply their resources to this market, it is not clear that it would be prudent for the following reasons: 1. The jury on LMDS success is still out. 2. There is not a clear role for programmable DSP (as opposed to application-specific ASIC). 3. There are other potentially more fruitful sub-segments of the wireless industry which Spectrum is pursuing using its strengths in parallel multi-processor DSP. The bottom line: Take a wait-and-see approach to watch how LMDS is accepted. If Stanford Telecom or other LMDS companies (like the Nortel Networks new BNI acquisition in Winnipeg) start to take an interest in smart antenna technology for LMDS then the story could change with respect to the size of the DSP component in LMDS systems and Spectrums opportunities in this market. Regards Norden