Hands0n
9th December 2005, 08:27 PM
An interesting article on El Reg for those who are into such things. WiMAX 4G is in the making, but when for? What goes on between? Interesting snippets follow;
Most technology fails because it isn't economical or doesn't find a practical use - such as the Flying Car - without these additional political burdens. However, after taking the pulse at last week's WiMAX World conference in Boston, we have to conclude the future is going to look a lot more like it does today. This isn't to say we won't have an interesting few years ahead of us. We will. It's just that the old verities don't go away.
"The mobile carriers are in the driving seat," says Andy Fuertes, analyst at Visant Strategies. "And they are going to get what they want." [Ed. "Oh poo!"]
..... and .....
From the traditional 3GPP camp, representing GSM/UMTS/WCDMA vendors such as Nokia, Ericsson, Lucent and Nortel, there's a long roadmap of incremental upgrades to something Nokia calls 3.9G, or Super 3G, due for ratification in 2007. (Technically it's known as UTRAN LTE, or Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network Long Term Evolution.) There are several speed bumps along the way, with the first and best-known HSDPA being implemented now, with HSUPA and Internet-HSPA to follow. Deployment of Super 3G can be expected by 2009, if history is any guide. But all these vendors have an eye on WiMAX too. [Ed. Got all that? Good!]
....and.....
The third major camp is 3GPP2, otherwise known as Qualcomm and friends. And it's just acquired a very important friend in the shape of a former adversary: Flarion. Flarion has been plugging away at its 4G OFDM technology for several years, much as Qualcomm once plugged away at CDMA. The technology is crucial because whatever technology is chosen in the long-term will include OFDM. And Flarion can boast technology that already works, with successful deployments and a significant patent portfolio. Flarion's attempts to turn its Flash-OFDM into an IEEE standard, 802.20 was thwarted by none other than Qualcomm a couple of years ago.
Now, after Qualcomm's acquisition of Flarion, all of its 4G rivals must face the prospect of dealing with the most brutally effective IP lawyers in the computer or telecomms industries.
"Qualcomm has captured Intel's Queen," is how one vendor active in both the WiMAX and 3GPP markets described the move to us. [Ed. That'll be the Qualcomm who want it all to themselves then!]
The full article can be read here --> http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/11/01/4g_wimax_analysis/
Most technology fails because it isn't economical or doesn't find a practical use - such as the Flying Car - without these additional political burdens. However, after taking the pulse at last week's WiMAX World conference in Boston, we have to conclude the future is going to look a lot more like it does today. This isn't to say we won't have an interesting few years ahead of us. We will. It's just that the old verities don't go away.
"The mobile carriers are in the driving seat," says Andy Fuertes, analyst at Visant Strategies. "And they are going to get what they want." [Ed. "Oh poo!"]
..... and .....
From the traditional 3GPP camp, representing GSM/UMTS/WCDMA vendors such as Nokia, Ericsson, Lucent and Nortel, there's a long roadmap of incremental upgrades to something Nokia calls 3.9G, or Super 3G, due for ratification in 2007. (Technically it's known as UTRAN LTE, or Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network Long Term Evolution.) There are several speed bumps along the way, with the first and best-known HSDPA being implemented now, with HSUPA and Internet-HSPA to follow. Deployment of Super 3G can be expected by 2009, if history is any guide. But all these vendors have an eye on WiMAX too. [Ed. Got all that? Good!]
....and.....
The third major camp is 3GPP2, otherwise known as Qualcomm and friends. And it's just acquired a very important friend in the shape of a former adversary: Flarion. Flarion has been plugging away at its 4G OFDM technology for several years, much as Qualcomm once plugged away at CDMA. The technology is crucial because whatever technology is chosen in the long-term will include OFDM. And Flarion can boast technology that already works, with successful deployments and a significant patent portfolio. Flarion's attempts to turn its Flash-OFDM into an IEEE standard, 802.20 was thwarted by none other than Qualcomm a couple of years ago.
Now, after Qualcomm's acquisition of Flarion, all of its 4G rivals must face the prospect of dealing with the most brutally effective IP lawyers in the computer or telecomms industries.
"Qualcomm has captured Intel's Queen," is how one vendor active in both the WiMAX and 3GPP markets described the move to us. [Ed. That'll be the Qualcomm who want it all to themselves then!]
The full article can be read here --> http://www.theregister.co.uk/2005/11/01/4g_wimax_analysis/