WSJ Reports $5b Investment Into Sprint Rejected

by Jeff Orr, Editor
Mobile Broadband News

The Wall Street Journal is reporting sources stating that Sprint Nextel Corp. rejected an offer by South Korea’s SK Telecom and private equity firm Providence Equity Partners to invest $5 billion in the company and install its former chairman, Tim Donahue, as chief executive.

SK Telecom is one of two Korean operators offering Mobile WiMAX service under the WiBro brand today. Sprint faces shareholder dissatisfaction over their current cellular services and brand rationalization, resulting in questions about how future investments should be focused. Today’s announcement comes on the heels of US carrier Verizon Wireless’s announcement that they will follow in their parents’ footsteps (Verizon and Vodafone) to plan trials using 3GPP Long Term Evolution (LTE) sometime in 2008.

Read more at: WSJ Online

EU Nations Approve DVB-H as Mobile TV Standard

The European Commission, and now the EU nations, are backing the DVB-H (Digital Video Broadcasting - Handheld) over competitors.

All EU nations will have to support and encourage the use of DVB-H for the launch of mobile TV services, over such rivals as DMB (Digital Multimedia Broadcasting) developed and widely used in South Korea, or the MediaFLO system developed by US company Qualcomm.

[Read more at: PhysOrg.com]

Verizon Announces Plans to Use LTE as Next-Generation Broadband Wireless Strategy

Verizon today announced plans to develop and deploy its fourth generation mobile broadband network using Long Term Evolution (LTE) — the technology developed within the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standards organization. The selection of LTE provides Verizon and Vodafone — joint owners of U.S.-based Verizon Wireless — with a unique opportunity to adopt a common access platform with true global scale and compatibility with existing technologies of both companies.

Verizon and Vodafone have a coordinated trial plan for LTE that begins in 2008. Trial suppliers include Alcatel-Lucent, Ericsson, Motorola, Nokia-Siemens, and Nortel. These suppliers, along with others in the world community, have contributed significantly towards development of the standards in 3GPP. Discussions with device suppliers have expanded beyond traditional suppliers such as LG, Samsung, Motorola, Nokia, and Sony Ericsson, as consumer electronics companies anticipate embedded wireless functionality in their future products.
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Bouygues Telecom Rolls Out Alcatel-Lucent HSPA Across Four French Regions

Alcatel-Lucent today announced that it is rolling out Bouygues Telecom’s 3G/HSPA network in four of Bouygues Telecom’s six operational regions in France. Alcatel-Lucent’s advanced wireless solutions will enable Bouygues Telecom to offer customers throughout most of France such sophisticated mobile commercial services as high-speed data and high-definition video-on-demand.

Under the framework of the five-year contract, Alcatel-Lucent is responsible for installation and deployment of UMTS/HSPA (Universal Mobile Telecommunications Service/ High Speed Packet Access) solutions. The solution encompasses the Alcatel-Lucent Radio Access Network solution, management and associated installation services.
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WAAV and RocketStream Partner for Doubling EV-DO Performance

WAAV, Inc. and RocketStream, Inc. today announced they have achieved average file upload speeds of 1.2 Mbps over two EV-DO Rev A network connections. A 31 MB file accelerated by the RocketStream data transfer acceleration software suite through WAAV’s Airbox X2 multiple-connection cellular router was uploaded in only 3 minutes and 19 seconds.

The ability to upload such huge files in short periods of time opens enormous opportunities for large file transfers from remote locations and moving vehicles. Users have been limited to the average upload speeds of 400-600 Kbps over today’s EV-DO Rev A networks. The AirBox X2, WAAV’s multiple connection cellular router, is now able to double that upload speed when used in conjunction with RocketStream’s proprietary PDP file transfer acceleration technology. Media companies and large enterprises with remote file upload needs, have expressed significant interest in such a solution.
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USTelematics Announces In-Vehicle Entertainment Solutions using EV-DO and WiMAX

USTelematics, Inc., deploying proprietary technology and market-disruptive products at the forefront of the connected-car revolution, has announced the debut of Voyager, the first product line to offer live internet protocol TV (IPTV) for passenger automobiles as well as an unparalleled suite of functions and features for the multibillion-dollar mobile entertainment and data communications marketplace. The product launch is a key component of the Company’s strategic initiatives to capture significant market share and expand revenues.

The Voyager brand of fully integrated wireless mobile internet protocol TVs (IPTV) is the latest product line to embody USTelematics’ proprietary technologies and solutions for entertainment and communications in the automobile environment. The Company is commercializing an expanding line of products that target the estimated $58 billion telematics marketplace, including solutions that enable online internet access, email and other communications within passenger and commercial vehicles.
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Technosium 2008 Conference Announced for Wireless and Mobile Broadband Telecommunications

Technosium 2008 Conference and Expo being held in Silicon Valley on January 29-31, 2008 announced today that the dual focus of this integrated global event for 2008 is Enterprise IT World and WiMoCom (Wireless and Mobile Broadband Telecommunications).

WiMoCom part of Technosium 2008 includes wireless technology services and solutions such as Cellular, Wi-Fi, WiMAX, RFID and Bluetooth for the corporate and public sectors. WiMoCom is the next level extension of the National Wireless Summit and Expo held on the campus of U.C.L.A. in Los Angeles, CA.
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UK Mobile WiMAX Collaboration Led by Nortel and Urban Wimax Adds to Roster

The cross-market collaboration founded recently by Nortel and UK service provider Urban Wimax to demonstrate the supply chain and technical aspects of mobile WiMAX today announced seven new member companies.

Just four months after launch, the collaboration welcomes:
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Can Sprint Hang On to WiMAX in the Face of a Financial Struggle? Ponders ABI Research

“Sprint is under increasing financial pressure as it loses subscribers to competitors such as Verizon, T-Mobile, and AT&T,” says Phil Solis, principal mobile broadband analyst at ABI Research. “Many say Sprint should focus on its core business rather than push forward with WiMAX, but this idea is nonsensical.”

ABI Research believes that within the general context of competitive prices, extensive marketing campaigns, and the continual release of new devices, Sprint would be foolish to abandon a differentiator such as WiMAX.
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Airvana Announces Push-to-Talk Software Over EV-DO Network

Airvana, Inc. today announced availability of the company’s latest EV-DO technology, which will allow operators to accelerate the roll-out of next- generation services such as IP-based push-to-talk. Further, with the availability of Airvana’s pioneering radio network controller (RNC) clustering technology, operators can efficiently scale their networks to meet ever increasing subscriber demand. EV-DO is a wireless technology that delivers high-speed mobile Internet, multimedia and entertainment services to millions of subscribers worldwide.

The release of Airvana’s latest EV-DO technology enables operators to deploy push-to-talk services that for the first time can meet or exceed the most stringent performance requirements, such as uncompromising quality-of- service and sub-one-second “push-to-beep” response time, on an All-IP mobile broadband network. By delivering superior push-to-talk services on their existing EV-DO Rev A networks, operators are able to leverage the same mobile broadband network infrastructure that they are using to provide many other IP services.
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AT&T and Nokia Siemens Networks Kick Off 2008 IMS Research Competition at Georgia Institute of Technology

AT&T and Nokia Siemens Networks have begun the second year of the IMS Research Competition for undergraduate and post-graduate students at the Georgia Institute of Technology. The goal of the competition is to research, build, and prototype next-generation mobile applications using an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS) platform — a network communications platform delivered by AT&T and Nokia Siemens Networks. The competition will begin in the Spring semester 2008.

Student teams will compete in one of three categories: Innovation, Higher Education, and Contextual Usage — all categories have been identified as key growth areas in the wireless communications industry. Students will have unparalleled access to commercial-grade network equipment supplied by Nokia Siemens Networks. The IMS lab is located in the Georgia Electronic Design Center (GEDC), and is co-operated by GTMobilesphere and participating vendors. In addition to the application prototype, students will be judged on a business plan outlining how they would market and launch their application.
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24 million 3G LTE subscribers by 2012, predicts Juniper Research

Juniper Research predicts that subscriber numbers for 3G LTE (Long Term Evolution) will approach 24 million by 2012, just two years after the early versions of the technology are expected to be deployed.

The report discusses how LTE is expected to be the long term successor in mobile broadband as it offers a migration path from existing 3G/HSPA technologies already in place. Juniper Research forecasts that, by 2010, LTE - the next generation of mobile broadband (after HSPA), should be going commercial and high definition could by then be a reality on devices.
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Siemens Introduces Gigaset Mobile WiMAX CPE and Gateway Portfolio for 2008

Siemens Home and Office Communication Devices (SHC) today announced at the WiMAX 2007 conference in Munich its new and comprehensive portfolio of WiMAX subscriber devices, which will initially consist of two modems and two gateways. All devices are based on the standard IEEE 802.16-2005 and are fully compliant to Wave 2 certification, including MIMO (Multiple Input / Multiple Output) A and B and beamforming.

The new Siemens WiMAX portfolio includes a basic modem, a VoIP modem and two feature-rich gateways: The Siemens Gigaset SX685 WiMAX gateway was designed with the small office, small enterprise or demanding residential user in mind. Four Ethernet ports enable professional network connectivity and a printer or external hard drive can be connected via a USB host. The PBX functionality for up to 6 extensions supports CLIP, call-forwarding and conferencing. Both fixed line phones and VoIP phones can be connected. On top of all these features, the flagship device, Siemens Gigaset SX686 WiMAX, offers WLAN, which can be easily switched on and off with a button.
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Pipex Wireless Names New UK WiMAX Service - FREEDOM4

Pipex Wireless, a joint venture between Pipex Communications and Intel Capital is launching its new brand nationwide - FREEDOM4. FREEDOM4 recently began the roll-out of its WiMAX infrastructure across the UK, providing users with a ground-breaking personal wireless internet experience.

FREEDOM4 is a completely new broadband wireless service that operates without a fixed line connection, enabling customers to access their personal broadband service whenever they are in a WiMAX zone.
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18 Million UMTS Femtocells at 2011, predicts IDATE

Femtocells have seemingly gone from cult to mainstream in the space of a year. Despite this, no femtocells have been deployed commercially and considerable hurdles must be overcome before units can be rolled out on a wide-scale basis.

As such, the approach of this report carried out by IDATE, is to present the views of leading experts from the vendor and operator communities, as well as a summary of the activities of all concerned in bringing femtocells to market. It is hoped that this will provide an effective overview of the market as it stands now, albeit one that is necessarily incomplete and a work in progress.
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