WiMAX

Full Speed Ahead for Clearwire and WiMAX

Bernie — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 01:07:15 -0500

With the approval from shareholders now behind them, Clearwire is set to embarq on an historic journey to build a national footprint of 4G mobile Internet in the U.S., potentially creating a new formidable competitor for both wireless and wireline broadband. All regulatory and business structure hurdles have been removed, and Clearwire and Sprint can now combine their WiMAX business units into one. They aim to formally close the transaction by the end of the year. "With an unmatched spectrum portfolio, a next generation all IP network, an ever-expanding ecosystem of mobile 4G devices, and the backing of some of the most innovative communications, entertainment and technology companies in the world, Clearwire is ready to redefine mobile Internet services in the U.S.,” said Benjamin Wolf , CEO of Clearwire, in a company statement.

Now it’s time to perform. Talk is cheap in these competitive times. Clearwire has some huge challenges ahead of them. Building the type of network they aim to do has never been done on a nationwide scale. Among the successes they will surely exploit, there will be bumps in the road, missed expectations, and a huge amount of skepticism to overcome. Are they up to the challenge?

Why Did AT&T Buy Wayport?

Bernie — Thu, 06 Nov 2008 23:19:27 -0500

The acquisition news of the day is that AT&T will buy Wayport for $275 million. The move adds 20K U.S. Wi-Fi hotspots to AT&T’s network and access to 80K globally. Wayport Wi-Fi hotspots include McDonalds restaurants, Marriott Vacation Club resorts, and Four Seasons hotels. So why is AT&T so interested in Wi-Fi that they’re dropping a cool quarter of a billion for an expanded Wi-Fi footprint. Here’s my multiple takes – pick one and add your own opinion with the comment feature below:

Silence the iPhone Whiners - The popularity of the 3G iPhone (2.4 million activations last quarter alone) is overwhelming AT&T’s 3G network, and the iPhone masses are pissed. By expanding their Wi-Fi network, AT&T is hoping to offload more iPhone generated broadband wireless traffic from their 3G network and hopefully quiet the whiners.

Wi-Fi Is Still “Where It’s At” - Despite all the hype of WiMAX (courtesy of XOHM/Clearwire) and pending 4G networks, Wi-Fi will still be the dominant broadband wireless option for many more moons. There are, oh I don’t know, hundreds of millions of Wi-Fi enabled devices in the marketplace today. Contrast that with the ten or so WiMAX devices, and you can only imagine the amount of time it will take WiMAX and other technologies to catch Wi-Fi. AT&T just became the largest facilities based Wi-Fi operator in the country (and maybe the world).

AT&T is Pre-Empting Cable - AT&T offers access to its Wi-Fi network for free to its premium broadband, iPhone, and BlackBerry Bold customers. This strategy adds value to AT&T broadband subscriptions. Value that AT&T hopes builds competitive advantage over cable companies, who will soon offer a broadband wireless option of their own.

WiMAX Expanding Broadband Competition in Rural America

Bernie — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 23:47:25 -0500

Open Range Communications of Denver, Colorado recently received a $267 million broadband loan from the USDA’s RUS program for the build out of broadband in 500 rural communities. The loan proceeds were held up until the FCC acted on a request from Open Range’s spectrum partner, Globalstar. Globalstar asked the FCC to allow them to offer Ancillary Terrestrial Component (ATC) services over their existing spectrum holdings. The FCC granted that request, clearing the way for Globalstar and Open Range to offer WiMAX services in those identified rural communities. “We expect our partner [Open Range] to initially deploy infrastructure in more than 500 rural communities with the ability to expand the relationship over the next six years to additional markets covering 50 million people or about 15% of the U.S. population,'' said Jay Monroe, CEO and Chairman of Globalstar in a company statement.

WiMAX continues to empower a variety of telecompetitors in both urban and rural markets. The FCC’s recent approval of the Clearwire-Sprint XOHM venture opens the door to a true national WiMAX provider, with the capability to compete against both wireline and wireless broadband providers. Companies like DigitalBridge and Azulstar are doing the same in smaller and rural markets. Fairpoint also recently announced it intends to use WiMAX in some Northeastern rural markets. In its relatively short life, WiMAX is providing significant competitive fuel for the marketplace.

Fairpoint Reveals WiMAX Intentions

Bernie — Wed, 29 Oct 2008 22:06:57 -0400

Fairpoint will provide WiMAX service in its Northeast markets using equipment from Nortel and Airspan. Fairpoint’s WiMAX network will operate in the 3.65 GHz spectrum band and will be used to deliver broadband to customers who are outside the reach of broadband from their recently acquired wired networks in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Nortel claims this network is the largest announced WiMAX network in the 3.65 GHz band. Fairpoint will use WiMAX (802.16d) for fixed purposes, as opposed to mobile WiMAX (802.16e). The 3.65 GHz spectrum band is not widely used in the U.S. yet, but it may prove to be an enabler of competitive broadband services, especially in rural communities.

DigitalBridge Communications Announces Completion of $16.5 Million Capital Raise

Bernie — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 21:21:11 -0400

ASHBURN, Va., Oct. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- DigitalBridge Communications Corp., the largest private provider of WiMAX broadband services in the United States, today announced it has completed raising a total of $16.5 million of senior and subordinated debt along with additional capital from its existing equity investors. These funds provide the company with
significant additional liquidity with which to continue to build the enterprise. Read More ...

Nex-Tech to Deploy Multi-City WiMAX Network

Bernie — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0400

TORONTO, ON, October 9, 2008 -- Redline Communications Group Inc. (“Redline”) (TSX and AIM: RDL), a leading provider of WiMAX and broadband wireless infrastructure products, today announced that Nex-Tech, a subsidiary of Rural Telephone Service Company and one of Kansas’ largest and most diversified integrators of communication technologies, has chosen Redline’s 3.65 GHz RedMAX solution for its multi-city WiMAX roll-out in Kansas USA. Read More ...

Towerstream Announces Deployment of Mobile WiMAX in Chicago Network

Bernie — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 21:42:24 -0400

CHICAGO and MIDDLETOWN, R.I., Oct 01, 2008 /PRNewswire-FirstCall via COMTEX News Network/ -- Alvarion's FCC Certified BreezeMAX(R) 3650 solution brings enhanced wireless broadband services to businesses in downtown Chicago. Towerstream (NASDAQ: TWER), a leading fixed WiMAX(TM) service provider, today announced it is now delivering WiMAX service to businesses in downtown Chicago using the 802.16e BreezeMAX(R) 3650 solution from Alvarion (NASDAQ: ALVR). The addition of this FCC Certified solution to Towerstream's existing network will enable the company to reach additional businesses in the city and ensure Towerstream's customers continue to receive optimal service. Read More ...

DigitalBridge Launches VoIP Over WiMAX

Bernie — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 23:56:12 -0400

DigitalBridge Communications (DBC) announced the first commercial launch of VoIP service over a WiMAX network at the WiMAX World conference in Chicago. The new voice product will be available in 15 DBC markets in Idaho, Indiana, Montana, South Dakota, Virginia, and Wyoming. “DBC is proud to be leading the way again with our launch of WiMAX voice Internet service in the U.S.,” said Kelley Dunne, CEO of DBC in a company statement. DBC will market the voice service for $29.99 under their existing BridgeMAXX brand. DBC uses Alvarion WiMAX equipment and the Alianza hosted voice platform for the voice portion.

The deployment illustrates the potential competitive impact posed by WiMAX service providers. The ability for these new entrants to offer a competitive double play bundle of voice and broadband alone may make some waves in the markets they serve. But when you add the additional value of 4G mobile broadband to the equation, WiMAX may indeed prove to be a formidable contender. DBC is providing early insight into these possible implications.

Clearwire: WiMAX is a Game Changer for Cable

Bernie — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 13:13:51 -0400

WiMAX World kicked off today in Chicago with all the usual fanfare. Initial impressions of the show are good. The halls seem to be filled with genuine enthusiasm and excitement, unlike other recent telecom shows I've attended. I sat in Ben Wolf’s, CEO of Clearwire, keynote presentation, and among the usual hype statements of a rosy WiMAX future, I found the cable partnership discussion especially interesting. Cable companies participating in the Clearwire venture include Comcast, Time Warner Cable, and Brighthouse Networks. Wolf described their cable partnerships as critical and sees them as fundamental to WiMAX’s success. “Clearly the intent [of our cable partnerships] is to take the cable broadband and entertainment experience outside the home,” said Wolf. “If we’re not able to deliver on that, we’ve missed a huge opportunity.” The possibilities are indeed interesting.

The competitive landscape may shift significantly if cable and Clearwire are able to execute on a strategy that allows cable companies to extend their broadband and entertainment portfolio beyond the home. From a competitive context, mobile broadband is cable’s Achilles heel. And while big telco competitors have a significant lead with wireless right now, cable’s experience in content could go a long way in closing the gap if they are able to converge it with a credible wireless experience. “WiMAX and Clearwire have the capacity to deliver compelling content services now,” says Wolf. Of course the proof is in the pudding. It’s easy to discuss these possibilities on the stage of tradeshow hall – it’s quite another to actually execute and deliver on this vision.

$25/Month for 4G WiMAX from Xohm

Bernie — Mon, 29 Sep 2008 13:06:13 -0400

Sprint made it official today, and launched their Xohm WiMAX service in Baltimore, MD. The “official” Xohm launch takes place on October 8th, but the Xohm website is taking orders now. Xohm is positioning the wireless service as an alternative to DSL and cable modem, but is very coy about exactly what speeds they are offering – “XOHM is expected to provide average connection speeds comparable to or better than basic DSL and Cable internet service.” Xohm goes on to say that those “averages” equate to “786 kbps download speeds for DSL and 1.5 mbps download speeds for cable.” Here is the pricing breakdown:

Home Broadband Service - $35/month, with a six month $25/month promotion, providing a DSL/cable modem replacement type service. Requires a $79.99 modem.
On-the-Go Service - $45/month, with a six month $30/month promotion, providing wireless broadband service through laptop cards, comparable to existing 3G services from Verizon, AT&T, etc, but slightly improved in broadband performance. Requires a $59.99 laptop card/modem.
Daily On-the-Go – same as above, but for a daily rate of $10/day
Pick 2 – allows the use of two WiMAX devices on the network for $65/month, but is offering a $50/month for life promotion. Customers could have both their home and mobile broadband needs met with this single plan. Requires the purchase of the appropriate equipment.

The world of 4G wireless and the competition it empowers is upon us. It’s obviously real early. Very limited deployments, combined with limited availability of devices will not contribute to setting the market on “competitive fire.” But it’s a start – one worth watching.

If the issue of 3G and 4G wireless is of interest, I encourage you to register for an upcoming September 30, 2008 free webcast that Pivot Media is producing – 3G: Launching Toward 4G. We will be outlining the market landscape for 3G today and 4G tomorrow.