[IP] Intel: Spectrum is the New Frontier
Begin forwarded message:
From: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: July 30, 2004 8:12:44 PM EDT
To: Dewayne-Net Technology List <dewayne-net@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [Dewayne-Net] Intel: Spectrum is the New Frontier
Reply-To: dewayne@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Intel: Spectrum is the New Frontier
By Michael Singer
July 30, 2004
<http://www.internetnews.com/wireless/article.php/3388811>
PALO ALTO, Calif. -- Intel's vision of an always- connected planet is
coming up against finite wireless spectrum, and enterprise had better
hope it breaks through or risk spending ten times as much for WiMAX.
The Santa Clara, Calif.-based chip-making giant (Quote, Chart) is
helping the industry find a suitable home for wireless Metro Area
Networks, which use the IEEE 802.16 or WiMAX standard. The goal is to
use the technology as a last-mile alternative for broadband connections
to enterprise and consumer markets.
There is a burning need for a high-speed transmission that covers a
wider area than 802.11 Wi-Fi. Most of the copper in the world was
installed in the late 1940s, followed by fiber optic connections in the
1970s.
The next phase, according to Sean Maloney, executive vice president of
Intel's Communications group, is the use of WiMAX in both urban and
rural areas. While the company is trying not to hype it as much as it
did Wi-Fi, Intel is very committed to seeing the standard play through.
"It's slightly chaotic, because it differs from country to country to
country," Maloney said during a press and analyst briefing here. "Four
years ago, there was a similar battle over Wi-Fi and, as you know,
spectrum can get very political. But if you ask me if WiMAX is going to
replace Wi-Fi, the reality is that all of these networks [read Wi-Fi,
WiMAX, WCDMA, and 3G] will overlap."
Maloney said Intel has been lobbying the Federal Communications
Commission and its Chinese and U.K. counterparts to allow the wireless
industry access to the 700MHz frequencies. That part of the spectrum is
currently used for UHF television stations that will eventually vacate
the space as part of a government-induced transition to digital.
Right now, there are as many as three frequency bands that WiMAX can
tap into, including 700 MHz, 2.5MHz and 3.5MHz. But the bigger number
does not mean faster or even better coverage. In fact, Maloney noted
that the higher the frequency, the harder it is to send over long
distances.
"If the Internet delivery providers are forced to use the higher
frequencies, it is ten times more expensive in infrastructure than if
the standard moves into the lower frequencies," he said.
Maloney said fiber as a high-speed connector has not stopped because of
the cost. It stopped because of the land use rights: "Having to get
permission from neighbors, breaking up streets and replacing roses are
not something that carriers want to deal with," he said.
The key then, according to Intel, is access via transmission towers,
which currently serve cellular networks but could easily be outfitted
with WiMAX cards. But only those companies with the leasing rights to
these towers will be the ones that have control over wireless broadband
to the home, Maloney pointed out.
As for WiMAX competing with other wireless broadband technologies such
as WCDMA, the Intel executive said he is skeptical that will be the
case once the 802.16e (backhaul) comes into play.
"The infrastructure is going modular with more standardized
components," Maloney said. Intel is one of a handful of companies that
is working to standardize routers and switches with ATCA or advanced
telecommunications communications architecture.
Beyond the hype, Intel's WiMAX looks real enough. The company said it
will ship silicon based on the 802.16 standard this year. Intel is
looking forward to mainstream deployments for wireless DSL within CPEs
and base stations in 2005. In the 2006 timeframe, Maloney reaffirmed
Intel's plans to put WiMAX silicon in laptop processors and is
expecting the technology to pop up in it handsets running its XScale
family of chips in 2007.
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