WiMAX Battle Beginning in US

Google, Inc. and Clearwire Corp. recently entered into a deal to offer WiMAX-based applications to Clearwire customers. In other news, Alcatel-Lucent announced the construction of a WiMAX center in Taiwan, while the pressure continues to simmer around the unused wireless broadcast spectrum.

Focal Points:

• Officials from Google and Clearwire announced that they were entering into a partnership, where Clearwire would incorporate Google-based applications to its applications. Among the Google applications to be used are mail, calendar and talk capabilities. Officials from Clearwire said these functions would be incorporated into its wireless Web platform. Officials said Google will run some of the infrastructure, while Clearwire will develop the graphic front-end. This is a similar agreement to the one Google already has in place with Sprint-Nextel. These WiMAX-based platforms are predicted to reach 100 million people by year end 2008.
• Alcatel-Lucent officials recently announced that it is opening a WiMAX application and interoperability test center (IOT) for manufacturers of WiMAX-based customer premise equipment (CPE). This is being done in cooperation with the Taiwanese government. Officials said the center would allow for end-to-end testing for both business and residential use. Part of Alcatel-Lucent's goal is to help reduce the cost for these manufacturers to test their equipment. The center will be capable of testing compliance with the latest mobile WiMAX standard, 802.16e.
• Officials from the Wireless Innovation Alliance are working to free up unused wireless spectrum that is available between spectra currently allocated for television broadcasters. The alliance includes Dell, Inc. Google, Hewlett-Packard, and Microsoft Corp. Alliance members believe the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is improperly labeling devices as interfering with licensed spectrum. Experton Group expects to see more legal battles for use of spectrum come about in the next few years as broadcasters start to move off of analog systems to digital communication media.

Experton Group believes industry service providers will pick up alliances and aggressive competition in the next two years, as the tables are set for a major battle of local wireless broadband access. There are several players with different vested interests in this dynamic environment. Existing broadcasters want to maintain control of content and distribution, while new technology companies such as Google want to take over this control. In the middle are network service providers, both old-world telephony and new world wireless providers. These players have been increasingly acquiring regional hegemony, in which a battle will rage between content owners and owners of connectivity for who controls access to (and the money of) end users. IT executives should understand these dynamics and be prepared to leverage what will certainly be divided loyalties to extract the best service and price contracts for future wireless services.