Verizon’s LTE adds this quarter show how high demand is for faster mobile broadband. But as connectivity becomes integral to everything we own, does the lumbering pace of the carriers threaten innovation? And what can they and governments do about it? Read more »
With the fast expansion of LTE networks, we need devices to use them. And there will be plenty, according to In-Stat. The research firm is predicting that LTE handset shipments will eclipse 154 million units in 2015 with 290 million LTE subscriptions in place worldwide. Read more »
Massive growth in data traffic driven by smartphone adoption and usage, coupled with more spectrally efficient air interfaces such as HSPA+ or LTE, have added increased pressure on backhaul requirements, turning a once boring business into an exciting space. More exacting requirements and greater competition will ultimately enable more growth prospects over the next few years. We also expect to see increased adoption of wireless backhaul worldwide, with PMP and E-band technologies delivering increasingly attractive and cost-effective solutions for the new LTE networks. Companies mentioned in this report include BLiNQ, Cambridge Broadband Networks and Siklu. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Sprint, with its network modernization announcement last week, has set the stage for one of two things: another spectacular, Nextel-style failure or a corporate turnaround for the history books. Which will it be? Read more »
4G provider Clearwire’s stock fell 32 percent to $1.39 Friday following an announcement by Sprint Friday that it was launching an LTE network without the help of Clearwire, throwing into doubt its role in Sprint’s 4G future. The news raises more concerns about Clearwire’s future. Read more »
Sprint is launching an aggressive campaign to rollout a 4G network based on LTE that will cover more than 250 million people by the end of 2013. The third-place carrier said it will move quickly to reuse its 1900 MHz and 800 MHz spectrum for LTE. Read more »
Google’s third flagship Android phone, code-named the Nexus Prime, is expected to launch next week. Thursday a list of believeable specifications surfaced. The phone could be a Verizon exclusive in the U.S., explaining why the carrier opted to pass on Samsung’s Galaxy S II: no LTE. Read more »
Updated: The big story around today’s iPhone launch is the phone, but Sprint’s $20 billion bet on the iPhone and its plans for growth in a consolidating wireless industry make a compelling backstory for telecom industry watchers and for Sprint customers. Read more »
It’s not LTE, but Apple’s iPhone 5 will support HSPA+ mobile broadband technology, according to reports. That will let it take advantage of AT&T’s faster, so-called “4G” network in the U.S., which is actually a bridge to true LTE tech and uses HSPA+. Read more »
As the faster wireless broadband connections proliferate, we are going to need devices to access those networks. The demand for these kind of connections is only going to increase as we adapt to this new world. Signs of this change are reflected in this research report. Read more »
NSN today laid out a new architecture for mobile networks that brings concepts such automation and elasticity from webscale and cloud computing to mobile broadband as network engineers at carriers face the challenge of scaling their infrastructure to serve billions of endpoints. Read more »
Verizon introduced a new Android smartphone on Monday: The Pantech Breakout runs on Verizon’s 4G network and appears in stores on Thursday for just $99 with contract. Now that the 4G network is on pace to cover 185 million, it’s time to expand the user base. Read more »
That spectrum shortage isn’t stopping AT&T’s newly launched LTE network for delivering some smoking speeds according to tests out from Signals Research this weekend. AT&T, which launched LTE in in five cities Sunday, delivered LTE speeds averaging 23.6 Mbps down and 15.2 Mbps up. Read more »
Amid the political fighting over LightSquared and whether or not it will interfere with GPS, there’s a far larger issue: Can the nascent carrier really build a business as a wholesale carrier? History offers some perspective that maybe it can’t. Read more »
The Chairman of China Mobile says he’s been talking with Apple about offering the iPhone and about 4G LTE technology. China Mobile is not yet a carrier of the iPhone, but a deal could potentially be in the offing, considering Apple’s recent laser focus on China. Read more »
After fits and starts, AT&T will launch its LTE wireless network in five cities on Sunday, according to CFO John Stephens speaking at a financial conference. The nation’s No. 2 carrier will launch LTE in Houston, Dallas and San Antonio, Chicago and Atlanta. Read more »
We may be approaching the point where it’s fair to ask the following question: Where haven’t Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) and Samsung sued each other… Read more at paidContent »
Verizon’s newest LTE phone, the Droid Bionic, launches on Thursday for $299 with contract. Will Android enthusiasts pay the steep price? They might, based on the dual-core processor, high-resolution display, large amount of memory and 4G network support in addition to the laptop docking station. Read more »
The land of Ericsson, Volvo and Kurt Wallander has a new feather in its cap — it is now the country where 99.6% of the country’s population has access to 3G wireless broadband coverage, according to a report by the Swedish Post & Telecom Agency (PTS.) Read more »
While the U.S. mobile operators are starting to compete over 4G speeds, Europe’s transition to next generation networks has barely begun. It’s a situation that turns the stereotype on its head — and highlights mistakes made 10 years ago by operators in Germany, France and the UK. Read more »
AT&T’s $39 billion bid isn’t over with the Department of Justice’s decision to file suit agains the merger. But it raises a lot of uncertainty around the deal and the possibility that it might not go through. Here are some thoughts on possible outcomes for T-Mobile. Read more »
After the Department of Justice surprised pretty much everyone by suing to stop AT&T from acquiring T-Mobile, the nation’s No. 2 carrier isn’t taking defeat lying down. It has vowed to fight the suit in a statement released this morning. Read more »
The U.S. government filed suit to block AT&T’s $39 billion merger with T-Mobile, claiming the deal would “create an anti-competitive environment.” If the merger falls through, AT&T will lose cash, spectrum holdings and the ability to add T-Mobile’s unique 1700 MHz frequency LTE network expansion plans. Read more »
AT&T’s first LTE tablet, the HTC Jetstream, sounds promising until you see the price of $699 with two-year contract. Yes, the slate supports AT&T’s upcoming LTE network, but the carrier should have learned a lesson from its rival Verizon: This price with contract doesn’t sell tablets. Read more »
In the mobile ecosystem with so much changing so rapidly, it’s tough to figure out what to pay attention to. So we’ve gathered up some of the hottest startups in the mobile space to compete in our Mobilize 2011 LaunchPad competition. Check them out. Read more »
Customers pining for the Samsung Galaxy S II received good and bad news this week: Verizon won’t be carrying the phone, but may be looking at an LTE model. Xperia phones gain Android 2.3.4 starting in October, and a new 360-degree camera app makes the scene. Read more »
Nokia Siemens Network and AT&T offered new data points today on how mobile broadband demand may swamp networks, but each also offered solutions outside of throttling and raising prices. With some technical savvy and Wi-Fi, maybe the mobile future isn’t so impossible. Read more »
Samsung is expected to introduce an updated Galaxy S II handset with larger display, faster processor and bigger battery. But the real upgrade appears to be multimode network support including LTE. Could this be why Verizon is passing on the original and highly popular GS2 handset? Read more »
From this weekend’s news over Libya’s intermittent access to the web to last week’s drama over San Francisco’s public transportation agency shutting down wireless access during a protest, knowing where the web is at its weakest can help citizens agitate for change or protect their rights. Read more »
If the cable companies gain control of Clearwire the ISPs that control the wireline infrastructure in the country could be the same companies that control the wireless access, and their business models of delivering services, as opposed to access, will stay in place. Read more »
Verizon’s turning on its LTE network in 15 cities and expanding 4G coverage in 10 cities, bringing more than half the U.S. population under its next-generation wireless network on Thursday. Since its launch in December, Verizon’s LTE network now covers 160 million people in 117 cities. Read more »
AT&T will begin selling its first LTE devices on August 21, in advance of the carriers new network; the new data devices will fall back to AT&T’s current HSPA+ speeds. $50 will buy 5 GB of monthly data on the LTE network when it later launches. Read more »
AT&T, on Thursday somehow managed to file a document relating to its T-Mobile acquisition that wasn’t redacted, which noted that it would have to spend $3.8 billion to cover rural areas with its planned LTE network. Read more »
Carriers are preparing ways to change their pricing to charge by applications or services. And as they do, consumers will lose — namely because carriers will offer a variety of their own services that could strangle the quality of anything one might consider over-the-top. Read more »
Clearwire, which abruptly lost its CEO earlier this year, has promoted Erik Prusch, the wireless company’s chief operating officer, to the top spot on Wednesday. Prusch replaces interim CEO John Stanton, who will assume the role of executive chairman of the board. Read more »
Clearwire’s shift to LTE is not just a move away from WiMAX, but it cements Clearwire’s shift in strategy from being a retail operator to a wholesale provider – a change that has been coming for a while.What must it do to make this transition pay off? Read more »
Novatel’s second quarter results Thursday included a 50 percent rise in overall revenue and showed off the tight relationship between better mobile broadband, Wi-Fi and consumers toting multiple broadband-enabled devices. But how will carriers and customers react to downloading more content at faster speeds? Read more »
It used to be that we chose our mobile network first, and then the device. But a shift is gradually emerging where device choice is becoming more important than the fastest network, the best coverage and even the amount of mobile broadband we can use monthly. Read more »
A survey from British telecom regulator Ofcom paints smartphones as addictive, but smartphones are just a symptom in the spread of broadband across society. Instead of smartphone addiction, let’s talk about how broadband is changing society and creating new business opportunities. Read more »
