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 »
Clearwire, the wireless broadband company, on Wednesday announced that it is trying out a new LTE-Advanced-based network that would allow it to offer a network with speeds of 120 Mbps. The question is when will they switch over to it and sunset the WiMAX network? Read more »
After building a WiMAX network in the U.S., Clearwire plans to leverage its current infrastructure and roll out an LTE-Advanced mobile broadband service. The new network has shown 120 Mbps wireless downloads in trials, and will be targeted in areas where Clearwire already has WiMAX equipment. Read more »
Sprint reported record low churn rates and its highest average revenue per user yet, but lost $847 million. Why? Although 1.1 million new subscribers were added, all were from wholesale and pre-paid customers. Postpaid subscriber numbers may turn around in the future though, thanks to LTE. Read more »
Sprint today introduced the Motorola Photon 4G, the company’s first WiMAX handset with international support, and will launch the smartphone on July 31. Featuring a 960×540 high-resolution display and dual-core Tegra 2 processor, the Android smartphone works across borders, but sadly leaves the 4G behind. Read more »
Japan’s KDDI has seen the future of cellular service and Wi-Fi (and even WiMAX) has a starring role. Its heterogeneous network is the future of mobile broadband, and could lead to lower operating costs and perhaps cheaper prices for end users. Read more »
Recent developments in the vehicle industry suggest that 2011 could be the year of the car as a major platform for apps. From BMW’s support for Apple’s iPod Out feature to the emergence of Nokia’s Terminal Mode, a system that integrates mobile applications and the car, automakers and app developers are jumping on board the in-vehicle app movement. This report examines that landscape, its major players and their offerings, and how the market is shifting from device to car and, eventually, to the cloud. Increased broadband speeds, electronic vehicles and social apps such as those powered by Twitter will play major roles on this journey. Additional companies mentioned in this report include Ford, BMW, Geely, Nissan and Google. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
There are 17.7 million WiMAX subscribers around the world, and the WiMAX Forum estimates there will be 45 million by 2013, but the future of the technology is bleak. The forum pitches smart grid and airports as potential saviors but neither option looks promising. Read more »
LightSquared, the company trying to build a wholesale 4G wireless network using a mix of FCC waivers, satellite spectrum, a to-be-built terrestrial network and a helluva lot of gumption may have signed a deal with Sprint. Read more »
Sprint’s EVO 3D built by HTC arrives in stores next week, but we have an early look at that Android 2.3.3 smartphone. While it’s similar to the Sensation 4G, a few features standout: glasses-free 3-D video and still images and support for Sprint’s WiMAX network. Read more »
Motorola and Sprint, both in the midst of fighting bigger competition, have banded together with the Photon 4G, a new Android flagship device that supports international service. The Photon 4G provides a big punch for Sprint and Motorola and strengthens the relationship between the two. Read more »
Sprint stores will begin carrying a 3-D smartphone and a 7-inch tablet on June 24, both of which run Google Android and use the operator’s WiMAX network. The $199 HTC Evo 3D boasts two camera sensors to create 3-D images which can be seen without glasses. Read more »
Two days in Chattanooga, Tenn. show how a municipal broadband network can pay dividends when community leaders focus on the applications a gigabit network can deliver and consider the long-term economic development potential. And yes, it can even generate enough revenue to become profitable. Read more »
Comcast today announced that it will offer a 4G MiFi device, but what I found curious was that in the release about the device and Comcast’s Xfinity Wireless2Go product there’s no mention of the WiMAX protocol, an omission that’s becoming more common. Read more »
For those who thought that Verizon getting the iPhone would be too much of a blow to Sprint’s numbers this quarter, the number-three mobile… Read more at paidContent »
Demand for mobile data appears to outstrip the supply of spectrum available to provide Facebook or streaming video on our phones and tablets. However, we are ignoring some very promising technological solutions that could turn the spectrum crunch into a capital spending bonanza by telecommunications companies. Read more »
Sprint today announced the Nexus S 4G, with support for Sprint’s WiMAX network, is launching on May 8 for $199 with a two-year contract. Will customers be interested in the new Nexus when dual-core, higher resolution phones are available? They probably will for one key reason. Read more »
Clearwire has resolved its wholesale agreement dispute with Sprint, signing a deal that calls for Sprint to pay Clearwire about $1 billion over the next two years. The deal removes some uncertainty for struggling Clearwire and helps forge a stronger bond with Sprint, its majority owner. Read more »
Within the next five years, smartphones will account for more than one-third of all handsets sold worldwide, thanks largely to platforms like Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android. This research covers the global handset platforms market for the period between 2011 and 2015. We first examine the factors contributing to this worldwide growth, from a slowly recovering economy to the rise of technologies like 4G and LTE. Regional factors affect growth, too, and our research includes a forecast for the following areas: the Americas; Europe; the Middle East and Africa; and Asia-Pacific. Forecasts are on a global and regional basis for the most important platforms: Android, Apple iOS, BlackBerry, Symbian and Windows Mobile. Companies mentioned in this report include Apple, Google, Nokia, Research in Motion and Microsoft. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Now that all four U.S. national carriers offer 4G mobile broadband service, you’d think it was all the same, right? Using an innovative crowdsourced application, Root Metrics tested all of the 4G providers in Seattle and the visual results immediately highlight the vast difference in service. Read more »
Just after announcing Google Voice integration for all of its customers, Sprint follows up with the Google Nexus S 4G WiMAX handset. Do these two collaborations, in conjunction with AT&T’s planned purchase of T-Mobile, mean more Sprint partnerships with Google, or perhaps even a buy-out? Read more »
When does this story get better? Clearwire, the early 4G WiMAX pioneer announced its CEO Bill Morrow is stepping down for personal reasons, part of a larger executive shake-up. This follows not long after the December departure of company founder and chairman Craig McCaw. Read more »
A Sprint executive was quoted today saying that the nation’s No. 3 carrier is evaluating a switch to a Long Term Evolution network in the coming months, transitioning from WiMAX as its 4G wireless technology. But if Sprint dumps WiMAX, what happens to Clearwire? Read more »
With 4G now a battle cry taken up by all the major U.S. wireless carriers, it’s not surprising that consumers are generally aware of the term. But according to a Nielsen Company survey, consumers are not quite clear on what this 4G talk is all about. Read more »
Research In Motion’s BlackBerry PlayBook will be available in a model with integrated 4G that uses Sprint’s national WiMAX network. Availability and pricing weren’t provided, but there’s a good chance Sprint will subsidize the PlayBook 4G and help get more customers on its fast data network. Read more »
WiMAX might have had a head start when it comes to the next generation wireless broadband sweepstakes, but it’s feeling the heat from Long Term Evolution aka LTE. New data shows that by 2015, LTE will have seven times as many users as WiMAX. Read more »
Mobile video accounts for a very small fraction of the overall U.S. mobile data market, despite on-the-go video and mobile TV receiving as much hype as any other area in the space. This report — the first in a two-part series on mobile video — examines what we can learn from the failures of mobile video to find a sizable audience so far, which challenges will continue to hinder the market in the coming years and the opportunities that will increasingly exist. The iPhone, Android devices and other multimedia-friendly handsets offer more screen real estate and higher resolution than previously possible, while the move toward 4G will help carriers deliver higher quality video more consistently. Even so, the challenges in this market are many, and mobile devices will likely always be inferior to set-top boxes, desktop computers and laptops when it comes to delivering a quality viewing experience. And because video consumes so much bandwidth on mobile networks, uptake will surely be impacted as carriers move away from all-you-can-eat data plans. The industry must, then, find other ways to monetize video in mobile, and without clogging already taxed cellular networks. Most importantly, it must develop viable business models for implementing video in ways that make sense for the consumer, the content owner and the network operator. Companies mentioned in this report include AT&T, Sprint, Apple, Google, Research in Motion, Qualcomm and Samsung. For a full list of companies, and to read the full report, sign up for a free trial. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Grid Net, the smart grid software maker, has officially moved beyond the wireless standard WiMAX and this morning announced that its software now supports the 4G wireless standard LTE (Long Term Evolution), the dominate next-gen wireless standard embraced by U.S. telcos. Read more »
With unlimited use of its WiMAX network, Clearwire stands apart from the crowd, but the U.S. 4G market is getting crowded as carriers are implementing next-generation networks. But unlimited use isn’t growing Clearwire fast enough; the company plans to take on $1.1 billion in additional debt. Read more »
We said that building a wireless network isn’t for wimps. It doesn’t just take billions of dollars; it takes the guts to go out and fight to create a big business out of cheap spectrum and new network technology. Clearwire has guts, but it needs cash. Read more »
The tech world loves numbers, feature-driven marketing, and pedantic arguments over … well, technicalities, which is why the wireless debate du jour is over 4G. As operators roll out faster networks, every press release is touting 4G, but they are all pretenders to the 4G throne. Read more »
Had someone asked me just six months ago about what data plan to buy, my answer would have been very different than it is today. Here’s what you need to know about new and improved networks coming, more prepaid options and tethering plans, before you buy. Read more »
The third quarter saw the continuation of important trends in mobile, from the astounding growth of Android to soaring sales of Apple’s iPad. Perhaps the biggest trend, though, is the march towards 4G, which will have a tremendous impact on the industry in the coming months. Read more »
Just in time to compete with Verizon’s LTE rollout, Clearwire has announced WiMAX in three major cities before end of 2010. New York City, Los Angeles and San Francisco, areas where smartphones are stressing 3G data networks, will all gain access to the operators 4G network. Read more »
Broadcom is getting into the 4G cellular radio game with its planned acquisition of chipmaker Beceem announced today. Broadcom, which makes a variety of radios used ion cell phones, computers and other electronics said it will pay $316 million for the Santa Clara, Calif.-based startup. Read more »
The horror original web series Camera Obscura, picked up by Dailymotion for an exclusive run, tells the tale of a young woman who inherits a camera with the power to trap demons, and is well-produced and full of dark imagination. Read more »
Line losses are now the single greatest threat to the mobile sector’s growth, and major carriers must overcome the ceiling under which they now find themselves and the growth of their business. The solution lies not in voice-centric mobile devices but with new non-phone data-consuming devices like tablets, e-readers and machine-to-machine technology like digital picture frames, personal navigation devices and more. Tier 1 carriers — Verizon, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile — face a number of challenges, including a lack of control over distribution, disruptions to traditional pricing models and the unique nature of M2M deployments. For them, success will rely on experimenting with business models and the ability to quickly adjust data plans to drive profitability and growth. Read more at GigaOM Pro »
Notebook makers are still adding embedded 3G and 4G radios in laptops, but in a world of MiFi devices and Wi-Fi gadgets, does the embedded mobile broadband model still make sense? MiFi sales are up and consumers simply don’t want a data plan for every device. Read more »
Sprint’s 4G WiMAX network is preparing to go primetime in San Francisco where consumers and mobile developers will be able to see first hand what this speed makes possible. It’s in testing in various neighborhoods in San Francisco and should be up in the coming months. Read more »
Grid Net, a startup that has built a business around utilizing the wireless standard WiMAX for the smart grid, now has a partnership to make smart grid products with the U.S. carrier that has made the biggest bet on WiMAX: Sprint. Read more »
