What Do Carriers Need to Do to Get 3G Mainstream?

Verizon MiFi- 3G router

Verizon MiFi- 3G router

I had a good holiday this weekend past and participated in a great conversation about 3G in the U.S. There were a bunch of people over to the house and the conversation started out about the various phone carriers and 3G. A number of my friends are beginning to become aware of 3G and have been thinking a lot about what it could do for them. This is a recent change, as most folks not involved in the tech industry don’t think much about 3G in my experience. This is changing, if the chat with my friends is any indication.

What I found particularly interesting about this 3G conversation was that it had nothing to do with smartphones. No one was asking which phone had good 3G capability, or even which carrier network was good for smartphones. No, the question floating around was if 3G could be used to replace home Internet connectivity. This set me back, I must admit, as I never would have guessed that folks were thinking of 3G along these lines.

As the discussion unfolded, I realized that many now understand that laptops can be outfitted with integrated 3G. Everyone seemed to be aware of this, a new finding for me. What was a bit surprising was how no one wanted integrated 3G in their laptop, or even in their phone; instead they wanted 3G to blanket their home so that all of their laptops could use it. They weren’t even concerned about connectivity outside the home, just at home, as that’s where they all stated they used the web.

I was amazed to hear that folks are looking at 3G to use strictly at home and to replace their expensive home Internet service. That was the main reason given for the questioning: price. They also could see a benefit in having a service that did not require a wire to come into the home. So given this change of attitude towards 3G, what do the carriers need to do to capitalize on it? Could WiMAX be the technology to push the wireless web into the mainstream? It’s good food for thought, that’s for sure.

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