Mobile Internet Welcomes 2008 - the Year of Openness

ARTICLE

Mobile Internet Welcomes 2008 - the Year of Openness

By Jeff Orr, Senior Analyst - Consumer Electronics
Contact the author at jeff@maravedis-bwa.com

As the year comes to a close, reflecting on the past twelve months for the mobile broadband industry is a chance to assess its progress and predict what the new year will hold. One theme that picked up steam in the last couple of months is the trend towards open mobile networks and application development. This concept overcomes the locked-in behavior of contracts and subsidized devices or the locked-out behavior of adding third-party and Internet applications, depending on where you sit in the supply chain.

It is easy to get caught up in the hype around early announcements that suggest device, application, and operator freedom for mobile subscribers. Mobile Internet access as easy as buying a device, turning it on, and connecting with any carrier is not yet commonplace or affordable. The recent Verizon Wireless announcement of plans to open its network in a year to non-Verizon devices and applications sounds promising at first glance. However, the details stipulate a CDMA device or third-party application that must be tested to Verizon specifications and approved by the carrier before it will be welcomed into the circle of openness. Fellow US carrier AT&T responded by proclaiming itself, “the most open wireless company in the industry.” But while a non-AT&T GSM device could connect to AT&T’s network for voice calls, don’t expect a CDMA handset to work or specialized multimedia services like Verizon’s V-Cast to be supported by the new AT&T. Being “open” today comes with strings attached.

Beyond the vendor and carrier posturing, several developments in 2007 headed towards a universal mobile Internet. Here are a few of the highlights:

The ITU’s IMT-Advanced delegation agreed upon common, global, and regional spectrum bands for use with 4G services.
The US regulatory agency established policy for the auction of 700 MHz spectrum, which requires carriers to provide open access to their networks.
The Open Handset Alliance was formed, and the group released the Android software development kit for open mobile applications.
The W3C consortium announced its Mobile Web Initiative to address the need for interoperability and usability to attain a unified mobile web.

The formation of technical focus groups and alliances also contributed to the “open” movement. Femto Forum was established to accelerate standards and business opportunities for personal and improved indoor mobile coverage. SMART Alliance is focused on the use of beamforming and beamformed MIMO smart antenna technologies. Several vendor-led alliances around open network architectures also formed over the year.

These industry-led initiatives will yield benefits for mobile enterprises and consumers in the upcoming year. Buyers will have more channels for procurement and will not be locked into their service providers. Data rate plans will evolve with increasing flexibility toward so-called “all-you-can-eat” flat rates. Traditional monthly always-on service periods are expanding to include hourly and daily usage fees for mobile-enabled consumer electronics devices such as digital cameras and personal media players. Mobile users will have greater choice in devices, carriers, and application services than ever before.

The initial attempt to define mobile broadband access was witnessed in 2007. As the ecosystem starts to take shape, the definition will morph in response to market demands. The desire to access the Internet anytime and anywhere will continue to open minds to new possibilities of access, application services, and business models in 2008.

For more information you can contact the author: jeff@maravedis-bwa.com