There’s a lot of hype around 4G – it’s the embodiment of the Utopian idea of anytime, anywhere connectivity with high speeds and low latency to support voice, data, video and other bandwidth-intensive applications. But it’s still difficult to get a handle on who’s embracing it and when and where. So, as a channel partner, you might be wondering how and when the 4G evolution will impact your business.
Focusing on 4G
Services in the 4G realm, which according to analysts at Maravedis Inc. are extended and improved versions of existing 3G services, will be delivered on a variety of devices via wireless technologies such as WiMAX and long term evolution (LTE). Verizon is starting to roll out LTE trials now and plans to launch a handful of cities in 2010. AT&T plans to begin trialing LTE equipment in 2010, with the goal of limited deployment in 2011. Sprint, on the other hand, is choosing the WiMAX route to deliver 4G services. As of September, Sprint 4G is available in Atlanta; Baltimore; Las Vegas; and Portland, Ore.
“While our competitors have indicated that they are working on 4G technologies, Sprint 4G is available today and we’ll have a clear lead in offering 4G across the nation before our competitors,” said Todd Rowley, vice president of Sprint 4G.
Rowley explained that Sprint 4G provides faster speeds than are available in a wired office environment, with peak speeds of more than 10mbps and average download speeds of 3mpbs to 6mbps, which is three to five times faster than today’s 3G from any carrier, based on average download speeds.
“Imagine the power these speeds can bring to businesses – they will more easily be able to extend high-bandwidth applications to the mobile environment,” said Rowley. “4G speeds and latency improvements over current mobile solutions enable rich content, larger file transfers and streaming video – translating to real improvements in productivity.”
Fearing the Unknown
As the world transitions into the next era of wireless technology and the players continue to announce their plans for future rollouts, questions build around not only what’s to come, but how it might hurt what’s already here.
Adlane Fellah, senior analyst and founder of Maravedis, thinks 4G will have some immediate consequences for service providers. “They face decreasing ARPU from voice while their data revenues do not match,” he said. “That means a pressure to optimize networks and think out of the box to become more than a pipe provider, hence a push towards becoming distributors of rich applications.”
