August 15, 2005

By: Michael Wolleben - WiMax.com

1. Tell us about UnwireMyCity.com?
I created UnwireMyCity.com three months ago to unleash the potential of broadband in the U.S. Right now, the U.S. is 16th in worldwide broadband deployment down from 13th in 2004, and falling.  That lack of broadband affects us all: it makes our cities less competitive, costs jobs and affects city public services, most especially our public safety services. But getting broadband is about more than just removing obstacles.

Education and preparation of municipal decision-makers is needed, and that's where UnwireMyCity comes in - we are an online source of practical information to bring wireless broadband to your city, for city managers, mayors, IT officials, etc.

2. What's the tie in with WiMAX?
Unwire is the key word for cities and companies. Wireless technologies are faster to deploy and cheaper than wired technologies, it's just that simple. I see Wi Fi Mesh and WiMAX as the one-two punch that will enable the widespread adoption of broadband technology in the U.S., especially with the Supreme Court ruling that keeps cable networks closed to third parties ("Brand X") and the FCC decision to apply that position to DSL networks. Wireless municipal networks should get a huge boost as these network infrastructures are closed off to Internet service providers.

And as the end-use device industry cranks up and produces more and more devices that work with 802.11 technologies, they offer a model for how 802.16 technology penetration should unfold. A good example is Wi Fi Mesh equipment leader Tropos Networks and their migration path to WiMAX (I've done a lot of work with their team). Tropos has a vision described in this whitepaper found on UnwireMyCity.com, Open Standards for Broadband Wireless Networks: Wi Fi to WiMAX where WiMAX is a backhaul alternative now, but ultimately, that technology will move into their Mesh boxes and supercharge them.

3. In your opinion, what will it take for cities to begin adopting WiMAX technologies at a greater rate?
Well, time for one. As standardization process unfolds, the technology looks less risky and more mainstream. City technology purchasers are inherently a conservative lot. In general, they're not out there on the cutting edge. There are a lot of reasons for that, but rather than belabor the point, let's just accept it and move on. So, how do you sell a new unproven technology to a risk-averse buyer? I believe that WiMAX should be bundled within an integrated system, and the sale to cities should shift to a solution sell, where the focus is on the city's problems, be they access for digital divide issues, cost savings for city services, more efficient utility operations, or improved public safety.

When the sale shifts to solutions, then the risk of WiMAX goes away, as the buyer focuses on service levels with their service provider/vendor - I believe that a sale that focuses too much on the background infrastructure technology doesn't help as much as a solution sale focused on solving problems would.

4. How do you see 802.16e - WiMAX mobile - stacking up against the 3G technologies that are being deployed by Verizon, Cingular, and other cellular companies?
I'm bullish on 802.16e. We live in a world where data is becoming the fundamental driver of just about everything we do. No matter what the cellular companies say, I believe that the different varieties of 3G - EVDO, etc. - comprise a family of technology that is hamstrung by high costs and limited capacity. When they are out there charging $80/month for under 500 Kbs data rates, it's hard to see how that process can work for the mainstream and how they will be able to compete with mobile WiMAX.

Right now, 3G is good for email for a very small niche of well-financed business professionals. But when it comes to mobile data for the masses, I think it will take low priced services to create a market, and that's where I see 802.16e coming in. As that technology achieves a standard, and moves into production, I think that it will begin to catch the eye of cellular system planners and they will become some of the biggest buyers of WiMAX. I'm betting on demand for high data rates to drive adoption.

5. What can advocates of WiMAX do to get municipal buyers more interested?
I see the next six months as the time to spread awareness and sow the seeds of interest in this new technology, and then to go after that new seeded market in the next six months. Wireless of all flavors, be it Wi Fi, WiMAX, or 3G, will be more and more in the mainstream press. Congress will rewrite the Federal Telecom Act of 1996. Broadband will be hawked by cable and DSL providers. More cities will be looking at municipal networks. So wherever you are in the supply chain, the more you can promote educational tools and raise the level of awareness of city government leaders, the better off we will all be. When you know these technologies and the wireless market, you can't help but be excited about the prospects for WiMAX.

Conversely, when you are not that aware, WiMAX lacks relevance, and you are subject to the fear-mongering of incumbents who would deny new technologies like WiMAX a toe-hold in "their" markets. So we all should become evangelists with facts as our main tools - send them to my website, www.unwiremycity.com and I challenge them to come away unaware of the revolution that is brewing underneath their noses!