FOREWORD

In January 2006, we published the first ever spectrum comparison analysis between WiMAX and 3 G in 55 countries. We are pleased to provide its customers with this 2nd edition expanded white paper comparing WiMAX and 3G spectrum in 100 nations.

We believe that the industry is at a critical juncture for gaining widespread acceptance and sales momentum: this report addresses a critical factor for the success of WiMAX. We have been surveying regulators for three years on a regular basis. Some of the regulators who are in the process of establishing national allocations for WiMAX also requested our guidance about what is being done elsewhere.

We are pleased to share with you the result of hundreds of hours of research.
 

1. KEY FINDINGS

The low cost of the BWA/WiMAX spectrum compared to 3G is a clear driver for service providers to enter the field of wireless services with BWA/WiMAX. This difference in cost/Hz is particularly significant in Europe, where the average 3G spectrum cost/Hz is 353 times higher than the average BWA/WiMAX spectrum cost/Hz. The proportion is smaller in other regions, but remains in favor of BWA/WiMAX. It is important to highlight that the aggregate 3G spectrum is in lower frequency bands than the aggregate BMA/WIMAX spectrum. This shifts the cost/Hz on a deployed equipment basis, due to the requirement for at least twice the equipment for each doubling of the frequency.

However, even with that adjustment it is clear that the BMA/WIMAX spectrum is more economical, particularly when it is mapped to trends of devices to mitigate spectrum bands and modulation schemes. The much lower cost of BMA/WIMAX licenses1 resulted in a high number of licensees, with a total of 1028 and 276 license holders for BWA/WiMAX and 3G, respectively.

Last year we accounted for 720 WiMAX licenses worldwide. However, the average amount of spectrum owned by a carrier is similar for the two technologies. North America is by far the leading region in number of BWA/WiMAX awarded licensees, with a total of 404 BWA/WiMAX license holders, against 256 in Europe, 162 in Central and Latin America (CALA), 135 in the Asian Pacific (APAC) region and 71 in Middle East and Africa (MEA). Note that EBS (Educational Broadband Services) in the USA were not included in the North America figure. In contrast to 3G licenses, the BWA/WiMAX licenses awarded around the world are essentially regional. North America is a perfect example, where 100% of its BWA/WiMAX licenses are regional, against 81%in Asia, 80% in the CALA region 71% in Europe and 61% MEA region.

This crowded environment will result in a highly fragmented, unpredictable and more competitive market, open to smaller and cost-aggressive players. Note that not all licensees are active. In fact, we estimate that more than half of the license holders in the BWA/WiMAX spectrum are still in the evaluation or trial stage. On the other hand, the low-cost spectrum has also attracted players that have fewer resources than the large mobile operators. One must remember that the BWA spectrum was initially allocated for fixed-only applications and remains so in many countries.

While 3G, with the emergence of enhanced 3G technologies like HSDPA/HSUPA, Scalable Bandwidth EV-DO, 3.9G and Super 3G, is expected to reinforce its head start over Mobile (BWA/WiMAX) in terms of performance, it appears clear that 3G carriers will have to compete with new players once BWA/WiMAX mobile technology is embedded in cell phones and reaches attractive price points and significant volume sometime in 2008. Most regulators have not kept pace with the progress of technology that makes fixed-mobile convergence a reality. 77% of regulators still limit 3.5 GHz usage to fixed-only applications. More importantly, the 2.5-2.9 GHz band remains locked to BWA/WiMAX in most European countries, but the pressure on regulators to include BWA/WiMAX in the IMT 2000 definition will increase over time, Whether it is fixed applications with CDMA technology or mobile applications with BWA/WiMAX, the two fields are converging and will be competing for a share of the one-billion-subscriber market.

Click on the Following Links to Purchase the Report
 

Single User $495 USD