In March 1999, when Ericsson and Qualcomm ended their intellectual-property-rights deadlock over CDMA patents and jointly agreed to support approval in standards bodies of the tri-mode CDMA third-generation standard, industry observers said the technology debate, which had been contentious and heated for years, was virtually over.
I disagree. In fact, anyone who spent time at either of the two wireless events in Brazil during March and April would say the technology rivalry is alive and well.
Brazil is an important and lucrative market for the wireless industry. The government there is about to decide which frequencies should be allocated for personal communications services licenses.
Most current operators and CDMA and TDMA advocates are lobbying for the 1900 MHz band to be allocated. The GSM community is pushing hard for the 1800 MHz band to be chosen. If 1900 MHz frequencies are selected, GSM technology will have little chance to make significant inroads in Brazil, a market that currently does not have a GSM carrier. If 1800 MHz is chosen, CDMA and TDMA technology would not be guaranteed future market share consistent with current levels.
A large market is at stake for both sides. Brazil’s wireless subscriber numbers are expected to be on par with the number of wireline customers by 2005 at more than 55 million. Anatel, Brazil’s telecom regulatory authority, predicts mobile penetration will reach 32.6 percent by 2005.
Both sides were lobbying hard at Telecom Americas in Rio de Janeiro, spelling out user benefits if a specific agenda is advanced and discounting proponents from “the other side.” Attendees of Telexpo in March in S
