Qualcomm looks to boost wireless video delivery with Wilocity purchase

Qualcomm has bought Wilocity, an Israeli developer of 60 GHz Wi-Fi chipsets that has worked with Qualcomm for some time. Wilocity chipsets are based on the IEEE 802.11ad (WiGig) standard, and 60 GHz Wi-Fi is said to be three-times faster than the fastest Wi-Fi chips available today.
Demand for wireless video is a driver of Qualcomm’s investment in faster Wi-Fi. In addition to faster speeds, 802.11ad is designed to offer more capacity and better power efficiency than 802.11ac, which operates in the lower 5 GHz spectrum band. It also extends Qualcomm’s VIVE portfolio and builds on the company’s recent initiatives around MU-MIMO.
Qualcomm is also launching a tri-band platform that is a reference design based on the Snapdragon 810, which is designed to support WiGig to enable applications such as “4K” video streaming, peer-to-peer content sharing, networking, wireless docking and backing up media libraries. The company says more tri-band platforms are coming soon.
The company expects 80.11ad and 802.11ac Wi-Fi to complement one another. 802.11ad is an “in-area” solution for parts of a home or business that need robust Wi-Fi to deliver video or other large files. “In combination, 11ad and 11ac create the most powerful and efficient wireless solution in the market,” said Qualcomm in a statement.
Qualcomm VP of product management Todd Antes noted earlier this year that the average home has seven connected devices. The company clearly sees an opportunity to create Wi-Fi fast lanes for some of those devices, and to create highly efficient chipsets for the access points that connect those devices.
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