Editor’s Note: Welcome to our weekly Reality Check column where C-level executives and advisory firms from across the mobile industry share unique insights and experiences.
We need to talk.
Last week Apple released its iPhone 6 (finally!) with support for the latest-and-greatest 802.11ac standard, and it’s...
Reports strong August customer growth
T-Mobile US called upon unlicensed spectrum to power its latest “Un-carrier” move, announcing full support for Wi-Fi calling and messaging, an in-home picocell and a partnership with in-flight Wi-Fi provider Gogo. The latest round of official “Un-carrier” announcements would be...
LAS VEGAS — Even before T-Mobile kicked off its Wi-Fi unleashed campaign yesterday, the meeting rooms at CTIA's Super Mobility Week were buzzing with conversations about unlicensed spectrum. Wi-Fi equipment makers and service providers were a major presence here, and makers of cellular network...
Ken Kolderup has been selling Wi-Fi to device makers since 2004, when he remembers "trying to convince Samsung to put Wi-Fi into flip phones." Kolderup, who heads up marketing for Kineto, says his job has gotten a lot easier. It's also about to get...
Editor’s Note: Welcome to our weekly Reality Check column where C-level executives and advisory firms from across the mobile industry share unique insights and experiences.
Over the past 18 months, Iliad has grown from a small fixed-broadband provider to become one of the key players...
Stadium DAS deployments continue
Infrastructure providers say the DAS RFPs keep coming from public venues, especially sports arenas. This week JMA Wireless said that Crown Castle will deploy JMA's Teko distributed antenna system at Rutgers University's High Point Solutions Stadium.
The Rutgers DAS will be ready...
Sprint is expected to cut operating costs, but to continue investing in infrastructure...
Sprint Spark investment expected to continue per plan
Cost cuts and lower service revenue at the nation's third-largest carrier are not expected to impact Sprint's investment in its network. The carrier is still...
Wi-Fi is now an essential part of our smartphone and tablet-enabled lifestyle. Today, more than two-thirds of our monthly wireless data is consumed over Wi-Fi, and all signs are that this proportion will continue to grow. So while the traditional, cellular-centric view of the...
The Federal Communications Commission adopted rules requiring text messaging providers to support E911 text messaging, a move that builds on previous commitments from the nation’s four largest wireless providers. Carriers had initially agreed to support such services in late 2012.
The adopted rules will require...
In infrastructure news this week, LTE tower technology advances in China, wireless backhaul innovations in the U.S., and another acquisition in the infrastructure services space.
Huawei's active antenna unit
Huawei and China Mobile said this week that they've deployed the world’s first LTE TDD 8T8R active antenna unit. The...
Distributed antenna systems provide connectivity behind the scenes, out of sight, even underground in some cases, and at times they have been as hard to find in corporate financial results as they are in some of the venues where they're deployed. But that's starting to change....
Claudia Bacco, Managing Director – EMEA, has spent her entire career in telecom, IT and Security. Having experience at an operator, software and hardware vendors and as a well-known industry analyst, she has many opinions on the market. She’ll be sharing those opinions along...
Wi-Fi continues its march toward ubiquity, particularly in transit systems. Wireless connectivity is even coming to an international flight near you – if it hasn't already.
Connectivity on transit poses a unique problem for coverage. Commuter rail lines often run at least partially below ground,...
Digital advertising network VisionChina Media Inc. announced a partnership with infrastructure vendor Huawei to explore a national mass transit Wi-Fi network in China, expanding the company's efforts to position itself as a leader in wireless connectivity and big data-supported advertising on transit systems there.
The...
Voice over LTE has become the latest technology challenge for operators looking to garner more efficiency out of their networks by running voice services over their LTE data networks. Most of the nation’s largest carriers have recently begun to trumpet either limited commercial VoLTE...
We live in a digital world where consumers and business alike are looking to improve the end-user experience. This can often mean breaking the status quo by finding new ways to achieve the end goal.
Wi-Fi at the World Cup
Wi-Fi offload is a big part of the game plan for Brazil's mobile operators during the World Cup. TIM Brasil and OI SA are both working with Aptilo Networks to offload mobile data traffic without losing control of their subscribers....
Ahead of a key regulatory decision over its plan to acquire E-Plus, Telefónica signed a network sharing agreement on June 25 with Drillisch, which operates as a mobile virtual network operator in Germany.
Under the deal, the smaller rival will get access to 20% of...
Sprint’s network challenges have been well known for some time as the carrier has struggled through its Network Vision upgrade program and resulting hit to its customer base and network quality.
In an attempt to at least persuade customers to give its network a try,...
Small Cell Industry Awards
The Small Cell Forum announced the Small Cell Industry Awards for 2014 as part of last week's Small Cells World Summit in London. For small cell innovoation leadership, Alcatel-Lucent won for its site certification program. Cisco won the vendor award for...
Time Warner Cable has teamed up with Boingo Wireless (WIFI) in a Wi-Fi roaming deal that will give its customers access to some of the nation's hottest hotspots. Time Warner (TWX) Internet customers will get access to Boingo's routers in more than 100 highly...
Until now, cell site turn-up and maintenance have been relatively straightforward procedures-performed on one macro cell with one technology. Today, much has changed-in addition to macro cells, small cells and DAS are proliferating, both indoor and outdoor, covering 2G, 3G, 4G and WiFi.
RF and...
Ruckus Wireless (RKUS) may be a beneficiary of Google's reported plan to subsidize Wi-Fi for small and medium businesses. Google is reportedly trialling the Ruckus Virtual SmallCell Gateway, a cloud-based Wi-Fi controller that works with Ruckus Wi-Fi hotspots. Ruckus would not confirm that report,...
