Analysing Wireless Communications

Overview

Mobile WiMAX has been the most "hyped" technology in mobile communications in recent years. WiMAX is essentially a wireless broadband technology, which now attempts to become a mobile broadband technology by introducing some amendments to the system in the form of the 802.16e standard. It has the same goal as many mobile cellular broadband systems have; that is, to provide high mobility and high data rates, but its starting point is different. This report penetrates the hype around Mobile WiMAX, and explains what the system is capable of doing in practice. Mobile WiMAX is compared with cellular systems which many regard as the toughest competitors to WiMAX. The report also contains a case study of Sprint-Clearwire, the "pin-up" operator of the mobile WiMAX industry.

The main topics of this report:

• Technical overview of the IEEE 802.16 standards
• WiMAX spectrum bands around the world
• BWA spectrum auctions, recent results, and an analysis of spectrum cost
• WiMAX handovers - what are the problems, and what is being done to solve them?
• Dismissing hype - what are the real WiMAX performance parameter values?
• WiMAX profiles, both fixed and mobile
• Review of the main companies in the Mobile WiMAX business
• Competition by other wireless and wired systems
• WiBro - what is it, and how does it differ from the 802.16e Mobile WiMAX?
• Systems cost analysis: equipment, spectrum, and backhaul
• Case study of Sprint-Clearwire: can Mobile WiMAX deliver in developed markets?
• The Verdict: the markets where WiMAX is going to success, and where it is going to fail
• Country Reviews for 27 of the most important Mobile WiMAX markets