How to succeed in next gen cellular The 5 essentials of 3G
It’s wait-and-see time for 3G. ... We do know the arrival of a high-speed, packet-based service platform will complete the transformation of cellular; from a vertically integrated whole revolving around a single product into a series of disaggregated service layers with many actors offering diverse products. Wireless Asia here presents its own analyses, based on interviews with experts and analysts across the sector, of the nature of this transformation – and the five critical areas operators, vendors and others must get right to ensure 3G delivers on its promise. MOBILE VIDEO Video and the mobile If there’s one thing that defines 3G, it’s video. Whether it’s streaming, video downloads or P2P videotelephony, the notion of full-motion video plus voice and audio symbolizes the 3G mobile revolution. ... It could be some time before we see genuine compatibility between 3G videophones and networks – a reality that is far removed from Hutchison’s own assertions. ... What’s happening in cellular back offices, however, is much more a collision between radically different cultures: the traditional high reliability and hardware-centric world of network engineering is being increasingly occupied by the best-effort culture of the software world. ... ” ROAMING Regional plays It might promise the excitement of new services like high-speed multimedia, but a good deal of the success of 3G will involve doing the same things, but better. ... Roamers tend to be high-end data users; operators who can attract roaming customers are building the kind of base they need for 3G apps. ... This is partly because of the unusually large number of players in cellular – more than 500. ... Now the complexity of new services and applications threatens to bury 3G. ... But today, cellular takes its cues increasingly from the software and data comms business, which are less standards-driven and more product-driven. ... POSITIONING Finding a way through complexity The hardest thing for cellcos about 3G will be to find the right positioning in the new layered world of services. ... Cellular companies can deliver value to their customers by delivering simplicity and seamlessness. ... But 3G terminals may not necessarily work solely across cellular networks. Low- or zero-revenue networks like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth or home networks will all attempt to claim a path to the 3G handset. The cellular industry will be wise not to automatically spurn these. ... Over the 3G era the business case for fixed-mobile integration will become firmer. ... Operators’ best chance of staying ahead will be showing customers a way out of the 3G maze.