A movement is slowly growing toward developing a wireless handset that can operate around the world, though few carriers seem to be taking interest at this point.
The Modular Multifunction Information Transfer System Forum (MMITS), an industry group comprising the defense and commercial wireless sectors and civil government, is working to develop a software-defined handset-one that can operate over any air interface and frequency.
“Today, if you want to build a multimode/multiband phone, you have to stick pieces of hardware together,” said Chris Mangum, senior manager of strategic development with BellSouth Cellular and chairman of the MMITS marketing committee. “We’re talking about a single chipset that could do all of those things. We want to do all of the radio stuff through software.”
The concept, said Mangum, will allow manufacturers to construct handsets around a single platform. Some manufacturers today make about 1,000 different handset models.
“They key driver for the whole concept is the multiband requirements around the world,” said Larry Paulson, vice president of Nokia Mobile Phones’ CDMA product line. “It’s difficult for any handset manufacturer to continue to try to balance supply and demand and the materials required. There is a movement toward some type of software-defined radio.”
But the movement is by no means mature. So far, BellSouth is the only U.S. carrier aggressively pursuing the software radio concept and the only major carrier that is a member of the MMITS. Handset manufacturers are studying what type of demand will exist for these types of handsets and how they may go about revamping their manufacturing processes, which Mangum characterized as a gut-wrenching change.
“We have consistently talked to handset manufacturers to get a multimode/multiband device,” said Mangum. “Our industry is marked by poor communication between vendors and carriers. It’s a zero-sum game in this industry. Collaboration on development hasn’t happened a whole lot.”
Virtually all major handset vendors are developing multimode/multiband handsets.
Herschel Shosteck, president and chief executive officer of Herschel Shosteck Associates Ltd. in Wheaton, Md., said the introduction of software-defined handsets is inevitable.
“The issue is not whether it’s going to happen, but when. By [2000], it’s not going to be worth the inventory costs for major manufacturers to carry differentiated models. We’re going to see a similar move to what Motorola did with AMPS and NAMPS. Motorola hasn’t manufactured an AMPS phone since 1991; the inventory costs for carrying them separately outweighed the higher manufacturing costs … Someday carriers will be able to order any handset they want … The issue is how to bring the technology to market successfully.”
Nokia’s Paulson, who would not reveal much about the company’s development efforts concerning a software-defined radio, said: “It’s not an easy project. The key advantage to the whole thing is that there appears to be no near-term shortage of requirements for multimode/multiband … That’s the driver.”
Paulson conceded that a movement toward manufacturing software-defined handsets would be costly but could be done as a natural migration.
“Each generation of phones that we bring out brings new changes,” he said.
Ericsson Inc., which reportedly is working aggressively on variations of multiband/multimode handsets, did not return phone calls by press time.
Mangum said BellSouth, through its own research and development efforts, plans to unveil soon what it calls an engine for software radios, behind which vendors can consolidate their manufacturing. The carrier said it is in discussions with some handset manufacturers interested in the product.
BellSouth said it is committed to trailblazing the software-defined handset because it would be one of the largest cost drivers for the company.
“Analog is the least common denominator that will solve (roaming) problems. You lose digital features. The reason we sell digital today is to get the cost structure down, and a customer buys a digital phone for digital features,” said Mangum.
BellSouth Corp.’s subsidiaries own cellular and personal communications services properties that use or will use Global System for Mobile communications technology at 1900 MHz, Time Division Multiple Access technology at 800 MHz and TDMA technology at 1900 MHz. It wants to tie all of its properties together.
In addition, Mangum said BellSouth would be able to consolidate all of its handset purchases for its domestic and international businesses around one platform, providing tremendous cost savings and allowing the carrier to differentiate itself by offering international roaming.
Third-generation technology is not likely to solve the air interface incompatibility problem around the world, creating another business case for software-defined radios, said Mangum. It’s more than likely the world will end up with at least three different technologies.
“IPR fights are going to result in not one dominant standard that we’ve all dreamed about,” said Mangum. “Two or three technologies will emerge. A software radio can solve that problem.”
The MMITS plans to release a market study in May co-authored by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology that evaluates the likelihood of a software-defined handset emerging as a dominant design in the wireless industry. One could be on the market by 2000. So far, manufacturers haven’t seen enough interest from carriers, and at least one manufacturer has said it will not build a software radio unless it receives a significant volume commitment from carriers.
“It’s difficult to argue with that,” said Mangum.
