WASHINGTON – Wi-Fi over the last few years has gone from being something hotels say they have that doesn’t quite work right – but costs a lot – to a gateway to the Internet we can’t live without. Every coffee shop, airport and home in the U.S. has or wants Wi-Fi and the technology is evolving to adapt to a more connected world.
Through the use of carrier-grade Wi-Fi networks, major telecom operators have begun offloading data onto their Wi-Fi networks through Wi-Fi calling, which promises to make connections faster and more reliable. To learn more about the technology, RCR Wireless News sat down with Kevin Robinson, VP of marketing for technology trade group Wi-Fi Alliance.
“Wi-Fi calling really isn’t that new,” Robinson said. “But what really is becoming new, and part of the reason why there’s renewed interest in Wi-Fi calling, is the increased integration of Wi-Fi into handsets themselves of Wi-Fi and Wi-Fi calling.”
Robinson went on to explain why telecom companies were pushing for Wi-Fi calling and why service providers were excited about the prospects.
“By operating over Wi-Fi they’re able to offload data traffic from those very costly licensed spectrum assets onto unlicensed spectrum,” Robinson explained. “Not only that, but other entrants – especially Wi-Fi-first companies, which have those new emerging business models – are able to launch a calling service without any licensed assets and are able to use Wi-Fi as the first option for connectivity.”
Robinson noted the greater flexibility and cost effectiveness of Wi-Fi is not just beneficial to carriers, but also consumers.
“[Consumers are] benefiting from better coverage in challenging locations; they can take advantage of Wi-Fi calling when traveling, especially internationally,” Robinson said.
Robinson said he foresees Wi-Fi being a crucial part of “5G.”
“Wi-Fi in general and Wi-Fi calling specifically is going to be a huge part of operators’ business moving forward,” Robinson said. “In fact, if you look, some estimates have that by 2018 voice-over-Wi-Fi traffic is going to surpass voice-over-LTE traffic and by 2019 53% of voice minutes will be going over Wi-Fi as opposed to traditional networks.”