Editor’s Note: RCR Wireless News goes all in for “Throwback Thursdays,” tapping into our archives to resuscitate the top headlines from the past. Fire up the time machine, put on those sepia-tinted shades, set the date for #TBT and enjoy the memories!
Toot, toot—5G on a train
With lots of pre-standard 5G attention going toward fixed wireless access as a replacement for fiber-to-the-home or fiber-to-the-premises, Samsung, working with compatriot operator KDDI, is testing out mobility use cases using a pre-standard end-to-end solution. Over a one-mile stretch of track with the Tokyo-area train moving around 60 mph, KDDI and Samsung tested out consumer-facing use cases including downloading an 8K video and filming and uploading a 4K video filmed by a camera mounted on the train. In testing conducted Oct. 17-19, the peak download rate was 1.7 Gbps. The pre-standard system included a 5G CPE, radio, virtualized RAN and virtualized core. Looking ahead, Samsung said the 5G deployment scenario could be used for backhauling in-train Wi-Fi, infotainment and, for the train operator, improved security and analytics functionality. … Read more
Broadcom makes its hostile takeover attempt on Qualcomm
Broadcom today said it plans to nominate 11 board members for election to Qualcomm’s board of directors at an annual shareholders meeting in March. This move, potentially signaling a move toward a hostile takeover, comes on the heels of Qualcomm’s board unanimously rejecting an unsolicited bid from Broadcom to buy the company for more than $100 billion. Adding further fuel to the takeover fire, Broadcom CEO Hock Tan said he’s engaging directly with Qualcomm shareholders and customers. “We have heard from many Qualcomm stockholders who have expressed their desire for Qualcomm to engage with us. We also continue to receive positive feedback from customers and, having had initial meetings with certain relevant antitrust authorities, remain confident that any regulatory requirements necessary to complete a combination will be met in a timely manner. Although we are taking this step, it remains our strong preference to engage in a constructive dialogue with Qualcomm. We have repeatedly attempted to engage with Qualcomm, and despite stockholder and customer support for the transaction, Qualcomm has ignored those opportunities. The nominations give Qualcomm stockholders an opportunity to voice their disappointment with Qualcomm’s directors and their refusal to engage in discussions with us. In light of the significant value our proposal provides for Qualcomm stockholders, we believe Qualcomm stockholders would be better served by new independent, highly qualified nominees who are committed to maximizing value and acting in the best interests of Qualcomm stockholders.” … Read more
Qualcomm vs. Apple
“Make calls, keep records, send email, browse the web and run over a thousand different applications, all while on the go…” This holiday ad for “one of the first truly portable, mobile and multipurpose Internet devices” appeared 18 years ago, before the term ‘smartphone’ was part of the popular lexicon. The maker of the phone was Qualcomm, and the company’s lawyers are referencing these devices as evidence that Qualcomm invented many of the technologies that power today’s smartphones. This week Qualcomm filed three new patent infringement complaints against Apple in the U.S. District Court of Southern California. This action follows a previous suit filed in July by Qualcomm, which covered different patents, and a countersuit filed this week by Apple, which alleged that Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processors infringe on Apple patents. Qualcomm calls Apple “a relatively late entrant into the mobile device industry,” and argues that Apple would not have enjoyed such success had it not been able to leverage Qualcomm’s foundational mobile techologies. It wants the iPhone maker to license the technologies, which it says are not covered by the rules surrounding “standards essential” patents. Those rules require patent holders to offer “fair and reasonable” licensing terms for technologies deemed essential to device operation and interoperability. … Read more
Ruckus joins ARRIS
ARRIS has completed its $800 million dollar purchase of Ruckus Wireless with a promise to retain the Wi-Fi equipment maker’s name and leadership. Former Ruckus president Dan Rabinovitsj will become president of ARRIS enterprise networks, which will include Ruckus. “Our team is jubilant, relieved and ready to hit the ground running,” Rabinovitsj wrote in a blog post. “We will operate as a business unit with its own engineering, sales and marketing resources focused on the enterprise market.” Despite its independence, Ruckus will not be an “island” within ARRIS, Rabinovitsj said. He said the advantages of being part of a larger company “will become manifest in manufacturing, operations and supply chain but also in R&D where we will be able to tap into complementary skill sets and know-how from DOCSIS to Wi-Fi, Ethernet and optical communications.” … Read more
The four pillars of 5G
DEL MAR, Calif.–5G will be supported by four “pillars” as the industry seeks to transition to the next generation of wireless technology, according to Andreas Roessler, technology manager at test company Rohde & Schwarz. Roessler, speaking at the 5G Innovation Summit, said that those four pillars of 5G include: Moving into new spectrum at millimeter wave. This expansion into higher frequencies is driven both by the large amounts of available spectrum at mmwave, and the fact that much of the spectrum at lower frequencies is already in use. Operation at mmwave is seen as one of the major challenges of 5G, however, due to the propagation characteristics of the spectrum, which can be easily blocked simply by the human body or foliage. Roessler noted that a significant number of trials involve the use of 3.5 GHz for the first versions of 5G networks, rather than mmwave — although 28 GHz and 39 GHz are being explored by operators Verizon and AT&T. … Read more
Europe charts a 5G roadmap
European telecommunications ministers agreed on a joint roadmap for the development of 5G networks. The 5G roadmap constitutes a common understanding on the harmonization of 5G spectrum bands and their allocation to telecommunications operators across the continent. “At the beginning of the Estonian Presidency, in July, we signed a 5G declaration together with all European telecommunications ministers. This allowed us to lay the foundation for the development of the 5G networks and the creation of investment security for companies in Europe. Today we passed the next important stage. In order to fulfil our goals at both national and European levels, we agreed on a detailed action plan,” said Urve Palo, the Estonian Minister for Entrepreneurship and Information Technology. “The 5G roadmap lays out major activities and their time frame. With the roadmap, we agreed on plans for harmonising the technical use and purpose of the 5G spectrum and the allocation to telecommunications operators,” he added. Under the European 5G roadmap, the telecoms ministers said they aim to see 5G connectivity in large cities and along major transport routes of every European country by 2025. … Read more
Check out the RCR Wireless News Archives for more stories from the past.
