Carriers looking to offload data traffic to Wi-Fi networks will need to improve their efforts in order to provide a compelling alternative for customers. A recent report from Infonetics Research noted that this move should be helped by various industry initiatives, though carriers are still attempting to find the right model.
“Best-effort Wi-Fi is no longer good enough; mobile operators need carrier-class sophistication,” explained Richard Webb, directing analyst for microwave and carrier Wi-Fi at Infonetics. “Next-gen carrier Wi-Fi has evolved to enable operators to deliver the same quality of experience as mobile networks through closer integration with the mobile RAN.”
Webb added that industry plans to ease integration of unlicensed Wi-Fi services into licensed cellular networks should help carriers in the process, though business model challenges remain.
“Hotspot 2.0 will go a long way to building the bridge between the technologies from a technical standpoint, but operators are still figuring out how to position Wi-Fi within their broadband offerings and which service models will generate the most revenue,” Webb said. “Offload of data traffic is not enough; Wi-Fi’s got to pay for itself.”
The report follows up on similar findings from research firm Mobile Experts last month, which found the carrier Wi-Fi market could hit $4 billion in sales by 20118. That growth is being fueled by the continued integration of Wi-Fi technology into smartphones as well as broader support for the 5 GHz unlicensed band.
Another trade organization, the Wireless Broadband Alliance, said it added 10 new members to its ranks, including a pair of wireless carriers in Telkom Indonesia and Telecom New Zealand. That organization, which looks to unify the deployment of next-generation Wi-Fi services, now counts 100 total members, including AT&T, BT, China Mobile, Orange and NTT DoCoMo.
The WBA said it had recently completed interoperability testing at the Wi-Fi Global Congress in London that included more than 145 participating companies.
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