In answer to a question requesting confirmation that most global WiMAX deployments were fixed/DSL replacement rather than mobile, Intel Exec Sean Maloney stated that “it all depends on whether the regulatory body in the country specifies the spectrum use should be for fixed,portable or mobile use.” In some cases, the regulator excludes mobile operation. It’s Intel’s view that the regulatory body should “leave it as flexible as possible and not restrict spectrum usage.”

Maloney further stated that Japan, Korea, Russia, India, Indonesia, Turkey and Africa would have true mobile WiMAX networks, approved by the local regulating body.

Will mobile WiMAX succeed (especially vs 3G)? Maloney opined that the broadband wireless technology that succeeds will be “cheap, reliable and available” and that it is not a “religious argument” for Intel. Really?

In response to a question regarding difficulties with handoffs between GSM/CDMA and mobile WiMAX handoffs, Maloney said “the standard supports it, but not all vendors and service providers supported it. We expect over time that handoff will be a pretty standard feature.” Is that wishing and hoping?

We wonder how many analysts that reported on this teleconference actually listened carefully to the Q and A. It revealed to us that there are serious challenges ahead for mobile WiMAX.

http://www.telecoms.com/itmgcontent/tcoms/news/articles/20017599030...

Will the massive investments by Intel and attempts to build a WiMAX eco-system result in massive losses for those participants? Or does mobile WiMAX still have a fighting chance- especially in developing countries, e.g. Malaysia, India, etc?

What do you think about mobile WiMAX vs LTE vs 3G+/CDMA2000 technologies?

As to numbers in Latin America, analysts have made some predictions. Frost and Sullivan found the WiMAX market in LatAm numbered just 20,700 subscribers in 2006. However they estimate it will reach 1.2 million in 2012: http://electronics.ihs.com/news/2008/frost-broadband-latin-america.htm.

I also have to comment on a personal bug-bearer of mine, which you touched upon – the gross amount of overhyped propaganda put out by WiMAX advocates. Examples such as “currently 400 commercial WiMAX networks in over 130 countries” (Mo Shakouri, WCAI 2008) of course refer to proprietary broadband wireless access systems, which the pro-WiMAX crowd comically and rather selfishly like to refer to as “pre-WiMAX”. I suspect you’d be hard pressed to find a half-dozen commercial true-WiMAX networks in the world (Xohm in Baltimore, the WiBro network in Korea, erm … any more?). Note that even the flagship Clearwire deployments are not mobile-WiMAX, but mostly propriety BWA and fixed WiMAX systems, depending on what service you want and the geography you are in. Even WiMAX forum’s slant on the “1 million WiMAX users in Latin America by 2012” number I quote above less than 1/10th of the 13 million users in Latin America by 2012 estimated by the Forum: http://www.wimaxforum.org/news/pr/view?item_key=c92258fd222106a838fb4705ad1cffd61470efcc

http://www.WiMAXED.com