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Why I doubt FaceTime will crash mobile networks

IntoMobile suggests mobile networks could “crash” or “crumple” under the pressure of FaceTime demand. I think they’ll be OK, mainly for cultural reasons.

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Posted by Steven J. Crowley to 3G, 4G, FaceTime, Uncategorized, Video @ 9:48 am, 08/27/12 | No Comments

New Video Compression Standard Doubles Efficiency

Ericsson discusses the recent meeting of the Moving Picture Experts Group (MPEG), which issued a draft international standard of the new High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) video-compression format. It’s twice as efficient as current standards. Twice as efficient means half the bits, which means half the spectrum capacity is required for the same video quality.

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Posted by Steven J. Crowley to MPEG, Source Coding, Video @ 10:28 am, 08/14/12 | No Comments

Experimental Radio Applications at the FCC

This summarizes a selection from 289 applications for the Experimental Radio Service received by the FCC during April, May, and June 2012. These are related to AM, high-frequency propagation, ultra-wideband, frequency-hopped VHF, managed access, small satellites, radar, MIMO, TV white space, low-power FM, stadium wireless service, GSM, and DTV. The descriptions are sorted by the lowest frequency found in the application.

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Google Finishing Development of Personal Communication/Entertainment Device

It appears Google is finalizing the design of what it variously calls, in recent FCC filings, a “personal communication device” or an “entertainment device.” It further appears it would be an unlicensed device supporting both Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, and operate at low power in the bands 2400-2483 MHz and 5180-5825 MHz.

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Posted by Steven J. Crowley to Bluetooth, Equipment Authorization, Google, Unlicensed, Wi-Fi @ 6:47 am, 07/18/12 | No Comments

4G Americas Scenario Shows Mobile Data Growth Tapering Off

4G Americas, a wireless industry trade association representing the 3GPP family of technologies, has released a report looking at broadband devices and applications, and their impact on HSPA and LTE networks. There’s quite a bit of interesting information; here I highlight the discussion on mobile broadband offload and mobile data growth.

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Posted by Steven J. Crowley to 3G, 3GPP, 4G, Femtocells, HSPA, LTE, Mobile Broadband, Mobile Services, Small Cells, Spectrum, Wi-Fi @ 11:00 pm, 05/16/12 | No Comments

Experimental Radio Applications at the FCC

This summarizes a selection of applications for the Experimental Radio Service received by the FCC during January, February, and March 2012. These are related to radar, Amateur Radio, spread spectrum, white space, spacecraft telemetry, propagation testing, satellites, smart grid, femtocells, machine-to-machine communications, ad hoc networks, 4G backhaul, electronic warfare, and robotics.  The descriptions are listed in order of the lowest frequency found in the application.

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Coldplay’s Wireless Hardware Startup

I was amused to see a company with the same name as the musical group Coldplay file an FCC application. That turned to surprise when I saw it was, indeed, the group.

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Posted by Steven J. Crowley to Experimental, M2M @ 6:11 am, 03/27/12 | No Comments

Are Fewer Mobile Broadband Competitors Better for Consumers?

That’s what a D.C. think tank says. I take a look at this contrary view in a piece I did for GigaOM.

Posted by Steven J. Crowley to 3G, 4G, Competition, Mobile Broadband @ 11:36 am, 03/26/12 | No Comments

Experimental Radio Applications at the FCC

This summarizes a selection from 215 applications for the Experimental Radio Service received by the FCC during October, November, and December 2011. These are related to AM broadcasting, FM broadcasting, spread spectrum on HF and VHF, unmanned aerial vehicle control, electronic warfare support, small satellites, white space technology, video production, managed access, TV interference, RFID, and radar.  The descriptions are listed in order of the lowest frequency found in the application.

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Three Invalid Assumptions that Make the FCC’s Spectrum Requirements Model Skew High

“To generalize, it is often true that studies will be promoted that tend to support the policy inclinations of the Chairman, under whose direction, after all, every draft decision is made.”

“[S]tatistics can lie. But cast as ‘studies’ by commentors, they take on the weight that a decision maker chooses to make of them.”

Daniel Brenner

As a follow-on to its National Broadband Plan, the FCC last year released a Technical Paper intended to validate the Plan’s prediction of a 300 MHz mobile-broadband spectrum deficit by 2014. The Paper describes a spectrum requirements model that totals current spectrum assigned to mobile broadband and applies a multiplier based on expected demand, taking into account expected increased tower density and improvements in air-interface spectrum efficiency. The model’s result is a predicted deficit of 275 MHz in 2014, which rounds to 300 MHz. On the way toward that result, however, the analysis uses just a few of the available data forecasts, ignores offloading of macrocell data to Wi-Fi and femtocells, and assumes the continuation of flat-rate plans for consumers. Some of these oddities I noted in a post at the time. I had hoped the FCC would make the Paper a subject of public comment. That hasn’t happened. So, I’ve looked at the Paper in more detail. I find that when looking at the above factors in a more realistic manner, predicted spectrum requirements go down significantly.

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Posted by Steven J. Crowley to 3G, 4G, DTV, FCC, Femtocells, Mobile Broadband, National Broadband Plan, Small Cells, Spectrum @ 12:56 pm, 11/19/11 | 4 Comments

Experimental Radio Applications at the FCC

This summarizes a selection from 173 applications for the Experimental Radio Service received by the FCC during August and September 2011. These are related to long-range low-frequency radar, amateur radio, shortwave data, wireless microphones, single-sideband, mine detection, millimeter-wave communications, signal intelligence, automotive radar, satellite feeder links, meteor-burst communications, aircraft telemetry, white space systems, border security radar, 3G and 4G applications, RFID, wind turbine testing, unmanned aerial vehicles, spacecraft telemetry and control, aircraft passenger broadband, and autonomous aircraft landing systems. The descriptions are sorted by the lowest frequency found in the application.

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Filling the Spectrum Pipeline

In my last post I looked at how the U.S. is behind some other countries in having new mobile broadband spectrum in the pipeline, according to a tally prepared by CTIA. What’s the status of candidate new bands?

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Posted by Steven J. Crowley to 4G, Cognitive Radio, DTV, Dynamic Spectrum Access, Land Mobile, Spectrum, TV Broadcasting @ 9:16 am, 09/08/11 | No Comments

CTIA’s International Case for More Spectrum

In a recent blog post, CTIA compares some measures of the U.S. wireless industry to those in nine other countries. The purpose is two-fold; to show the U.S. is a leader in number of subscribers, lowest cost per voice minute, and spectrum efficiency, and to argue the need for getting more mobile broadband spectrum in the “pipeline.” These goals are somewhat at odds, and the spectrum-efficiency argument I don’t get, as I’ll explain, but within the constraints of a blog post I think CTIA makes the case that the U.S. is a clear leader in some areas, and that the prospects for more mobile spectrum in the U.S. are fuzzier than they should be today.

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Posted by Steven J. Crowley to 4G, IMT-Advanced, LTE, LTE-Advanced, Mobile Broadband, Policy, Spectrum @ 10:04 pm, 08/30/11 | 1 Comment

Experimental Radio Applications at the FCC

This summarizes a selection of applications for the Experimental Radio Service received by the FCC during June and July 2011. These are related to AM broadcasting, cognitive radio, land vehicle testing, ultra-wideband, ground penetrating radar, synthetic aperture radar, LTE, autonomous aerial refueling, SONAR telemetry, surveillance radar, wind-farm obstruction lighting, seismic activity detection, directed energy weapons, unmanned helicopter flights, precision electronic warfare, shaped-offset QPSK, Ku-band antennas, TV white space, and missile telemetry. The descriptions are sorted by frequency.

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FCC Gets Some Consensus in Wireless Booster Proceeding

Comments are in on the FCC’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking in WT Docket No. 10-4 to create new technical, operational, and coordination rules for wireless signal boosters in various services. These include the Commercial Mobile Radio Services (CMRS) that are covered by Part 22 (Cellular), Part 24 (Broadband PCS), and Part 27 (AWS & 700 MHz) of the FCC’s Rules. The services covered also include Part 90 (Land Mobile) and Part 95 (Personal Radio).

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Posted by Steven J. Crowley to 4G, Antennas, Automotive, Boosters, Broadband, CMRS, Cognitive Radio, Experimental, Femtocells, Interference, Private Radio, Wi-Fi @ 10:08 am, 07/27/11 | 2 Comments