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Wireless
May
7, 2004
Wi-Fi, 3G systems form durable broadband
wireless strategy
UNITED
KINGDOM -- According to Infonetics Research's latest
study, Service Provider Plans for Public Wireless LAN
Hotspot Services, service providers now see Wi-Fi and
3G cellular wireless systems as complementary, together
forming a wider, more durable broadband wireless strategy.
The
study is based on interviews conducted by senior analysts
at Infonetics Research with fixed-line operators, mobile
operators, and wireless ISPs in North America, Europe,
and Asia Pacific to determine the strategies, technology
requirements, and network implementation plans of service
providers offering public WLAN services.
Richard
Webb, lead analyst of the report, Infonetics Research,
said: "Despite optimism about the technology and
confidence in dual-capability wireless networks supporting
3G and Wi-Fi, service providers are grappling with basic
business questions, such as what the sources of revenue
will be, how services will be priced and bundled, and
how big the potential market is. No one is sure what
the winning model is, and such basic uncertainty makes
service providers cautious."
Geographic
trends:
- The
North American market has been the quickest to embrace
public WLAN, with far more startup WISP activity than
any other region;
- With
some 5,000 hotspots currently operational, the APAC
market is the second largest behind North America
and is growing quickly; and
- The
bulk of the hotspot rollouts in Europe have been in
Scandinavia and Central Europe. There is far more
evidence of fixed and mobile service provider activity
vs. wireless ISPs and it is likely that they will
come to dominate the European market.
Study
findings:
- Revenue
growth is the dominating challenge for 52 percent
of respondents, followed by profitability with 48
percent;
- In
contrast to other telecom service areas, the public
WLAN space is not dominated by traditional large carriers
and service providers;
- Many
service providers are building hotspots in conjunction
with enterprises, as well as selling hotspot services
directly to the enterprise segment;
- Average
number of hotspots will grow significantly over the
next year, although the average number conceals that
small entrepreneurial companies often have only a
handful, WISPs often have hundreds, and one or two
market leaders may have thousands; and
- Aggregators
such as Boingo and iPASS play an important role in
the development of this market, by forming strategic
partnerships with hotspot providers, enabling users
to roam across numerous hotspots in North America,
EMEA, and Asia Pacific
Contact:
Infonetics Research Inc.
Tel: +44-20-8290-1954
richard@infonetics.com
www.infonetics.com
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