Mobile World Congress 2008
ip.access and NEC Femtocell Hubs Are up against Wireless USB
| Feb 12, 2008 | Consumer Broadband Service - Europe | Competitive Update
| Analyst: Bernt Ostergaard
Current Perspective: Negative/Neutral
Vendor Importance: Very High
Market Impact: Moderate |
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Event Summary
February 11, 2008 -- ip.access showed two second-generation femtocell wireless HSPA nodes with Ethernet connectivity. This follows Cisco’s minority 5% investment in ip.access to develop customer solutions. ip.access also launched two nanoGSM picocell models that deliver voice, GPRS and EDGE data. With 30% of mobile calls made at home, operators can increase revenues by deploying femtocells. An ARPU gain of EUR 11 per month would more than cover the EUR 100 fully subsidised cost of a femtocell.
Analytical Summary
• Current Perspective: Slightly negative on the development of femtocell solutions in Europe as demonstrated by ip.access, NEC, Huawei and others, because the business case is far from clear. While the technology is pretty stable and consumers can use their normal GSM handset, OSS/BSS issues between mobile operators deploying the femtocell hubs with very high capacity and the backhaul DSL or WiMAX operators providing connectivity with no QoS from the home to the mobile carrier remain unaddressed.
• Vendor Importance: Very high to ip.access, whose equipment is being trialled by several European operators, and where no solutions are yet in sight for commercial deployment. Further delays may relegate the technology to history and customized solutions.
• Market Impact: Moderate on the mobile data market, where high data tariffs today inhibit growth in this sector. Allowing consumers to communicate via high-speed wireless indoors could be an attractive FMS proposition. However, it will take a long time for the organizational kinks to be worked out of this solution.
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Current Perspective
Competitive Positives and Concerns
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