WirelessBR

Artigos

[21/12/05]   Uma Grande Notícia: o WiMAX Móvel foi aprovado!   Eduardo Prado

[12/12/05]   Quem segura o WiMAX Móvel (WiBro) da Samsung?  Eduardo Prado

[10/10/05]   WiBRO... Quem eu sou e onde eu já estou!  Eduardo Prado

[Jun 2005]   WiMAX e WiBro na corrida pelo wireless 

Wikipedia

WiMAX - Um bem necessário  (WCA, WiMAX Móvel e WiBro)

[Abr 2005]   Going Wide with WiBro

[Mar 2005]   WiBro: mobile communications
                
[Jan 2005]   Truce is called in the WiBro war as Intel and LG agree to collaborate over the mobile standard 802.16e  
 
[Nov 2004]   WiBro Portable Internet  

Download

- An Introduction of WiBro Technology da Samsung Electronics  (.pdf)

- 2.3 GHz Portable Internet (WiBRO) for Wireless Broadband Access  (.pdf) Notícias e artigos citados na Revista do WiMAX

- WiBRO ... Mobile WiMax Chips  [08/07/05]

-  Samsung Demos WiBro   [14/07/05]

- WiBro Three-Way

- Korea Gets WiBro

- No WiBro for Hanaro

- Mobile FI (IEEE 802.20) & WiMAX (IEEE 802.16) competition

- US-controlled Hanarotelecom gives up wireless Internet service

- South Korea to Get WiBro Services

- No WiBro for Hanaro

- US-controlled Hanarotelecom gives up wireless Internet service

-  Korea Gets WiBro

- Homegrown Portable Internet Tests Successful

- The Road to Mobile Broadband Runs Through Korea
 

Notícias e artigos coletados no blog SmartConvergence de Eduardo Prado

[20/02/06]   Southern Europe Set to Receive First Pre-Mobile WiMAX Commercial Network

[13/02/06]   Alcatel stakes early leadership claim for mobile WiMAX

[13/01/06]   The WiMax Fixed-to-Mobile Evolution

[27/01/06]   Nokia earmarks 2008 for mobile WiMax

[09/01/06]   Samsung Gives First U.S. Showing of Mobile WiMAX Handset at Consumer Electronics Show

[09/01/06]   Wavesat Teams with SK for WiBro

[09/01/06]   WiMax Laptop
 
[01.04.06]   Samsung Shows WiBro Phone
 
[09/12/05]   Experts: Mobile WiMAX Leading To Big Changes

[Jan 2006]   Evolution path for fixed WiMAX sought as mobile standard ratified

[19/12/05]   WiBro Wins Venezuela & Brazil

[23/12/05]   Samsung, PDA-type WiBro MITs ?SPH-M8000?

[Dez 2005]   The potential of full-mobility WiMax: CAN OFDM ENHANCEMENT DRIVE WIMAX MOBILITY FORWARD? (pdf file)

[09/12/05]   Experts: Mobile WiMAX Leading To Big Changes

[05/12/05]   Mobile WiMax: It's Sprint or Nothing

[Dez 2005]  TIM: next-generation mobile phone trials with Samsung

[12.09.05]   Alcatel, KT Test WiMax
 
[xxxxxxxx]    Wi-Bro becomes real, and the world has to play catch-up with Samsung

[xxxxxxxx]   Korea?s WiBro Attracts Interest In Italy

[09/11/05]   Samsung to build WiBro network in Brazil

[13/11/05]   Samsung Demos WiBro

[17/11/05]   Mobile WiMax Coming Soon?

[17/11/05]   WiBro Heat is On

[01/11/05]   MOBILE WiMAX (MoMAX) ... The Path to MoMax

[31/10/05]   First WiBro Handset?

[03/11/05]   Readers Love Mobile WiMax ? Mostly

[16/09/05]   Sprint Preps WiBro Trial

[27/10/05]   Motorola, Intel team on mobile WiMax

[xxxxxxxx]   Samsung Makes Risky Bet on WiBro

[13/09/05]   802.16e Spec Nears Completion

[15/09/05]   WiBro Gets U.S. Partners

[16/09/05    Mobile WiMax Handsets

[13/09/05]   Mobile WiMax: It's Alive!

[02/09/05]   Samsung makes its bid to drive 4G and see off "Intel Inside"

[29/08/05]   Samsung Mobilizes WiBro

[29/08/05]   Samsung: Intel Will Follow

[29/08/05]   Samsung Demos WiBro

[01/11/05]   MOBILE WiMAX The Path to MoMax

[xxxxxxxx]    WiBro from KT ... The 1st Operator with WiBro in the World

[15/07/05]    WiBro Vendors  
 
[14/07/05]    WiMax: On The Road with Adaptix  
 
[13/07/05]    Cetecom: Go for WiMax   

[12/07/05]    WiFi/Cell Roaming from LG & Samsung  
 
[08/07/05]    Mobile WiMax Chips   

[07/07/05]    CDMA Group Says CDMA Better   

[06/07/05]    16e: Backward Compatibility - NOT   
 
[28/07/05]    Navini's Mobile WiMax  
 
[22/07/05]    PicoChip: Livin' Large   
 
[21/07/05]    Arraycomm + Intel Beam WiMax   
 
[16/07/05]    WiBro Three-Way  

[14/07/05]    Samsung Demos WiBro 
  
[03/06/05]    Intel WiMax Basestation  
 
[31/05/05]    Mobile WiMax - Now?    

[25/05/05]    Adaptix + LG= WiBro   

[24/05/05]    Clearwire Likes E   

[21/05/05]    WiMax: On The Move   

[21/04/05]    WiMax World Wrap    
 
[12/04/05]    WiMax 16d+ Dilemma 
  
[29/03/05]   Alcatel + India = MobileWiMax?   
 
[12/03/05]    Nortel + LG = Mobilized WiMax   
 
[26/01/05]    Earthlink + Korean SK Telecom   

[24/01/05]   WCA Winter Conference--An Update on Mobile WiMAX and WiBro 

   Transcrição de parte do conteúdo citado acima

Notícia
Coréia do Sul turbina acesso sem fio
janeiro 26

O governo da Coréia do Sul selecionou, no final da semana passada, três operadoras de serviços de telecomunicações para iniciar uma nova onda no acesso sem fio, com a oferta da tecnologia WiBro (Wireless Broadband).

O WiBro (Wireless Broadband), que faz parte das especificações de acesso à Internet sem fio da família IEEE802.16 deve oferecer uma capacidade de navegação de 1 Megabit por segundo (Mbps) para dispositivos em trânsito a uma velocidade de até 60 quilômetros por hora.

A tecnologia está relacionada ao sistema Wi-Max (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access), que também integra a família IEEE802.16 e foi desenvolvido para enviar sinais com maior largura de banda a dezenas de Megabits por segundo para receptores fixos a uma distância de dezenas de quilômetros.

No final da semana passada o governo sul-coreano adiantou que concederia as licenças de operação do WiBro às operadoras KT Corp., SK Telecom e Hanaro Telecom.

A KT ficou em primeiro lugar no leilão de licenças para a oferta do WiBro, com uma oferta de 125,8 bilhões de wons (US$ 122 milhões), marcando 85 pontos em um máximo de 100. A SK Telecom marcou marcou 82 pontos e a Hanaro ficou em terceiro com 80 pontos. Ambas fizeram ofertas médias de 117 billion de wons (US$ 113,5 milhões).

O lançamento comercial dos serviços em WiBro é esperado para meados de 2006.
Martyn Williams - IDG News Service, Tóquio

Notícia
Quinta, 16 de junho de 2005, 13h19
Intel e KT têm acordo para Web móvel sem fio

A Intel formou uma aliança com a KT Corp para ajudar a operadora de telecomunicações da Coréia do Sul a oferecer serviços de Internet móvel de alta velocidade no país, que tem o maior índice mundial de penetração de acesso rápido à Web.
As duas empresas anunciaram hoje que assinaram um acordo de cooperação operacional para a implantação de uma tecnologia de banda larga sem fio que opera a longas distâncias e é promovida pela Intel, o WiMAX. A gigante norte-americana dos chips aposta que a tecnologia será capaz de competir com o acesso por linhas fixas ou cabos.

A Intel também vai oferecer apoio de engenharia para garantir a interoperabilidade entre o Mobile WiMAX e a WiBro, tecnologia similar que a Coréia do Sul planeja comercializar a partir do começo do ano que vem.

A companhia norte-americana vem promovendo o WiMAX, que permite acesso de alta velocidade a dados em áreas que podem cobrir uma pequena cidade, como forma de difundir o uso barato da banda larga e da Internet.

A empresa norte-americana espera reproduzir o sucesso que obteve na popularização do padrão de comunicação sem fio WiFi, hoje popular em aeroportos e cafés de todo o mundo. "Estamos muito, muito otimistas quanto à capacidade do WiMAX para oferecer um canal alternativo de banda larga doméstica", disse Paul Otellini, presidente-executivo da Intel, durante entrevista coletiva em Seul.

A KT, principal empresa de telefonia fixa e de banda larga da Coréia do Sul, e a maior operadora de telefonia celular do país, SK Telecom, planejam oferecer o serviço WiBro para permitir que os usuários mantenham conexão de alta velocidade com a Internet em aparelhos portáteis mesmo quando estiverem em movimento.

A Coréia do Sul é pioneira em banda larga.
Cerca de três quartos de seus 48 milhões de habitantes têm acesso à Internet, e 12 milhões deles dispõem de conexões de alta velocidade.
Mas as operadoras sul-corenas buscam novas áreas de crescimento, conforme os mercados de banda larga e de voz amadurecem.

Os serviços Wibro funcionam a um quarto da velocidade atingida por acessos WiFi, mas não exigem que os usuários fiquem restritos a uma área próxima de uma antena transmissora.
Reuters

Actualidade
WiMAX e WiBro na corrida pelo wireless
Redes nº 103 - Abril/Maio/Junho de 2005

Enquanto o WiMAX procura afirmar-se, o projeto coreano WiBro vai de vento em popa

Depois das comunicações rádio 802.11 nas suas diferentes versões, surgem agora as 802.16, permitindo débitos superiores (75 Mbit/s) em distâncias mais longas e num raio de cinco quilômetros. Sob a influência da Intel, o objetivo do 802.16d (ou WiMAX) consiste em criar – para os operadores – uma solução sem fio de substituição do ADSL nos últimos quilômetros.

O WiMAX já está disponível em ligações fixas para os emissores e para as antenas de recepção entre 2 GHz e 11GHz, mas também está à espera dos terminais móveis. Os produtos disponíveis, como os originários da Wilan Technologies, da Alvarion e da Aperto Networks, derivam de desenvolvimentos militares.

Para criar chips destinados a telefones IP e PC, encontramos atualmente duas tecnologias em cena – a da Intel e a (mais original) dos coreanos reunidos em torno do consórcio WiBro. O objetivo comum é colocar no mercado, o mais rapidamente possível, uma tecnologia de alto débito que possa ser utilizada para transmitir vídeo em particular.

No salão Telecom Asia, que teve lugar na Coréia em Setembro de 2004, Sean Maloney, vice-presidente da Intel, apresentou o novo chip Ringdale, que veremos em PC portáteis sob a forma de protótipo durante este ano e sob a forma de produção em série durante 2006. Em 2007, já poderá estar pronta uma versão para telefones portáteis, concorrente direta da 3G.

A propósito das diferenças existentes entre a versão 802.16e (na qual se baseia a norma coreana WiBro) e a versão WiMAX (802.16d, também designada por 802.11-2004 e preconizada pela Intel), Sean Maloney minimizou as incompatibilidades:
«O standard do IEEE ainda irá evoluir para integrar as diversas variantes. Estamos a cumprir o nosso programa. Alguns jornalistas já opõem o WiMAX à 3G, tal como fizeram – erradamente – entre as diferentes versões do 802.11. Podemos juntar as tecnologias. As diferentes técnicas irão coexistir».

Apesar de a Intel querer tirar partido do seu enorme peso no mercado dos componentes PC para impor o seu programa de comunicações rádio, os poderes públicos coreanos não têm intenções de ficar à espera.
O ministério da Informação e das Comunicações daquele país publicou, em finais de Julho de 2004, a tecnologia nacional WiBro e designou, em finais de Agosto do mesmo ano, os operadores que poderão ocupar o espectro rádio adequado.

Na KT Telecom, 56 pessoas de nove departamentos estão a trabalhar no projeto desde Dezembro de 2003.
Em Julho de 2004 juntaram-se a elas mais 62 pessoas.
Os meios de desenvolvimento da SK Telecom são ainda maiores, uma vez que tem, desde Maio de 2003, várias centenas de pessoas envolvidas nesta área.

Na realidade, foi a SK Telecom que obteve o acordo do IEEE sobre a versão “e” do 802.16.
Este operador já demonstrou a interconexão de móveis CDMA 2000 EVDO com as ligações de alto débito baseadas em WiBro.
A partir de 2005, deverão surgir portáteis bimodo 3G-WiBro capazes de permitir fluxos vídeo.
A Dacom, o mais pequeno dos operadores coreanos, também está a trabalhar afincadamente com a LG TeleCom e com a Powercom.
Por sua vez, a Hanaro Telecom tem 50 pessoas a desenvolver os conteúdos.

Ver tabela: As diferentes variantes das redes sem fios

Samsung pitches for WiBro wireless spec
By Staff writers, Special to ZDNet
13 April 2005

A new wireless standard for mobile entertainment called WiBro is getting a boost from Samsung Electronics.
WiBro is an emerging broadband technology intended to let people use wireless devices such as cell phones to watch several TV broadcasts and surf the Internet simultaneously. Korean companies including Samsung have been at the forefront of developing the specification, also known as Digital Multimedia Broadcasting.

Part of that development work includes making WiBro compatible with WiMax, another emerging wireless specification. WiMax is designed for use over a number of miles, rather than the much shorter distances associated with the more established Wi-Fi and Bluetooth standards.

The Korean companies are also out to commercialise WiBro, according to Samsung. On Tuesday, Samsung announced that it had been elected to the board of directors of the WiMax Forum. Forum members also include Intel, Fujitsu and Alcatel.

WiBro signals travel at 700kbps, and vehicles moving as fast as 40mph have been shown to receive WiBro signals continuously.

Wikipedia

WiBro is a broadband wireless internet technology being developed by the Korean telecoms industry.
In February 2002, the Korean Government allocated 100MHz of spectrum in the 2.3GHz band, and in late 2004 WiBro Phase 1 was standardized by the TTA(Telecommunications Technology Association) of Korea.

WiBro base stations will offer an aggregate data throughput of 30 to 50 Mbit/s and cover a radius of 1-5 km.

SK Telecom and Hanaro Telecom have announced a partnership [1] to roll out WiBro nationwide in Korea, excluding Seoul and six provincial cities, where independent networks will be rolled out.

In November 2004, Intel and LG Electronics executives agreed to ensure compatibility between WiBro and WiMAX technology [2].

Site TELECO
Artigo de Eduardo Prado
WiMAX - Um bem necessário  (transcrição parcial)

(...)
WCA, WiMAX Móvel e WiBro   Na recente conferência e exibição WCA (Wireless Communications Association) ocorrinda em 12-14.JAN.2005 em San José na Califórnia foi dado bastante destaque ao WiMAX Móvel (padrão IEEE 802.16e) e ao padrão de WiMAX Móvel coreano chamado WiBro que deve provocar um efeito no WiMAX Móvel.
Veja a referência 802.16 Chips Partner Up do Dailywireless sobre a WCA.  

Em relação ao 802.16e existiu um debate do Grupo de Trabalho do IEEE que tratou da compatibilidade em o padrão WiMAX Móvel e o WiMAX Fixo (padrão homologado IEEE 802.16d).
Uma facção entende que o Grupo deveria atender aos objetivos iniciais que era de "dar suporte a uma operação combinada do padrão fixo e móvel dentro de um mesmo sistema".
Muitos dos defensores desta posição já projetaram sistemas de WiMAX Fixo com características para suportar as operações fixas e móveis combinadas.  

Uma outra facção gostaria de evoluir mais rápido como o padrão WiMAX Móvel e não gostaria que os sistemas móveis fossem prejudicados para dar suporte ao padrão WiMAX Fixo.
Muitos advogam que os produtos fixos não estão disponíveis e eles querem mover-se rapidamente no padrão móvel sem suporte ao padrão fixo.  

Este tipo de debate tem diminuído a velocidade de evolução do padrão, que até recentemente tinha o cronograma bem próximo do planejado.
Vários participantes do debate comentaram que esta disputa será resolvida em breve e que a homologação do padrão móvel - o esperado IEEE 802.16e - será completada até o verão americano (SET.2005).  

Referências dp Dailywireless sobre WiMAX Móvel:
- Alvarion Promotes Mobile WiMax,

- Mobilized WiMax backhaul ,

- Mobilizing WiMax,

- SR Telecom's symmetry,

- Proxim's pre 802.16e e

- Wi-LAN's Mobilis.  

Na WCA foi muito mencionado o impacto do WiMAX Móvel da Coréia do Sul - conhecido como WiBro - no debate acima.
Como nós sabemos a Coréia é um dos países mais avançados em Banda Larga no mundo com alta índice de penetração nas residências e também foi o primeiro país do mundo a lançar um serviço com tecnologia 3G.
O governo coreano via um grande gap entre os serviços de banda larga disponíveis dos hotspots e 3G e resolveu estimular o que chamaram inicialmente de Internet Portátil e que depois foi renomeado para WiBro.  

A Coréia avaliou várias alternativas para o acesso de Internet Portátil mas em JUL.2004, o governo coreano aprovou o padrão 802.16 como a base tecnológica do acesso de banda larga sem fio portátil na Coréia (ver Seoul chooses standard for wireless broadband Access da Wireless Week).  

Mais tarde eles anunciaram um cronograma com testes técnicos no final de 2005 e com o início de operação comercial no 2º trimestre de 2006 (2Q06) indicando que eles seguirão o draft atual do padrão IEEE 802.16e ao invés de esperar pela resolução final do debate deste padrão.  

Este cronograma tem alterado o WiMAX Móvel dinamicamente.
Os coreanos não estão interessados no WiMAX Fixo pois eles já têm a maior taxa de penetração de banda larga residencial do mundo.
Muitas vendors de banda larga sem fio no mundo estão focando agora sua atenção em satisfazer as necessidades de mercado coreano de WiBro (03 exemplos do Dailywireless = Alvarion Promotes Mobile WiMax, SR Telecom's symmetry, e Wi-LAN's Mobilis).
Nesta WCA foi dito que "o Wibro está comandando o roadmap de todo mundo. Eles vão anunciar licenças de 802.16e, e vão perseguir um cronograma comercial".  

Não foi surpresa, quando o Governo Coreano anunciou em 20.JAN.2005 a concessão de 03 licenças de WiBro para as 03 maiores telcos coreanas (Korea Telecom - KTC, SK Telecom e Hannaro), que esperam lançar o serviço comercial em 2006.
Veja referência Korea Gets WiBro do Dailywireless.  

Desta forma parece o Mundo WiMAX está se bifurcando.
Um Grupo está focado no WiMAX Fixo que terá sua certificação iniciada em JUL.2005 como vimos acima.
O outro Grupo está focado no WiBro por agora, e pode alterar a sua atenção para o padrão IEEE 802.16e quando ele tiver resolvido as disputas no seu processo de homologação.  

Para aqueles - como nós - que vêem o WiMAX Móvel como muito importante - especialmente em mercados bem desenvolvidos de banda larga - o esforço de WiBro é provavelmente uma coisa muito boa.
Ele move a banda larga móvel para um chamariz, e ajuda a indústria de inovadores em ter produtos desenvolvidos e entregue nas mãos dos clientes.
O WiMAX se beneficiaria da experiência de campo do WiBro e os dispositivos dos consumidores podem ter o preço diminuído mais rapidamente na curva de custo com os volumes esperados de um mercado altamente competitivo como o coreano.
Todo mundo vai ganhar. 

Mais Referências de WiBro:

- An Introduction of WiBro Technology da Samsung Electronics & ITU [um arquivo PDF] e

- WiBRO? O que é isso? O WiMAX Móvel (802.16e) da Coréia do ComUnidade WirelessBrasil. (abaixo transcrita).  
(...)

Blog de Eduardo Prado "Novas Tecnologias - Novos Negócios"

17/12/2004 - Sexta-feira

BOM DIA!

Companies to Develop Smart Antenna Base Station for WiBRO
Jul 12, 2005 3:40 PM

POSDATA and ArrayComm have agreed to incorporate ArrayComm's smart antenna software into POSDATA's high-performance base station. This combination is expected to yield large improvements in overall system range, capacity and coverage quality for 802.16e networks, offering WiBRO and Mobile WiMAX users higher data rates over wider areas. The parties also agreed to closely collaborate on marketing and cooperate to harmonize standards.

System development is being performed by POSDATA's Korean and U.S. R&D groups in conjunction with ArrayComm's R&D team. Work for WiBRO has already commenced, and availability is planned for fourth quarter of 2005. Commercial availability for Mobile WiMAX will follow.

WiMAX technology, based on the 802.16e standard, is designed to help service providers across global markets deliver economical broadband data, voice and video services to both residential and business customers. WiBRO, a Korean-based standard, and Mobile WiMAX, its international counterpart, are subsets of 802.16e and designed for mobile applications.

"Our vision and focus is to provide end-to-end, all-IP, mobile broadband systems to service providers that fit into their business models," said Byung-Chang Yoo, POSDATA's CEO. "POSDATA's mobile systems were designed from the ground up based on the 802.16e standard; therefore, the systems are not constrained by existing fixed wireless access or conventional cellular technologies. By partnering with ArrayComm, POSDATA can offer the first WiBRO and Mobile WiMAX systems with field-proven smart antenna technology."

POSDATA's all-IP, mobile broadband systems include WiBRO and Mobile WiMAX standards-based base stations, access control routers and terminal devices. This Radio Access Network complements POSDATA's long history of IP-based system integration, network integration and application development to provide total mobile broadband solutions to service providers worldwide.

ArrayComm's smart antenna solutions, operating in more than 250,000 commercial base stations in several wireless protocols, are field-proven to reduce interference and increase coverage in multi-cell networks, significantly improving operator economics and end-user experiences. ArrayComm solutions are designed to include the full range of MIMO, AAS and client-device smart antenna architectures.

2.3 GHz Portable Internet (WiBRO) for Wireless Broadband Access  (download .pdf)

Background of WiBRO Service / WiBRO Technology Overview / Future Plan and Strategy

I.Why Portable Internet (WiBro)?
II.Portable Internet (WiBro) Service
  1. Service Positioning
  2. Service Concept
  3. Service Features
  4. Customer Needs
  5. Demand Forecast
III. Service Schedule
IV. TTA PG302 Activities
V. Decision of PG302
VI. Future Plan of PG302
VII.
Summary
 

WiBro Portable Internet
November 9, 2004

Technology in Focus features analysis of recent technology news articles, by the consultants in Technology Group, IDA. This is the top pick of the month from a list of 10 - 20 news analysis compiled monthly.

Analysis
by Yong Kuan Loong, NWT Consultant

In February 2002, Korean government breathed new life into the 2.3GHz spectrum band when it allocated 100MHz of it for what it then called the "portable Internet".
Today, Phase I of the WiBro standard has been approved by the Telecommunications Technology Association of Korea and is strongly backed by some of the biggest names in the Korean telecom industry.
WiBro appears to have leapfrogged IEEE 802.16e, the mobile variant of the IEEE 802.16 standard, which is still in the draft stage.
The Korean press reported that POS Data and LG Electronics believe they will be able to roll out WiBro networks in mid-2006.
The MIC predicts there will be 9.3 million subscribers six years from launch, generating up to 3.2-3.7 trillion won (approx. USD 3 billion) in revenues.

There is no doubt that WiBro will coexist with 3G. KT and SK Telecom, both of which own 3G networks, will make sure of that.
However the fate of the wireless LAN hotspot business model is less certain.
WiBro will offer an aggregate data throughput of 30-50Mbps - comparable to what Wi-Fi offers today - but does not have the limitations of the latter.
One will be able to access the WiBro network, in which a base station covers 1-5km, not only at cafes or shopping malls but just about everywhere.
Furthermore, WiBro supports quality of service (QoS), which enables content such as high quality streaming videos to be delivered to the user.
By contrast, not only does Wi-Fi today not offer any QoS mechanism, but it also uses shared, licence-exempt spectrum, which makes Wi-Fi systems vulnerable to interference from other users of the same frequency band.

Critics may point to the fact that WiBro, being a home-grown Korean standard, will not enjoy the same international acceptance and economies of scale as WiMAX, touted by Intel to be "the global standard".
That could have been true earlier this year, until the US Trade Representative (USTR) intervened, claiming that the WiBro standardization process was being "manipulated to exclude foreign technologies".
It is possible that WiBro was adapted from an early version of 802.16e and further developed domestically until the Koreans were pressured to continue their work under the auspices of the IEEE.
The system level specifications of WiBro haven't changed much after the USTR incident but the technical parameters of WiBro and 802.16e are now in agreement.
Not that this is really saying all that much.
Anyone familiar with the 802.16 family of standards knows that they comprise several mutually exclusive options and leaves many of the design parameters to the equipment manufacturer.
The reason WiMAX exists is to lock down all of these variables so that 802.16 equipment can interoperate.
Korea will still have its own flavour of WiMAX, but at least foreign vendors too can have a share of Korea's huge wireless broadband pie.

Notícias e artigos citados na Revista do WiMAX

Samsung demos WiMax, WiBro products
Fierce Wireless

WiBro Three-Way
Dailywireless
Thursday, June 16 2005 @ 17:00:24 PDT

Korea Gets WiBro from Dailywireless

No WiBro for Hanaro
Om Malik
More ...
US-controlled Hanarotelecom gives up wireless Internet service
Yahoo News
Mon Apr 25, 1:24 PM ET Technology - AFP
 

South Korea to Get WiBro Services
PC World
Martyn Williams, IDG News Service
Tuesday, January 25, 2005

Korea Gets WiBro
Dailywireless
Friday, January 21 @ 23:42:16 PST

MORE NEWS ABOUT WiBRO (The Mobile WiMAX from Korea) ... Homegrown Portable Internet Tests Successful
Korea Times
By Kim Tae-gyu
Staff Reporter

Mobile FI (IEEE 802.20) & WiMAX (IEEE 802.16) COMPETITION
Fierce Wireless

Competition from 802.20 -- also called Mobile-Fi -- would pose a stiffer challenge for WiMax than earlier expected, according to an analysis by Cristian Patachia-Sultanoiu in the Journal of the Communications Network. The data rate and range of 802.20 are only half that of WiMax (some have taken to calling it "broadband for the masses"), but it is inherently more mobile. It has an impressive latency of only 10ms (just compare: 500ms is standard for 3G communications), and it can maintain integrity at as much as 250km/h, compared with just 100km/h for WiMax. 802.20 also uses more common spectrum -- licensed bands up to 3.5GHz -- so it also offers global mobility, hand-off, and roaming support.

More ...

DO YOU WANT TO LEARN ABOUT THE KOREAN WiBro?
 
 Presentation on South Korea's wireless broadband deployment (download here [a pdf file]). The mobile internet users are almost equal to the mobile phone users, with data ARPUs increasing.

The Road to Mobile Broadband Runs Through Korea
 The Feature
 By David James, Mon Nov 15 08:00:00 GMT 2004
 
 South Korea?s WiBro will be the first large network to test the promise of mobile WiMAX.
 
 Koreans have long been leaders in adopting and developing mobile communications, but they have an old saying: ?Test even a stone bridge before crossing it.? So it is fitting that their planned mobile broadband access system, called WiBro (for wireless broadband), will be the first country-wide network to serve as a testing ground for what may become the leading international technology for mobile broadband: mobile WiMAX.
 
 WiMAX is the name now given to that set of technologies sponsored by the WiMAX Forum and based on the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers? 802.16 family of technology standards for broadband wireless access. IEEE 802.16 is for fixed access, and 802.16e is for mobile access. Both use a form of OFDM transmission, rather than CDMA. The objective of WiMAX and its supporters is to promote global compatibility and inter-operability of broadband wireless access equipment for fixed, portable and mobile connectivity.
 
 WiBro was first conceived as a Korean technology standard called HPi (for high-speed portable Internet), in which Korea?s Electronics and Telecommunications Research Institute, SK Telecom and KT Corporation had invested heavily. However, as a Korean standard rivaling WiMAX?s 802.16e, it presented barriers to non-Korean developers and manufacturers, requiring Korea to convince the rest of the world to adopt its standard. As a result, Korea brought an end to HPi earlier this year, agreeing to use the 802.16e standard for WiBro.

WiBro shaping future mobile information society
October 23, 2004

With the wireless and wired penetration rate being among the highest in the world, Korea's policymakers, broadband providers and mobile operators have been searching for plans to keep growth alive.

The most notable attempt is the portable Internet, dubbed by Korean government officials as WiBro (wireless broadband), which is designed to be more efficient at providing Internet connectivity and mobile data than either broadband or current mobile services.

WiBro is designed to provide a 1Mbps Internet connection to receiver devices moving at speeds up to 70 kilometers per hour.

KT (Korea Telecom) Tests Wi-Bro Technology as Seoul Looks for Independent Line
Caroline Gabriel
WiMAX Trends - Features
October 4, 2004

KT Freetel is the first of the South Korean majors to conduct real world trials of the country´s Wi-Bro technology, an alternative to WiMAX.

The country´s second largest mobile operator showed off real time web streaming and browsing using Wi-Bro. The test came a week after the Seoul government published a set of guidelines to commercialize services in the 2.3GHz band by mid-2006. It will award three licenses for a portable internet service in this frequency next February. KT Freetel, SK Telecom, Hanaro Telecom and Dacom are expected to bid.
 

WiBro: mobile communications
Chief Executive, The, March, 2005

Imagine a portable Internet service that provides high-speed wireless Internet connection anytime, anywhere, even at high speeds inside your vehicle.

This is an old dream by now, and everyone knows that there have been bumps along the way.

Intel's Centrino chips helped popularize WiFi, or wireless broadband, which is now a must-have function in notebook PCs or higher-end PDAs.

Yet WiFi signals have such limited radius that you might need several base stations if you want to move around in even a modestly sized area.
To make wireless broadband truly ubiquitous, you need ultrapowerful signals that cover a whole metropolitan area. Two competing technologies--fixed WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) and Korea's own homegrown mobile wireless broadband called WiBro--are competing to be the answers to this riddle.

The two offer different versions of the same basic wireless IEEE 802.16 standard, which addresses frequencies from 10GHz to 66GHz--WiMAX on the 802.16-2004 standard formerly known as 802.16d and WiBro on 802.16e standard. While WiMAX sends a signal of tens of megabits per second to fixed receivers over a distance of several tens of kilometers, initially WiBro will send over 1Mbps signal to receivers moving at speeds of up to 70 km (36 mph) an hour.

Though they are fairly similar technologies, they address slightly different market niches for now. Essentially, the two are likely to converge and for now because it offers mobility, WiBro has an edge.

Why WiBro, if WiMAX is so well-advanced and almost ready to roll out next year?
Because Korea already has the world's most advanced broadband market and a leader in mobile telephony, Korea is not interested in fixed solutions like WiMAX.
It wants a mobile wireless solution.
The betting is that Korea's technology leadership and market clout together will be strong enough to carry the day. Other markets such as Japan, Hong Kong and Taiwan that are seeing higher adoption rates of fixed broadband are likely to prefer WiBro over WiMAX.

WiBro is just one part of Korea's comprehensive strategy for leadership in next-generation mobile communications services and devices.
As a major manufacturer of mobile communications devices and its components, the stakes are high for Korea. Korean companies like Samsung Electronics, LG Electronics and Pantech want to make devices that provide cellular users faster and clearer access to multimedia information through satellite or mobile communications networks. WiBro and, ultimately, 4G devices will put Korean manufacturers of both cellular infrastructure and handsets at the top of the league.

Previously dubbed "portable Internet" but since renamed "wireless broadband" or "WiBro," the technology's main aim has been to fill that yawning gap.
Korea considered all sorts of alternatives but has since announced that it will base its WiBro on the same IEEE 802.16 standards that form the basis for WiMAX.

The first commercial users of WiBro might be roaming the streets of Seoul surfing the Internet at warp-speed within the next 12 months.
In January, three Korean companies--KT, SK Telecom and Hanaro--were awarded licenses for WiBro services.
The trio is expected to begin technical testing of services in the second half of this year.
WiBro commercial services could be launched at around the same time that WiMAX has its commercial launch.

As the world's second largest semiconductor company and one of the top three cellular handset makers, Samsung Electronics is at the forefront of WiBro research and development.
Rival LG Electronics, however, has teamed up with Intel to form an alliance to work on combining the Intel-backed WiMAX standard with WiBro.
With Intel now onboard, it is likely that the two technologies will be compatible.

Intel, which was supposed to put WiMAX chips in the notebook (Centrino Mobile Technology) in the middle of 2006 and handheld devices in 2007, might now start putting chips that are compatible with both WiBro and WiMAX around the same time.

Clearly, WiBro is just a stepping stone toward Korea's big goal: eventual dominance in 4G technology that will start to replace today's 3G in the next three to four years.

Going Wide with WiBro
A South Korean initiative may prove an important early test for the young technology in the high-stakes, high-speed technology competition.
By Karen Brown
April 15, 2005
Wireless Week


SEOUL, South Korea—To hear the backers of South Korea's WiBro project tell it, wide is on their side.

The initiative, spearheaded by the South Korean government, will light up the country with high-speed wireless networks based on the WiMAX metro-area-network broadband technology. It also will serve an important early survival test for WiMAX, which faces competition from more mature wireless broadband technologies.

Samsung is one of the active technology providers for the project and in a recent media tour, Hung Song, vice president of the global marketing group for Samsung's telecommunications systems division, outlined the company's plans for products and services based on WiBro, which is shorthand for wireless broadband.

The company is concentrating its development on 802.16e, the latest version of WiMAX, which would add roaming handoff capabilities. The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers' (IEEE) will probably approve the 802.16e standard later this month, but, like other vendors, Samsung already has developed technology based on the initial draft specification. Korean carriers KT Corporation, SK Telecom and Hanaro Telecom plan to deploy WiBro network service as early as April 2006, using 2.3 GHz licensed spectrum carved out by the South Korean government.

In many ways, Korea is an ideal place for the first introduction of wide-reaching WiMAX technology, according to Song. It has the highest broadband penetration in the world, with 76 percent of users, or 11.8 million households, having access to some form of high-speed data services. Very high speed digital subscriber line (VDSL) launches set later this year will offer users connections as fast as 50 Mbps, and there are plans for 70 Mbps service in the near future.

Initially, WiBro probably will offer similar applications and services as the slower CDMA 1X networks but will deliver them at a faster throughput, Song notes. The technology's backers are developing new applications that harness WiBro's bigger bandwidth.

"We are working with the Mobile WiMAX operators to create specific applications for this," he says, noting that could range from telematics to mobile blogging, multimedia instant messaging and video versions of push-to-talk service. "I think WiBro will appear in interactive services."

Initial service in spring 2006 will be offered on stand-alone WiBro handheld devices with multimedia capabilities. These devices also will have similar battery endurance levels as advanced 3G handsets, "but we have some room for improvement," Song says.

In its first version, 802.16e will support throughputs of 18 Mbps downstream and 6 Mbps upstream per end user at a range of one to three miles. Because it is intended for mobile users, in tests it has supplied 3 Mbps links to users traveling in cars at 60 miles per hour.

Individual base stations will be set up with a 1 kilometer maximum radius and will be able to supply aggregate throughputs at a maximum 54 Mbps downstream/18 Mbps upstream.

"On the next generation, we will be pushing that up to 72 Mbps per sector [base station]," Song notes.

The timeline for developing this second-generation version remains undetermined, and much depends on the final ratification of the 802.16e standard. The goal, in any case, is to make this version backward-compatible to the initial 802.16e version. "We want to make sure we have very small changes, so the delta will be very small," Song notes.

Voice? Whether these broadband wireless data networks make the jump to voice service is a tricky proposition, given the involvement of telecom carriers that already run wireline or wireless voice services.

"Because it is a data network, there is nothing to prevent you from having voice over IP," Song notes. "There is a possibility for that, but in the public announcements, they [carriers] have said it is going to be data-only."

For SK Telecom, however, the goal for its deployment of WiBro is not as a stand-alone broadband service, but rather as a bandwidth booster to its cellular network, in high-density areas where heavy usage combined with increasingly fat multimedia content is straining the network. It plans to debut WiBro hot zones in 84 cities, with service starting in June 2006.

Handsets will have dual WiBro and CDMA capabilities. Pricing has not yet been determined, but Se-Hyun Oh, vice president of SK Telecom's network research and design center, notes the options include offering it at no extra cost or for an added subscription fee.

Oh also notes that as yet, Samsung is the vendor furthest along on the development curve for WiBro technology. That temporary lack of handset choice may make operators leery of buying into the technology, at least until there is a larger pool of vendors to choose from, Oh says.

"I am afraid most operators want to have multiple vendors for infrastructure," Oh says. "We need more time to have more vendors. Also, we need the handset manufacturers – as always, the network side is faster to develop than handsets."

To that end, the first handsets available to access SK's WiBro service will be PDAs, followed by phone devices in late 2006 or early 2007.

For now, Samsung is focusing on the 802.16e technology with its ability to hand off data traffic automatically between base stations. For that reason, it probably won't actively develop products based on older 802.16a and 802.16d versions created for fixed wireless or portable hot spot services.

That said, WiBro will be competing in a market already full of broadband options. But Song argues it has distinct advantages over rivals, including Wi-Fi, because of its roaming capabilities. It also has greater applications in the field of telematics and geographic tracking for commercial purposes. "If you want to have true mobility, [802.]16e is the best solution," he adds.
 

Truce is called in the WiBro war as Intel and LG agree to collaborate over the mobile standard 802.16e
Rethink IT, Jan, 2005

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The greatest threat to the establishment of WiMAX as a global system for mobile broadband wireless seems to have been neutralized, with news that Intel and LG will collaborate to harmonize the mobile version, 802.16e, with an alternative approach developed in South Korea, known as WiBro. This is critical for two reasons--to accelerate the standardization of mobile WiMAX, which underpins the most disruptive potential applications for the technology; and to prevent a damaging standards battle between the US and Korea (which would likely be joined by China) that would fragment the market for vendors and create two incompatible wireless zones for international operators and users. In turn, this will help strengthen WiMAX' bid to be the key, technology to underpin the mobile enterprise, providing greater bandwidth than 3G for supporting flexible work patterns, and supporting applications such as salesforce automation or videoconferencing.

WIMAX VERSUS WIBRO

The WiMAX community has been embroiled for the past year in a political battle over whether South Korea's mobile broadband wireless technology, WiBro, should be the basis of the upcoming mobile WiMAX, 802.16e. Samsung and other backers of WiBro had lobbied for this, arguing that their technology was more advanced than 802.16e, as it is ready, for deployment by some Korean operators next year. But the move had been resisted by' US interests including Intel.

With the danger of two rival standards, and the likelihood that China would join Korea's 'technology island', there are moves afoot to harmonize the OFDM-based technologies, Intel and Korea's LG Electronics have agreed to work together on creating a single international standard combining the two.

LG spokesperson Karen Hyejin Park said: "Single broadband wireless access standardization would allow companies to avoid duplicate investments in handsets and systems that may occur between countries. Consumers will then be able to receive broadband wireless access services at a more affordable price."

Beyond the political implications of a truce, WiBro expertise could accelerate the creation of" an effective mobile WiMAX, bringing knowledge of high speed mobility into the 802.16e camp at an early stage, as well as the experiences of-early operators, which will go live with WiBro services next year.

HIGH PERFORMANCE INTERNET

The Korean technology will underpin an ambitious government-backed plan called High Performance Internet (HPi), which aims to bring mobile broadband wireless to the bulk of the population. The Korean government will issue three national licenses in 2.3GHz for WiBro early next year, which are likely to be won by Korea Telecom, SK Telecom and Hanaro Telecom.

WiBro works at 70 miles per hour, while 802.16 was originally designed only for portability and there have been questions raised over its suitability for high speed operation. A merger with WiBro would calm these fears, bring valuable intellectual property' into the WiMAX fold and effectively sideline the separate IEEE effort aimed at fast mobility 802.20 or Mobile-Fi. This initiative was backed in its early days by mobile broadband wireless specialists Navini and Flarion, but Navini has since defected to the WiMAX camp, and Flarion, while still nominally a supporter of 802.20, is socking to establish its own Flash-OFDM technology as a de facto standard--an aim that may be hindered by the prospect of" an undivided mobile WiMAX.

The original objections to WiBro being incorporated into 802.16e were partly technological--although the two technologies share an OFDM base and some characteristics, WiBro uses a different carrier structure and its initial profile is for 2.3GHz rather than WiMAX" 3.5GHz/2.5GHz (although harmonization will accelerate moves to create a WiMAX profile fin" 2.3GHz, benefiting AT&T and others--see feature on page 22).

But more intractable were the political tensions. We have seen how much store US companies such as Intel are setting by WiMAX, not just as a new revenue stream, but a means to steer an important new standard, with Intel even looking as far as possibly acquiring spectrum to increase its level of control. By, making WiBro the starting point for 802.16e, the balance of influence shifts significantly towards the Korean vendors, since their technology is currently more advanced. In particular, LG and Samsung, the latter the major early driving force behind WiBro. Both of these giants have been targeting western mobile communications markets aggressively with handsets, chips and other equipment, and with a high degree of success, and will see 802.16e as another route into global markets, possibly at the expense of US players.

In the end, however, it was obvious that South Korea would not leave its homegrown and advanced technology behind, and could take China and other countries with it, depriving the western players of access to some of the most important broadband wireless markets, or forcing them to invest in developing two separate product lines. The chance for a truly global equipment market which was denied in cellular communications, of course, by Qualcomm's CDMA, another initiative heavily backed by, Samsung and Korea--in the end was more important than regional bickering, with massive potential benefits for the world communications map and for WiMAX' chances of fulfilling its global ambitions.

WIBRO VERSUS 3G

Another area where Korea's experience may be instructional for western vendors will be the positioning of WiBro against 3G. In the first phase, the Korean vendors are taking a conciliatory approach in the hope of" encouraging mobile carriers such as SKT to support WiBro and eventually provide integrated services. This means that WiBro's performance will be capped at 60-70 miles per hour, rather than more than 100 miles per hour, which it could technically support; and at 1Mbps end user data rate to the handset or laptop--about the same as advanced versions of the country's most popular cellular network, CDMA.

With the WiMAX faction still uncertain about how faar to position 802.16e as an alternative to cellular, the early experiences in Korea will be valuable to monitor.

Professor Dong-Ho Cho of the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, says the limitations are partly technical--though both will be enhanced over time--but partly political. "Ground speed is a trade-off with data speed, and both are limited by the cell-site parameters," he said. "At the outset, we do not want to burden the system unduly, nor do we want WiBro to compete immediately with the 2.5G and 3G networks. We will test the system and improve data speed and connectivity over time."

BOOST FOR START-UPS

The convergence of WiBro and WiMAX will be a major boost for some start-ups that have focused on high mobility. Navini has worked extensively with Korean operators and has the capability to provide significant input into a WiBro-WiMAX bridge, which will in turn give it influence beyond its size and revenue base. It will also greatly raise Navini's perceived value--with one of the roadblocks to mobile WiMAX removed, the big players will gain confidence in this market and will accelerate their efforts, and may be prepared to pay a good price to acquire expertise rapidly through purchasing a start-up. Navini is already particularly close to Alcatel, which OEMs its equipment.

Another start-up benefiting from the US-Korean detente will be California chip designer TeleCIS Wireless, which is working on 802.16 chips but also has strategic alliances with Samsung and Korea Telecom. Its strategy is to develop integrated multi-protocol chipsets supporting combinations of Wi-Fi, WiMAX and WiBro simultaneously. David Sumi, head of marketing at the company and also secretary to the WiMAX Forum, said: "TeleCIS's first product will be a dedicated 802.16 WiMAX-conlpliant fixed access chip. This will be followed rapidly by a dual-mode--fixed and mobile--WiMAX chip for notebooks, PlDAs, handsets and other devices. Following that, we will introduce a tri-mode product for fixed and mobile WiMAX, plus the WLAN 802.11-a, -b and -g protocols, all in a single chip." This last product is scheduled for sampling in early 2007.

Again, while a start-up will find it hard to survive independently once WiMAX chips are demanded in high volume and the big names ship their silicon, the intellectual property that TeleCIS has developed, coupled with its rare knowledge of the WiBroWiMAX intersection, could make it all attractive takeover target for a larger organization, or could even enable it to build up sufficient OEM deals to take its place in the wider market unacquired.

The first product claims it will offer a system on a chip, the TCW1620, that supports both physical (PHY) and media access control (MAC) layers and, combined with RF chips, provides a simple package for building a whole subscriber station from RF front end to Ethernet out link. The silicon will also be incorporated into reference platforms for OEMs, and will support all three WiMAX spectrum profiles.

Such developments will start to push WiMAX forward towards its full potential in the mobile enterprise world, progress that should be significantly enhanced with the likely convergence with WiBro.  (Ver tabela)