There is a simple answer to the question of why mobile service providers and would-be providers want more spectrum. As usage continues to climb, and as access speeds continue to climb, there is little chance of boosting access speeds, in the mobile or fixed wireless realms, without adding more spectrum. For example, it is possible to deliver 1-Gbps mobile Internet access using Long Term Evolution, but that requires a 40-MHz block of spectrum, not the 10 [...]

Dish Network reportedly has offered to buy LightSquared spectrum, offering $2 billion. LightSquared apparently has until May 31, 2013 to accept the offer, which was made May 15, 2013, Bloomberg reports. Dish already has received Federal Communications Commission permission to use former mobile satellite service spectrum to create a terrestrial Long Term Evolution network. Dish had acquired that spectrum for $3 billion from bankrupt satellite companies DBSD North America Inc. and TerreStar Networks. As with most initiatives [...]

Mobile service providers have had a complicated relationship with over the top applications viewed either as displacing existing revenue-generating services (carrier voice services) or imposing high loads on mobile networks (video apps and video conferencing apps). That is one reason why, at least initially, use of Apple iPhone “FaceTime” was restricted to Wi-Fi access on the AT&T mobile network, for example. To be sure, there are both public policy issues (can a person use a [...]

Hulu has consistently flailed and suffered from incomplete show catalogs because the company’s owners, with a vested interest in the status quo, really don’t have much of an interest in Hulu truly disrupting or succeeding. Now Disney and News Corporation, after years of bickering about what to do with the property, are again pushing for a sale on the heels of departures of top company executives last January. An outright sale is a tall order, [...]

Hulu has consistently flailed and suffered from incomplete show catalogs because the company’s owners, with a vested interest in the status quo, really don’t have much of an interest in Hulu truly disrupting or succeeding. Now Disney and News Corporation, after years of bickering about what to do with the property, are again pushing for a sale on the heels of departures of top company executives last January. An outright sale is a tall order, [...]

As we’ve seen with both Sprint and T-Mobile, LTE launch locations pop up well ahead of official launch markets as the companies run pre-commercial launch tests. Users now say that they’re seeing T-Mobile LTE signals pop up in Detroit, Minneapolis and New York City. Minneapolis is slated for a May launch, while both Detroit and New York City aren’t officially expected to come online until June. T-Mobile previously stated they aim to cover 100 million [...]

Global smart phone shipments will surpass shipments of basic and feature phones for the first time in 2013, according to NPD. Global smart phone shipments are expected to reach 937 million units in 2013, compared to just 889 million units for basic phones and feature phones. Between 2011 and 2016, smart phone shipments will grow at a compounded annual growth rate of 26 percent, to 1.45 billion units, which will account for 66 percent of [...]

Whenever a next-generation mobile network replaces an older network, there typically is room for both product substitution that does not dramatically affect total revenues, and incremental revenue lift, initially from higher prices, and later from new services. Juniper Research forecasts Long Term Evolution network subscribers will double from an estimated 105 million subscribers in 2013 to nearly 220 million in 2014. What that means in terms of incremental revenue is less clear, though many service [...]

Verizon’s attempt to hang up on their copper networks in Sandy-impacted areas has gotten more complicated after the NY Public Service Commission last week indicated hesitation at letting Verizon disconnect users state wide without first understanding the repercussions. According to regional Long Island news reports, the PSC has granted Verizon temporary approval to pull DSL on Fire Island, NY, replacing it with Verizon’s Voice Link wireless service. The PSC has raised concerns about Voice Link [...]

Verizon’s attempt to hang up on their copper networks in Sandy-impacted areas has gotten more complicated after the NY Public Service Commission last week indicated hesitation at letting Verizon disconnect users state wide without first understanding the repercussions. According to regional Long Island news reports, the PSC has granted Verizon temporary approval to pull DSL on Fire Island, NY, replacing it with Verizon’s Voice Link wireless service. The PSC has raised concerns about Voice Link [...]