WiMAX versus LTE - does one need to win?
In the ever evolving wireless market, the only thing that seems to change more often than the latest must-have mobile phone is the latest hot technology to provide super-fast wireless connectivity.
GSM, GPRS, UMTS, CDMA, HSDPA, Evolved Edge….you get the idea. But when it comes to 4G, which is where most people agree the wireless industry is eventually going, there are really only two technologies that are up for discussion: WiMAX and LTE (Long Term Evolution).
Recently, some have questioned Nortel’s strategy of playing in both of these 4G technologies, seeing them as competing technologies vying for the same limited service provider budgets. But are they actually competing, and does one of these two 4G technologies really need to “win” in the market?
In a recent comment on Nortel CTO John Roese’s blog, Scott Wickware, VP of Carrier Networks at Nortel, provided a nice explanation of WiMAX and LTE, the history of how each was developed, and likely future deployment scenarios for both. His view (and Nortel’s) is that WiMAX and LTE can coexist, as they have evolved to address different markets for high-speed wireless connectivity.
See below for Scott’s post. What do you think? Can WiMAX and LTE coexist in tomorrow’s 4G world, or will one’s success inevitably result in the failure of the other?
My name is Scott Wickware and I am a VP in the Carrier Networks organization. I have seen a lot of comments pertaining to WiMAX and LTE, with many people seeking a lay man’s perspective on what this means. People love to use acronyms to describe individual technologies and grouping of technologies. At Nortel, we are as guilty as any other company that throws around these acronyms; however, this doesn’t mean that everything has to be confusing. We all need to appreciate that these are very complex technologies to develop and deploy, but that what matters most is the end user experience. The house of cards falls apart if these technologies do not provide subscribers with a service they value and at a price point that they (or a third party) are prepared to pay for the service. So, here is my attempt to generalize the situation and provide a little clarity. Here we go…
