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Wi-Fi: the Real 4G! Brough Turner net Blazr brough@netblazr.com. Wi-Fi Mobile. Local, products Data centric Stationary or pedestrian speeds Many vendors, many market segments, billions of customers. Ubiquitous service Voice centric Mobile at auto speeds
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Wi-Fi: the Real 4G! • Brough Turner • netBlazr • brough@netblazr.com
Wi-Fi Mobile • Local, products • Data centric • Stationary or pedestrian speeds • Many vendors, many market segments, billions of customers • Ubiquitous service • Voice centric • Mobile at auto speeds • 4-6 vendors, ~300 customers,1 application
Wi-Fi • Technology leadership • Off-load solution • Backhaul & fixed wireless
Spectrum history • 1920s: Primitive radio receivers • Needed to restrict who transmits • 1927- 1934: Origin of FCC, spectrum licensing • Ensuing decades - almost all spectrum assigned • Three bands reserved for “junk” uses • 1985: FCC authorizes spreadspectrum communications in the ISM, or “junk” bands, i.e. • 900 MHz, 2.4 GHz, 5.8 GHz
Additional highlights • 1997: FCC authorizes Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure (U-NII) adding 200 MHz in 5 GHz band • 2003: FCC adds 255 MHz more @ 5 GHZ; total now 555 MHz • 2003-2009: Task Group n works to dramatically improve Wi-Fi performance, in part via MIMO and Beam forming • 2007: 802.11n draft 2 products certified by the Wi-Fi Alliance; Products shipping! • 2009: 802.11n spec approved
Wi-Fi has pioneered commercial deployment of thekey ‘4G’ wireless technologies: OFDM, MIMO, Beamforming
Wi-Fi Mobile • Local, products • Data centric • Stationary or pedestrian speeds • Many vendors, many market segments, billions of customers • Ubiquitous service • Voice centric • Mobile at auto speeds • 4-6 vendors, ~300 customers,1 application
Global Satellite Suburban Urban In-Building Picocell Microcell Macrocell Basic Terminal PDA Terminal Audio/Visual Terminal ITU’s Vision for 3G (late 90s)
“3G” Services Limited adoption • Video telephony • Location-based services • Push-to-Talk (VoIP w/o QoS) • Rich presence (instant messaging) • Fixed-mobile convergence (FMC) • IP Multimedia Services (w/ QoS) • Video sharing (conversational video on IP) • Converged “All IP” networks – the Vision Bypassed ! Limited adoption No traction Limited adoption Limited adoption Too late …
The Internet is the killer platform • Mobile Internet access drives 3G data usage • Walled garden • too late !
US data traffic = 3.3x per year…
Global mobile data traffic • Nearly tripled between 2Q2009 and 2Q2010 Source: Ericsson, Aug 2010
US 3G performance • Novarum Inc. (1/2010) • Measurements in 36 cities (Anaheim, …, Boston, …, Philly, …, Raleigh, …, Tempe) • 12-2009: 1.5 Mbps down • Doubles: ~24 months
Increasing capacity 1 2 3 4 5 Wi-Fi Internet Femtocell Operator Services Add Cellsites ($$$$) Newer radios ($$$) More backhaul ($$$$) 4. Femtocells ($$) 5. Wi-Fi ($)
Femtocells: too little, too late • Primary users of 3G/4G data also have Wi-Fi • Laptops, smart phones • Corporate IT prefers Wi-Fi they control • Consumers deploying Wi-Fi anyway • For PCs, for gaming, for home media • Pay extra to help carrier improve their network? • Femtocell’s do have value for voice coverage!
Public Wi-Fi • Retail business giveaway • Coffee shops, restaurants, hotels, retail • Harvard Sq. Business Association • Sponsorship – locations, events • Carrier supported • e.g. Cablevision’s Optimum Wi-Fi By kumasawa
Ad supported Wi-Fi • Didn’t work in 2005; working now… • Costs way down; usage and interest up • Freerunr in UK (& NL, RS, ZA) • Splash screens, limited free periods, … • JiWire in US – Ad platform for free Wi-Fi • Used by MS Bing nationwide Wi-Fi offer • Sputnik in US – Ad supported model growing
Muni Wi-Fi, take 2 • Wireless broadband access networks • Dozens of US cities now succeeding • Cities bring real estate, look to save current $ • Communications for police & other city services • Strong pressure for “free” in some form
Wi-Fi will dominate off load • LTE network for coverage,but most data bytes via Wi-Fi • Operator take away: Sell ubiquitous serviceany place, any time while integrating seamless Wi-Fi data offload
Backhaul / Fixed wireless • Middle mile • Cell sites • Fixed wireless hubs • First mile • − Homes and businesses
US Today $220 per Mbps $7 per Mbps
How could wireless possibly help? • Limited capacity • 100 Mbps, 300 Mbps, 1 Gbps, … • Licensed spectrum expensive • Only partially true • Unlicensed unreliable… • Not any more! • Wi-Fi doesn’t go far • 20-50 km! for < $500!
Wireless tipping point • MIMO makes 5 GHz more useful than cellular or TV spectrum • Directional antennas or beam forming → Spatial reuse → incredible density increments • Wi-Fi leads the way • Moore’s law with existing 802.11n spec. • New specs, e.g. 802.11ac, ~ Dec 2012
Beamforming • Select among multiple predefined antenna elements • Widely used (2G, 3G, Wi-Fi – Vivato, Ruckus Wireless) • Adaptive antenna arrays • Compute phase/amplitude for each antenna element • Adapts for desired signal while also reducing interference 8 antenna elements spread over 3.5 λs, i.e. ~18 cm, or < 7.5” at 5.8 GHz
Commercial beamforming Wi-Fi beams, before silicon support … • Vivato (’02-’06) • Technical success, but expensive • Connect with 11g clients up to 2 km • Vivato-to-Vivato up to 18 km • Ruckus Wireless (today) • 12 elements – selectively switched totwo channels on 2x2 silicon • Dramatically outperforms conventional2x2 systems
11n wireless networking solutions in silicon • Founded 2006; customers include Netgear • 4x4 MIMO with beamforming
4x4 MIMOwith 8 antenna elements Beamforming ~2014: >300 Mbps Wi-Fi to ~1 Km at mass market prices …
D-Link DAP-2553 Wavion Networks TVWS – Beach-front spectrum? • Ideal antenna element separation >= ½ wavelength • 2.1 meters at 70 MHz • 21 cm at 700 MHz • But only • 2.5 cm for 5.8 GHz Wi-Fi Ruckus Wireless
ILEC price umbrella • >20x markup fosters wireless bypass • Typical WISPs operating 20%-50% under monopolist’s price umbrella
Wireless ISPs • > 2000 WISPs, in fast growing segment • Most use license-exempt spectrum • Mix of pre-WiMAX, WiMAXand, increasingly, Wi-Fi gear
Wi-Fi for wireless broadband • WISPs already use license-exempt spectrum • Rapidly migrating to 11n technology • Performance advantage is significant • Dramatically lower cost • 5x or more vsWiMAX or LTE systems • Increasing reliability, similar performance
Ubiquiti targets Wireless ISPs Point-to-point$130-$600 Point-to-multipoint~$240 & $68
Example Wi-Fi Pt-2-Pt Link Ubiquiti BULLET-M5-HP With 28dbi Grid Antenna 802.11n Purchased through distribution:
Wireless broadband Internet access for Brevard County FL • Served from 4 locations • 900 MHz, 2.4 GHz & 5 GHz, i.e. all license-exempt spectrum • 30/10 Mbps in many areas • Expanding into Volusia and Seminole counties
Radically different ISP • Focused radio links • 100 Mbps; 50-200 meters per hop • Freemium Model • Customers build our network • Premium services drive revenue netBlazr
Summary • 4G Wireless tipping point • Wi-Fi deploying key “4G” technologies, first ! • Wi-Fi will dominate 3G/4G data offload • Wi-Fi fostering resurgence in independent ISPs opportunity: An end run around the duopoly, the FCC and Congress
Thank You Brough Turner brough@netblazr.com
Credits, References • Image credits, beyond those noted in-line… • Office building facade: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/User:Beek100 • Laptop icon: http://www.flickr.com/photos/ichibod/ • Microwave oven: http://www.flickr.com/photos/code_martial/ • Other useful references • Novarum Inc. measurements: http://www.novarum.com/publications.php • NIST Electromagnetic Signal Attenuation in Construction Materials http://fire.nist.gov/bfrlpubs/build97/PDF/b97123.pdf
802.11n in-the-field • Ken Biba: • The King is Dead, Long Live the King: 802.11n dramatically improves Wi-Fi outdoors • Real world measurements show muni Wi-Fi networks outperform WiMAX and cellular • Tom’s Hardware • Reviews Ruckus Wireless 11n access point with beamforming, http://www.tomshardware.com/reviews/beamforming-wifi-ruckus,2390.html • Net, net – it really works!
In-Stat (Nov 09) • Worldwide hotspots reach 245,000 venues in 2009 • Hotspot connects increased in 2009 by 47 percent, bringing total worldwide 1.2 billion connects • Wi-Fi handset shipments grew 50%, 2007 to 2008 • Wi-Fi-enabled entertainment device (cameras, gaming devices, and personal media players) shipments projected to increase from 108.8 million in 2009 to 177.3 million in 2013
ABI Research (August 2009) • ABI projects 1 billion Wi-Fi chips in 2011 • Global shipments of Wi-Fi-enabled cell phones to double between 2009 and 2011 • 144 million in 2009 to 300 million in 2011 • 90% of smart phones Wi-Fi capable by 2014
2004 view of Wi-Fi market • Rampant growthhowever… • Article in ‘The Economist’ warns Wi-Fi under threat: • WiMAX in wide area • WiMedia in home