Prospects for mobile substitution for internet access hinge mostly on price, as in many markets, “mobile broadband connections do however run at faster speeds than most home wireless broadband plans, and offer more flexibility,” says Lifehacker. In a number of countries and markets, mobile [...]

In the U.S. market, the cost of using mobile voice has declined, whitle the cost of using fixed network voice has climbed since 2009, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, measured using the Consumer Price Index. Compared to 1997, mobile voice prices are down by about 55 percent. [...]

Spectrum scarcity long has been a key assumption of mobile or fixed wireless service provider business models. But scarcity is diminishing. Over the next few years, it is likely that mobile operator spectrum will grow substantially. The only issue is whether the available spectrum will triple, [...]

The cost of spectrum always matters for mobile operators in competitive markets. Prices of 5G spectrum in Italy, an outlier so far, were driven by a new competitor eager to get into the market. In that scenario, high prices are unwelcome, but the cost of breaking into the market at scale. [...]

Sales volumes of 5G smartphones will be lead by devices optimized for sub-6-GHz frequencies over the next several years, particularly for the 3.5 GHz to 4.5 GHz frequency range, predicts the Petrov Group, with devices using millimeter wave spectrum hitting an inflection point in 2022. source: [...]

Verizon has faced criticism in some quarters related to the performance of its millimeter wave fixed wireless service, which remains in early commercialization. The general tenor of the critique is that signal propagation is not good enough, and take rates too low, to support the business [...]

“To date, no adverse health effects have been established as being caused by mobile phone use,” says the World Health Organization. That might be worth reiterating, in light of concern in some quarters about whether 5G is “safe.” Keep in mind that power levels for cell phones and even cell [...]

How hard–or easy–will it be to sell smartphone 5G to consumers? Some now believe it might be harder than it was to sell 4G to 3G customers. Maybe not, others might argue. When 4G launched, it offered real-world speed improvement over 3G of at least 50 percent, and in some cases as [...]

“The top priority for spectrum auctions should be to support affordable, high quality mobile services,” the GSMA, a major mobile industry trade group argues. While noting that auctions are not always the best way to commercialize spectrum, they have generally proven more effective than [...]

Some technology innovations are important because they either keep an existing business model from breaking, or threaten to break business models. Low earth orbit satellite constellations, in principle, represent new competition to virtually every internet service provider on the planet. Cable [...]

The top three drivers for deploying systems and connectivity at the edge are operational: * analyzing and controlling devices * improving process speed/reducing latency issues * reducing data security risks The study of industrial internet of things attitudes conducted by ARC Advisory Service [...]

Lower frequency spectrum is better for coverage, while higher frequency spectrum is better for capacity, and mobile service providers need both. That will be as true in the 5G era as it has been in the 3G and 4G eras. And most of the demand for capacity happens at home and at work. “Remember, [...]