14 DAY TRIAL // Wireless operators all around the world are expected to move towards the HSPA+ technology before adopting the Long Term Evolution standard, a recent article from Visant Strategies notes. According to the research firm, LTE will become the dominant 4G mobile technology, only that this will happen in the second half of this decade, as soon as carriers start adopting it massively.
“HSPA+ is expected to be the dominant form of mobile broadband internet for the next five to ten years especially since LTE-oriented spectrum is being slowly released throughout the world,” said Andy Fuertes of Visant Strategies. “Carriers will need to deploy LTE to remain competitive in many cases, but today HSPA+ is an attractive choice to solve the smart phone capacity crunch many operators face due to its relatively cheaper investment.”
The “3.5G and 4G 2010: The Move to Worldwide Mobile Broadband” report from Visant Strategies, the roll-out of LTE networks around the world will gain momentum starting with 2014, even if major carriers will already have 4G networks deployed using the LTE technology. Moreover, the research firm also notes that WiMAX too will remain strong as a 3.5 GHz fixed/portable platform, but that HSPA+ and LTE will appeal more to operators as they can be used on traditional 3.5 GHz bands over the long term.
“By 2015 the 3.5G/4G subscriber distribution will consist of HSPA+ with over half of all 3.5G and 4G subs, LTE with about one-third and mobile WiMAX accounting for close to one-tenth of all 3.5G and 4G subs worldwide,” said Larry Swasey of Visant Strategies. “Backhaul in all of the advanced wireless networks needs to be beefed up as well in order to take real advantage of 3.5G and 4G.”
The Visant Strategies report also provides an insight on annual shipments and revenues through 2015 for LTE, WiMAX and HSPA+ devices, base stations and femtocells, while also detailing subscribers and revenues forecasts. In addition, it also includes 3.5G/4G users by region, along with device shipments and revenues through 2015, and more.