The cellular area is dealing with some rising pains. Dash and Clearwire are attempting to maneuver into a brand new market. AT&T is opposed. Wait, perhaps AT&T is confused?

In a latest interview with USA Immediately’s Leslie Cauley, AT&T’s new CTO, John Donovan, says the corporate is on the look out for a expertise to deliver AT&T’s community into the longer term. A probable candidate, from the CTO himself, is WiMAX:

WiMax can also be low-cost to put in and keep. Donovan says WiMax might turn out to be useful in some U.S. markets, significantly rural areas the place it’s changing into prohibitively costly to keep up copper.

However isn’t AT&T against WiMAX? Isn’t AT&T petitioning the FCC to disclaim the pending WiMAX merger of Dash’s XOHM and Clearwire? This RCR Wi-fi article by Jeffrey Silva has extra background on the corporate’s assertion to the FCC, in the event you’re not already accustomed to the scenario, however the lengthy and wanting it’s that AT&T doesn’t need the deal to undergo.

Let’s assessment why AT&T could be against the Dash/Clearwire merger and why they need a bit of the motion themselves:

• “AT&T has a considerable portfolio of two.three GHz spectrum within the U.S. and should cowl 25 p.c of the inhabitants by July 2010.” – Fierce Wi-fi
• WiMAX could be a great way to make the most of this spectrum and take the corporate’s legacy community into the longer term.

This complete scenario jogs my memory of the opposite latest fearful responses to new expertise. When an organization has a vested curiosity in an previous expertise and tries to keep up management – even regardless of technological developments.

Take Verizon’s continued assault on Wi-Fi: Does Verizon actually suppose notebooks and each different web gadget will cease coming with Wi-Fi? And can Linux disappear as a result of different Working System suppliers say it’s not good?

When a brand new, higher, quicker, cheaper expertise involves market there’ll all the time be concern. Telecommunication firms have billions invested in antiquated applied sciences. The general public mustn’t need to undergo as a result of these firms have locked themselves into closed expertise paths. I don’t need their model of the Web on my telephone, I need the Web!! The excellent news is that when a big firm is scared of a expertise there’s a cause for it. Again to “Higher, Sooner, Cheaper.”

What do you suppose is motivating AT&T? As Dash begins to battle again, and debunk a number of the causes for opposing the merger, the place does this depart us? AT&T: Buddy or Foe?

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