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Thursday, Jun 14, 2007
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Telecommunications Info-Tech - Technology Industry & Economy - Industry Associations Block move for Wi-Max in 3G band: GSM operators Thomas K Thomas
Companies including Reliance Communication, Motorola, Intel and Nortel are pushing for including Wi-Max in the 3G band.
New Delhi June 13 After the war between proponents of GSM and CDMA technologies, there's a new battle between technologies brewing up in the telecom sector. The GSM based operators have shot off a note to the Department of Telecom (DoT) urging India to block an international proposal by promoters of Wi-Max technology to get it included in third generation wireless technologies frequency band.
Technology Neutrality
The GSM operators have said that unless it is proven beyond doubt that Wi-Max can operate in the 3G-frequency band without causing interference to existing services, the proposal should not be agreed to. The issue is being debated at the International Telecommunication Union, which is the global standards and regulatory body under the United Nations. India and other countries are expected to send in their views this month. The Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI) has told DoT that while GSM operators in the country fully support and endorse technology neutrality, the decision to include Wi-Max in the IMT 2000 frequency band (reserved for 3G wireless) should not be done in hurry.
Exhaustive Study
"We firmly believe that there should be a thorough technical evaluation process carried out in full seriousness so as to ensure that the existing systems are also compatible to work without any interference or else in a hurry we would jeopardise the new technology as well as cause avoidable hold up in the implementation of the existing IMT-2000 radio interfaces," COAI said. The inclusion of Wi-Max in the IMT 2000 would mean that the GSM operators would have to share the frequency bands in the 2000 Mhz band with Wi-Max operators at a time when they are themselves facing huge spectrum crunch. The COAI has contended that such a move could create interference with their service and therefore DoT should take a view only after conducting exhaustive study.
Technical Issues
The COAI has pointed out to various studies carried out by different countries and companies globally in this regard. The Chinese Evaluation Group Report, for instance, has said that based on current information it is difficult to conclude that Wi-Max can meet the requirements for IMT-2000. "A group of companies Deutsche Telekom AG, Ericsson, E-Plus Mobilfunk GmbH & Co KG, France Télécom, Hutchison UK Ltd, 3G, Mobilkom Austria AG, QUALCOMM, jointly submitted a report highlighting technical issues which must be addressed and satisfactorily resolved." COAI said. On the other hand, companies including Reliance Communication, Motorola, Intel and Nortel are pushing for including Wi-Max in the 3G band. The COAI has urged DoT to convene a meeting so that Indian views can be formalised before the June 18 deadline.
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