Steve Zecola

World's Biggest WiMax Bet

Why no facts, sir?

As it turns out, there is plenty of customer research that shows a large percentage of customers want anywhere, anytime broadband service - in the home, around the neighborhood and when traveling. Also, the price point for rapid adoption is well above the documented costs.

Those costs are below the cost structure of the replaced services, which taken together with the demand is a proven formula for success.

Please recognize that LTE and WiMax, while similar in technology, attack the market from totally different customer entry points. WiMax operators will be bundled-oriented from the get-go with lesser emphasis on mobility, while LTE operators compete heavily on mobile coverage.

The two camps will not compete directly for close to 10 years, given the starting points, the relative opportunitities and the incentives of the parent organizations.

But rest happy, the market is big enough for both, and LTE equipment will capture a much bigger market share than WiMax equipment.