WCAI Symposium @ 4G World Wraps Up with FCC Keynote, Policy Summit

Welcome to the third and final day of the WCAI International Symposium @ 4G World!

Today we are going to explore some of the key regulatory and policy issues facing the wireless broadband industry in the United States. Seven months into the implementation of the FCC's National Broadband Plan, we will look at the progress made on meeting the established benchmarks and address such policy issues as network neutrality and new spectrum availability.

Kicking off the WCAI Broadband and Wireless Policy Summit today, FCC officials will deliver a keynote address on unleashing new spectrum for wireless broadband. Phoebe Yang and Julius Knapp of the FCC will discuss the agency's plans and progress toward reaching the goal of making available an additional 500 MHz of spectrum over the next ten years that is suitable for mobile and fixed broadband use.

Moving on, we will hold three regulatory panels that will feature who-is-who in the industry and government, including former FCC Chairman Kevin Martin of Patton Boggs; John Leibovitz of the FCC; Bob Quinn, Hank Hultquist and Joan Marsh of AT&T; Jonathan Snyder of KeyOn and Joseph Sandri of FiberTower. The sessions will be moderated by reporters from Politico and TR Daily and an analyst from Medley Global Advisors.

We hope you'll enjoy today's program and look forward to the day filled with dynamic discussions, new information and networking opportunities!

WCAI Honors Best in Industry and Government with Annual Awards

Recognizing achievements of some of the brightest minds in the industry and government, WCAI last night presented its annual awards at the Networking Dinner held as part of the WCAI International Symposium @ 4G World. The Government Leadership Award went to Julius Knapp, who heads the Office of Engineering and Technology at the FCC. Dr. Mohammad Shakouri, Corporate VP, Innovation and Marketing at WCAI member Alvarion was presented with the Innovation Achievement Award. Dr. Vinton Cerf VP & Chief Internet Evangelist at WCAI member Google was recognized with the Industry Service Award.

Since becoming OET Chief at the FCC in 2006, Julie Knapp has worked to unleash new spectrum for wireless broadband and improve the utilization of existing spectrum. Mr. Knapp spearheaded the DTV white spaces proceeding to create an entirely new ecosystem for advanced unlicensed devices. He also created the unique, light licensing regime in the 3.65 GHz band and pioneered the power spectral density approach to power limits in the 700 MHz and other bands.

"Julie's contributions during his time as Chief of OET are alone deserving of recognition -- but they are only a part of Julie's legacy," said WCAI President Fred Campbell when presenting the award. "Julie has been with the FCC for 36 years, and has held numerous leadership roles in the OET during that time. From my own experience working with Julie at the FCC, I know that nobody works harder and nobody cares more about the role that engineering and technology play in the agency's work."

Presenting the award to Mo Shakouri, Mr. Campbell said: "Mo has been instrumental in growing WiMAX into a multi-billion dollar industry, and he is widely recognized as a global voice for 4G technologies. He has also been a voice for innovation at Alvarion, a global 4G communications leader with the industry's most extensive customer base. Mo is truly an innovation leader in every sense of the word."

Last but not least, WCAI was honored to recognize Vint Cerf, one of the fathers of the Internet, for his distinguished industry service. Mr. Cerf's achievements are numerous and include the development of the first commercial email system connected to the Internet, and funding and formation of ICANN from the start. During his time at Google, Mr. Cerf has become well-known for his predictions on how technology will affect future society, including such areas as artificial intelligence, the advent of IPv6 and the transformation of the television industry and its delivery model.

We congratulate the honorees and thank them for their tireless work and contribution to the success of the wireless broadband industry!

WCAI to Hold Annual Spring Summit April 6-7, 2011 in Washington, DC

Building on success of the annual events WCAI has hosted for almost two decades, we announced today that we will hold our long-running and highly-successful annual Spring Summit on April 6-7, 2011 in Washington, DC. We look forward to providing yet another opportunity for our members and others within the wireless broadband ecosystem to get together and share experience about what it takes to run a successful business in today's constantly changing environment.

The Summit will bring together high-level executives from leading operators, vendors and system integrators, as well as government officials and media representatives. Industry experts will examine operational, technical and regulatory challenges companies face as they are rolling out next-generation networks and services in the United States and beyond. Speakers will present on topics ranging from operator business models, to infrastructure and device availability, to services and applications.

WCAI has a distinguished track record of attracting some of the brightest minds in the industry to our annual events. WCAI's most recent Summer Summit 2010 featured an FCC workshop on the National Broadband Plan, a keynote address by Clearwire EVP Gerry Salemme on what it takes to bring 4G to America, and a presentaton by Motorola Networks CTO Bill Payne on the WiMAX migration paths to 802.16m or TD-LTE.

We look forward to reconnecting with old friends and welcoming new faces to the WCAI Spring Summit 2011, as we work to create one place for industry stakeholders and regulators to learn, network and succeed!

WCAI Launches L@Net Group to Promote 4G Deployments at 2.5 GHz in Latin America

A group of Latin American licensees operating in the 2.5 GHz BRS spectrum band announced the formation of an alliance today to promote the usage of the band for 4G networks and services in the region. Operating under the WCAI umbrella, L@Net, which stands for Latin American Networking, was created to encourage innovation, promote market opportunities, bring investment, facilitate 4G interoperability and roaming, and develop strategies for harmonized regulations in the region.

L@Net brings together more than 20 operators from nine countries, including Mexico, Honduras, Venezuela, Ecuador, Paraguay, Bolivia, Brasil, Argentina and Chile. The group's founding members are Ansitel (Mexico), Neotec (Brasil) and Multivision (Bolivia).

"We welcome L@Net members to the WCAI and look forward to working with Latin American operators to leverage the sucess we've seen in other countries and encourage 4G network deployments in the 2.5 GHz band in the region," said WCAI President & CEO Fred Campbell.

L@Net Summit Highlights the Second Day of WCAI International Symposium @ 4G World

Welcome to the second day of the WCAI International Symposium @ 4G World!

Today is all about our international members, as we are zeroing in on one of the fastest-growing wireless broadband markets in the world, Latin America. Whether you are a local operator in search of financing for your future deployments, or an international vendor looking to establish your presence in this promising land, the L@Net Summit is the place to be.

During the Summit, we will look at the current regulatory environment in the 2.5 GHz, 3.5 GHz and other major 4G bands in Latin America and provide an update on the upcoming spectrum auctions for the next-generation technology. We will also highlight some of the available options for financing 4G network deployments and examine alternative funding opportunities in the region.

The day will wrap up with the WCAI's Annual Networking Dinner that will feature an operator discussion on building a business case for WiMAX and LTE in the TDD spectrum. Participating in the discussion will be executives from leading internatioal and U.S. operators, including China Mobile, Enforta (Russia) and DigitalBridge Communications.

See you at the L@Net Summit!

WCAI Kicks Off Symposium @ 4G World with 3.65 GHz Channel Plan Announcement

WCAI kicked off its annual International Symposium @ 4G World today with the announcement of a significant step toward unlocking the potential of the 3.65 GHz band. The announcement came at the day-long 3.65 GHz Summit that WCAI is holding today to examine the remaining technical and regulatory challenges facing the band, look at the business models that proved successful and discuss the ways to maximize return on investment.

After months of tireless work and multiple iterations, the WCAI's 3.65 GHz Working Group today adopted and released the 3.65 GHz Channel Plan to minimize harmful interference among operators in the band. The plan is part of the 3.65 GHz Best Practices that the Working Group has been developing since it launched last November. It is the result of collaboration among leading 3.65 GHz vendors and operators both in the U.S. and abroad.

"We feel that this channel plan is an example of the type of work that can be accomplished through collective efforts and within the WCAI to facilitate future commercial successes in the band," said Jason Lazar of KeyOn Communications, who chairs the WCAI 3.65 GHz Working Group.

Still ahead are three days filled with valuable content and numerous networking opportunities. Those who are interested in learning about key regulatory issues, investment strategies and wireless broadband network deployments in one of the world's fastest-growing markets -- Latin America -- should not miss the L@Net Summit WCAI will host tomorrow, Oct. 19. Also tomorrow, WCAI will honor some of the best minds in the industry with annual awards and host an operator discussion on building a business case for WiMAX and LTE in the TDD spectrum at the WCAI's Annual Networking Dinner. The third and final day of the Symposium will feature the FCC keynote address, followed by the WCAI Broadband and Wireless Policy Summit.

Still Waiting for a Reason to Apply Open Internet Regulations to Mobile Broadband

In its comments on the FCC’s recent Public Notice asking whether open Internet regulations should apply to mobile broadband, WCAI explodes the myth that open Internet regulations are necessary to subsidize mobile device and applications makers.
WCAI demonstrates in its comments that the device and applications segment of the mobile market is a hotbed of innovation, competition, and industry growth:

• There are at least 33 companies manufacturing more than 630 unique devices for the U.S. market.
• There are currently 11 companies producing OS for the mobile devices segment, none of whom is vertically integrated with a mobile broadband service provider.



• Entirely new types of devices are being created, including the Apple iPad and the Kind e-reader.
• The mobile applications market is experiencing annualized growth rates of up to more than 500 percent.




The data presented by WCAI clearly indicates that there is intense innovation and competition in the applications and devices segments and that there is no discernable market failure in these segments.

Open Internet proponents nevertheless believe regulations are necessary to ensure applications entrepreneurs can “innovate” without “first seeking the permission” of a network operator. In the absence of some market failure, however, “seeking permission” is merely a euphemism for paying market-based rates for use of the network. And there is no basis for believing that device and applications developers are unable to fully participate in the mobile market.

The argument that mobile network operators should be subsidizing mobile applications providers is nonsensical given the relative entry costs of these two market segments. The cost of entry into the applications market is so low that an entrepreneur can earn a living as an independent mobile software developer working out of the home. In comparison, Clearwire’s entry into the mobile broadband service provider market has required billions of dollars in capital. Given this huge disparity, it seems clear that, if the Commission were to subsidize mobile broadband investment, it ought to subsidize investment in the network – and not in devices and applications.