Spectrum, Regulatory, Security Issues Could Affect WiMAX Rollout
Despite excitement over WiMAX, its role in the wireless market is “debatable,” the Organization for Economic Cooperation & Development (OECD) said Tues. The technology - - not widely used anywhere -- raises questions regarding spectrum, regulation and security, said Taylor Reynolds of the OECD’s Science, Technology & Industry directorate. It’s also sparking new arguments about net neutrality, said Reynolds, who wrote the report on WiMAX’s implications for competition and regulation.
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WiMAX’s main problem is spectrum, Reynolds told us. It operates in the unlicensed 2.4 GHz band, but agreement is elusive on whether it should sit in the same frequency, in the licensed 3G band or elsewhere. OECD govts. are trying to decide how to harmonize Wi-Fi spectrum with WiMAX, he said.
Another problem is that some initial WiMAX certifications will use the 3.5 GHz band, Reynolds said. In many OECD countries, however, applications in that band must be fixed to the home and not mobile. The OECD urged those restrictions be lifted because WiMAX likely will see use as a longer-range version of Wi-Fi, he said. The fixed version will be used to reach rural areas, while applications in the 3.5 GHz range will provide mobility in cities.
WiMAX could encourage port-blocking of stand-alone voice and video operators competing with WiMAX operators, Reynolds said. Some non-OECD nations -- notably Panama and Egypt -- tried blocking Web ports to keep fixed-line telcos’ customers from switching to VoIP. Port-blocking has emerged in the OECD as ISPs try to stop clients from accessing competing services, the report said. WiMAX will give the debate over net neutrality -- that is, whose data get Web priority -- a twist, Reynolds said. Arguments over port-blocking no longer will be simply about fixed networks but also about wireless networks.
Security is as much a concern in WiMAX as it was in early Wi-Fi applications, Reynolds said. When Wi-Fi rolled out, equipment makers seeking to make the technology easy for consumers to set up turned off its Wired Equivalent Privacy encryption system. The difficulty of turning the security features back on created “huge security holes,” he said. A crucial policy matter govts. must address with WiMAX is whether to encourage providers to provide secure encryption, he said.
WiMAX gear could spur privacy concerns by “enabling wireless surveillance over long distances without consent,” OECD said. Streaming video in cars could distract drivers, and radio transmitting devices might prove harmful to kids.
One of WiMAX’s most interesting aspects is its overlap with many existing communications networks in speed and coverage, the report said. WiMAX, viewed as a possible competitor to fixed broadband lines, also could encroach on mobile telephony and data services markets that mobile operators now serve. It can partially substitute for Wi-Fi, the report said.
3G could pose a significant threat to WiMAX, OECD said. Mobile operators have shown scant interest in the standards- based technology, preferring to upgrade their networks to compete with it. Some people say WiMAX could be a mobile replacement. Reynolds said he believes it will turn out to be a complementary technology. WiMAX will “fill in the gaps” but won’t take 3G’s place, he said. That doesn’t mean the various technologies “won’t step on each others’ feet a little,” Reynolds said.