Since it’s Nov. 1, time for a new map — and the one on the Clear.com website now shows Chicago “in the green” of Clearwire services, while adding Dallas/Fort Worth to the list of cities with service in Texas.

In North Carolina, the cities of Charlotte, Raliegh and Greensboro are also now listed as "live," so it looks like Clearwire should be able to make good on its promise to step up subscriber numbers in Q4, simply by having lots more markets selling services.

The big ones, however, are Chicago and Dallas — two huge metro areas where Clearwire will see how it fares against existing service providers. In Chicago, Clearwire also has its first true “commuter” city, since thousands there ride the rails every day, to and from work, play, school and in just general getting-aroundness. Will WiMAX’s ability to connect while mobile make a big impression? We are only now just going to find out.

We’ll have some more thinking on Clearwire market launches later this week. And yes, the launches mean that Sprint’s 4G services are available there too. Meanwhile, more detail from the Chicago maps below.

© 2009 MuniWireless. All Rights Reserved.

Market research and consulting company JBB Research which specializes in the mobile and telecommunications industry, today published its latest report, “The U.S. Mobile Web Market: Taking Advantage of the iPhone Phenomenon,” which provides the first industry-wide look at mobile web strategies from the handset, carrier, mobile OS, and mobile browser standpoints.

JBB Research predicts a robust growth in mobile web usage in the U.S. given the increasing openness in mobile networks, the growing popularity of smartphones (e.g. iPhone 3G S, Palm Pre, BlackBerry Storm, etc.), unlimited data plans, and mobile app stores. The FCC’s net neutrality plan could become a game changing factor as we could see the emergence of a truly “open” mobile internet, which will spur innovation in the U.S. mobile web space.

With over 20% of Americans surfing the web via their cell phone today, the mobile web market has now reached a tipping point. By 2013, JBB Research expects the mobile web to become one of the most popular types of mobile data services in the U.S. after SMS, with almost 50% of all U.S. wireless subscribers or roughly 150 million Americans using such service, against 18% at the end of 2008.

• The introduction of  more  advanced  and affordable 3G smartphones embedded with wide screens, touch screen UIs, faster networks (e.g. LTE, WiMAX), one-touch access to mobile web services, and full browsing technologies (e.g. Gecko, WebKit, Opera, etc), supporting AJAX JavaScript-x and Flash, will  be among the key drivers for mobile web consumption.
• By 2013, mobile users will be able to enjoy a full mobile web experience across various platforms (Cell phone, PC, Laptop, digital camera, PND, etc), network types (e.g. 3G, LTE, WiMAX, WiFi, etc.), and business models (e.g. subscription-based, ad-based revenue model, a-la-carte), and with the best QoS anytime anywhere.
• By the end of the forecast period, a new generation of Google Chrome-type mobile browsers able to push more capable web-based mobile applications is likely to emerge, which should enhance the mobile web experience and further drive mobile web usage.
• By the end of 2013, the total U.S. mobile web revenue will reach a total of $23.6 billion, up from $5.5 billion in 2008, representing a CAGR of 34.0%.

This 50-page report analyzes the U.S. mobile web ecosystem, the key players, business models, future drivers, and key issues/inhibitors in the U.S. mobile web space. It also assesses and ranks the mobile web strategy of the handset vendors, carriers, mobile OS providers, and mobile browser vendors, and provides specific recommendations to some of the leading companies featured in this report.  It also assesses and ranks the leading media adaptation companies and vendors for touchscreen interface technologies.

Some of the companies profiled and mentioned in this report include Apple, Android/Google, RIM, LG, Samsung, Nokia, HTC, Sony Ericsson, Palm, Motorola, Qualcomm, Microsoft/Yahoo, AT&T, Verizon Wireless/Alltel, T-Mobile USA, Sprint Nextel/Virgin Mobile USA, U.S. Cellular, Leap Wireless, MetroPCS, Bolt, Opera, Novarra, Mozilla/Firefox, ACCESS, Skyfire, Adamind/Mobixell, Vantrix, Vidiator, Volantis, Synaptics, Balda, Cypress, Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, uLocate, Sidebar, etc.

Who should buy this report? People who want to answer the following questions:

- Who are the leading players and services in the U.S. mobile web market?
- Which companies are currently lagging behind the leading players in the U.S. mobile web market?
- What are the future mobile web services/content likely to be?

- How is the mobile browser likely to evolve over time?
- What are the current and future key drivers in the U.S. mobile web market?
- Which key issues and inhibitors will need to be overcome before the U.S. mobile web market reaches its full potential?
- Which business and pricing models should we expect to see in the U.S. mobile web market?
- Which strategy toward mobile web content/services market are the leading players likely to adopt?

Who would be interested in this research?
Chief Marketing Officers, financial analysts, product managers, entrepreneurs, engineers, Heads of R&D.

Which types of companies should buy this report?
Wireless carriers, handset vendors, startups, wireless infrastructure providers, VC/Private equity firms, investment banks, hedge funds.

Price for the report (50 pages): $2,500. To buy this Report, click on the Buy Now button below. The Report will be sent to you in PDF format.

© 2009 MuniWireless. All Rights Reserved.

Go to the Alphimax website, register (free) and launch the PtP Estimator page (see screenshot above).

• Choose your regulatory domain (FCC North America, Europe, etc.).
• Set the global positioning coordinates of the sites you wish to connect. Set the coordinates for Site A, then do the same for Site B.
• Set the height of the buildings or towers where the antennae will be located.
• Specify the frequencies you will use and the expected bandwidth usage.
• State whether you will use integrated or external antennae.
• You can select all manufacturers or choose one vendor (at the moment, Alphimax has data only from Motorola and Alvarion but they are adding other vendors).
• Select the type of terrain, climate, measurement units (imperial or metric).

When you are finished, you will see the results (screenshot below):

I spoke yesterday to Rafi Cohen from Alphimax. Rafi, who worked in the past for Alvarion, explained that the tool is designed to save service providers, engineers, municipal planning departments and utilities time and money. Right now there is no easy-to-use, web-based tool that gives people a way to estimate point to point links between two sites and an overview of vendor offerings. They are adding more vendors to the list (currently the choices are limited to Motorola and Alvarion) to give people a better summary of what’s available on the market.

Check out the PtP Estimator. It works with Google Earth, which is incredibly mesmerizing and addictive. I found myself putting PtP links between buildings, hills and mountains!

© 2009 MuniWireless. All Rights Reserved.

* PG&E’s ’smart meters’ make dumb mistakes

* ‘Smart meters’ or cunning PG&E thieves?

* Smart meters are key to a clean energy future

* Smart consumers trump smart technology

PG&E says that the higher utility bills were not caused by defective meters but by the hot weather:

But PG&E has already tested many customers’ smart meters – made by General Electric and Landis+Gyr and networked by Silver Spring Networks – and have not found any problems with how they’re working, PG&E spokesman Denny Boyles said Wednesday. Rather than malfunctioning meters, PG&E thinks the higher bills have come from its two rate hikes in the past 12 months, plus a hot summer that led to many Central Valley residents cranking their air conditioners to beat the heat, Boyles said.

This controversy should be of interest to many municipalities and utilities that are installing wireless smart meters. People are already very suspicious of utility companies and they are also unfamiliar with smart meter technology. Many view the new meters as just another attempt by the utilities to fleece them. The Bakersfield saga continues . . .

* * * * * * *

Get this new report now:

The ‘WiMAX Band’ (2.5 GHz): Characteristics, Technology, Major Spectrum Holders in the BRS-EBS Service and Prospects for Auction 86

© 2009 MuniWireless. All Rights Reserved.

Actually let’s play a different game here, one called “Spot the Irony” in paragraph above. Here are two things you need to know:

• Cisco requires you to download the game to your computer.
• The game only works on Windows.

Enter your comments in the box below.

Oh, by the way, there’s a trailer of the game, but it’s totally useless. Sigh.

© 2009 MuniWireless. All Rights Reserved.

Miami Beach is one of the few cities that offer free citywide Wi-Fi service. Others have abandoned their projects after private companies such as EarthLink left the business. Municipalities, such as St. Cloud in Florida, are struggling to maintain free Wi-Fi access in the face of budget cuts. St. Cloud’s city council had initially voted to shut down the public access side of the network, but fierce opposition from residents, many of whom use the network because they cannot afford to pay for Internet access, has forced the city to keep the network open.

* * * * * * * *

Report on the WiMAX Band (2.5 GHz) after the FCC auction is now available. Click here to find out more and to purchase the report.

© 2009 MuniWireless. All Rights Reserved.

Actually as we go into next year, when we expect to launch a number of multi-mode 3G/4G devices, which we think will be very hot, those will carry some significant subsidies as well. So I think it’s a trend that’s kind of with the industry to stay. But it’s not necessarily bad for the industry health, it just changes the economics in that the subsidy expenses will be higher.

Later on in the call, Hesse seemed optimistic that (like Clearwire), Sprint’s 4G sales would pick up toward the end of the year as bigger markets like Chicago and Dallas go live:

And also, very importantly, as I mentioned in my comments, it is too early for it to move the needle a lot but it’s going to give us momentum, we hope, into 2010 and that’s 4G. We have launched 17 markets but most of the POPs for 2009 will come near the end of the quarter, but that’s giving us some good lift in mobile broadband, in particular in those markets. And as we expand the device line up in 4G—dual-mode 4G/3G—it will really put us in a good position, going forward, kind of leaving 2009 and going into 2010. So we think 4G and dual-mode devices, as they come on board, will start to give us some lift going forward.

Hesse later noted that Sprint’s ability to resell WiMAX from Clearwire helps keep network capital expenditures (aka capex) off Sprint’s books (in case you forgot, that was one of the main reasons for Sprint to do the Clearwire merger):

The other thing I will say, is on for future in terms of capex, think of Clearwire, as well, as the next wave of capex requirements in the U.S., particularly on the post-paid side, is going to be building out 4G. And think of Clearwire as helping us almost cap, because we will still continue to improve coverage and increase capacity in our 3G network. But we can mitigate the amount of capital required for continued expansion of capacity in our 3G network with 4G. So as you are thinking about—it seemed like you thought our capex spending might be perhaps low going forward. A lot of that capex, the data capex, is being picked up on the Clearwire side.

© 2009 MuniWireless. All Rights Reserved.

“The digital dividend is a once in a lifetime opportunity to make ‘broadband for all’ a reality all over Europe and boost some of the most innovative sectors of our economy. Europe will only make the most of the digital dividend if we work together on a common plan. The Commission cooperated closely with EU countries, the European Parliament, industry and consumers’ representatives to prepare such a plan,” said Viviane Reding, EU Commissioner for Information Society and Media. “I call on EU countries to speed up the move to digital TV and to make it happen by 1 January 2012. I also urge national authorities to use the digital dividend in a pro-competitive way to open up the market for new operators and new services, maximising the impact on the economy. Only this will ensure the digital dividend is used to bring wireless broadband to parts of the EU where high-speed internet cannot be provided efficiently by other technologies.”

The digital dividend proposals adopted by the Commission requests the EU member states to complete the move to digital TV by 1 January 2012. Finland, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Sweden have already completed the move.

Under the Commission’s plan, the 790-862 MHz band (which allows wireless broadband services to penetrate walls, tree foliage and other hindrances better than higher spectrum bands) can be used to improve video streaming, voice, and other applications. The Commission is trying to harmonize the use of the 790-862 MHz band across the EU.

© 2009 MuniWireless. All Rights Reserved.

There will be a second round of funding, which will begin in February 2010. The agencies also plan to issue a Request for Information (“RFI”) to determine the procedures for the next round of funding.

© 2009 MuniWireless. All Rights Reserved.

Here are the official company press releases, one which talks about companion services offered through both Sprint and Comcast, and another that details Sprint and Clearwire plans only. A quick list is below:

Markets Clearwire Will Launch in November:
– Philadelphia (actually already selling services there)
– Chicago
– Dallas/Fort Worth
– San Antonio
– Charlotte, N.C.
– Greensboro, N.C.
– Raleigh, N.C.

December Launches:
– Seattle
– Honolulu
– Maui, Hawaii

Let it be known that we will volunteer to test the Maui service when it launches… anyone willing to sponsor our “fact-finding” trip?

No word yet on when Clearwire will officially retire the Xohm operations in Baltimore and start selling Clear services there. But if it happens before the end of the year, then Clearwire will get to its planned 25 new markets for 2009.

© 2009 MuniWireless. All Rights Reserved.