Chips and Salsa IX:  HSPA Down Under

Since our last visit to Australia in May 2004 the average mobile broadband data rates in the country have increased by an order of magnitude, the typical Aussie subscriber usage per month has increased by an order of magnitude, and the minimum cost per data Megabyte has fallen by an order of magnitude.  To read this factoid in Signals Ahead is one thing, to experience it first hand in a commercial network with millions of subscribers is an entirely another thing all together.

In our most recent visit to Australia in early November we came armed with nine different HSPA devices, representing chipsets from six suppliers, including many devices that are not yet commercial.  It may seem a bit strange that we wanted to travel 25,262 kilometers to put these devices to the test, but we needed to ensure that the network we used would not be the bottleneck, and as many believe, Telstra’s Next G network is a best-in-class HSPA network that was more than worthy of the task.

Specific topics covered in this issue include the following:

The Network.  By all accounts Telstra’s HSPA network is best-in-class with support for Cat 10 devices, 2Mbps in the uplink, an ongoing transition to Ethernet backhaul and network coverage across 99% of the population.  HSPA+ looms on the horizon once devices become commercially available.

The Comparison.  Having used the showcase Mobile WiMAX network in Baltimore and a best-in-class HSPA network in the span of a one month interval, we are uniquely positioned to compare and contrast the two networks/technologies.

The Implications.  Given our assessment of the HSPA network there are a few hard, fast, and perhaps painful facts of life that will impact the addressable market for Mobile WiMAX and the timing of LTE.  A lot goes into launching a successful broadband wireless service offering, but first and foremost it takes a strong financial commitment from the operator.  This reality will prove challenging for Greenfield operators without deep pockets and the high hundreds of millions if not billions of dollars of capital required to build a truly nationwide network, regardless of the country.

Chipset/Device Test Results.  In advance of publishing HSDPA/HSUPA baseband chipset lab results in January, we had the opportunity to take many of these devices down to Australia to determine how the field results compare with the lab results.  We also use the device results to highlight the performance capabilities of the network.

Let’s go to the video.  Subscribers and guests are invited to view a 3 minute video that shows behind-the-scenes footage from our trip to Australia – shot via Telstra’s HSPA network.