The emergence of new standards will result in a dynamic rate of growth for Fixed Wireless Broadband (FWB), reports In-Stat/MDR. Traditionally, a lack of standards has hampered the development of FWB systems, as the proprietary nature of FWB technology kept the cost high, and limited interoperability between different vendors. However, the emergence of FWB-specific standards like 802.16 and 802.20 will help to grow FWB in its three main applications — last mile connectivity, network backhaul and private networking. As a result, the market will grow from $558.7 M in 2003 to over $1.2 B by the end of 2007.

“The need for FWB is already there, with the existence of areas that have yet to be reached by common wireline broadband technologies and those that lack basic copper infrastructure,” says Daryl Schoolar, a senior analyst with the high tech market research firm. “These emerging standards will merely give this market the extra boost that it has needed.” Resulting growth will come from more than just low cost customer/small business Internet access. Market drivers for emerging FWB applications, such as cellular backhaul and metro Ethernet, along with private networking, will play important roles.

In-Stat/MDR also feels that:

  • While the 802.20 standard does deal with some issues that were not originally addressed by 802.16, it will remain a distant second to 802.16 through 2007. This comes from 802.16’s advantage of being first to market, and the forth-coming 802.16e standard support for end-user mobility.
  • 802.16 will benefit from the WiMAX forum and its strong member base. According to WiMAX, its members generate over 75 percent of all fixed wireless broadband equipment sales.
  • In the third world, the real benefit of 806.16 will not be so much from data delivery, but from its support of voice.

The report, “WiMAX: 802.16 Brings Standards to Fixed Wireless Broadband,” provides an overview of the FWB infrastructure market. The report covers not only the market drivers for FWB, but also the role 802.16 and WiMAX will have in its future growth. Also found in the report is coverage of 802.20. This report includes five-year forecasts for CPE, point-to-multipoint and point-to-point equipment. The forecasts show both unit shipments and infrastructure revenue by wireless standard (802.16, 802.20, 802.11 and others). For more information, contact: Courtney McEuen at (281) 246-4668, or e-mail:cmceuen@reedbusiness.com.