A few days ago, an article was very popular on the Internet, called "Dietly Nortel". It mentioned that one of the very important reasons is that the WiMax technology that Nortel invested its bet failed in the end, so Nortel died! So what the hell is this WiMAX? It's so powerful?
Today I will give you a brief introduction. WiMAX, the full name is Worldwide interoperability for Microwave Access, global microwave interconnection. The name is a bit long, and it has another name. It is much simpler, with only 5 numbers - 802.16. From the name 802.16, we can see the relationship between it and 802.11 ( wireless LAN , that is, Wi-Fi). Yes, WiMAX and Wi-Fi are both communication technology protocol standards defined by IEEE (Institution of Electrical and Electronics Industry).
Wi-Fi has been introduced before, which is wireless LAN technology, while WiMAX is metropolitan area network technology. In fact, it can be simply understood as WiMAX is an enhanced version of Wi-Fi. To what extent has it been strengthened? Wi-Fi can transmit at most several hundred meters without barriers, while WiMAX can transmit 50 kilometers in theory. In addition, it has the characteristics of high transmission rates and rich and diverse services. The leading brother of
WiMax is an IT giant, and the core is Intel, which can also be regarded as another evolutionary route. Based on wireless WiFi networks, many local areas have actually been covered. How can we achieve a larger range of wireless coverage? Metropolitan wireless must enter the telecommunications industry, and we must launch a new technical version based on the original 802.11, that is, 802.16!
In 2005, Intel, Nokia and Motorola jointly announced the development of the 802.16 standard to conduct interoperability testing of mobile terminal devices and network devices.
WiMAX is really powerful. It adopts many new technologies, such as OFDM orthogonal frequency division multiple access and MIMO multi-antenna.
With obvious technological advantages and broad market prospects, WiMAX quickly became the new favorite in the communications circle, greatly shaking the status of 3GPP and 3GPP2, and posing a substantial threat to the traditional three 3G standard . In order not to fall behind, when WiMax entered the mobile communications industry in 2005, Qualcomm spent $600 million to strategically acquire Flarion, a company specializing in the development of OFDM technology. In 2007, the UMB (Ultra-Mobile Broadband) plan was proposed to integrate CDMA, OFDM, and MIMO into the UMB standard, hoping to continue to maintain the advantages of CDMA.
Since WiMax is a technology evolved from WiFi, is WiMax an IT network or a telecommunications network? The components of the WiMax Forum (WiMax Forum) are complex and have their own ulterior motives. With no consensus, the industrial development is in chaos. In addition, the most critical issue is the compatibility of telecommunications equipment. Just as Qualcomm failed to cover the wide coverage of W-CDMA base station, LTE is compatible with WCDMA and uses existing base station supporting equipment, while WiMax base stations have to be built from scratch. What's more, LTE is a communication standard dominated by the telecom industry from beginning to end, and it's not the turn for IT giants like Intel to share this piece of cake.
As mentioned earlier, WiMAX is simply an enhanced version of Wi-Fi, so it is not actually considered a mobile communication technology, but is based on IP networks and is an "invasion" of IT technology into the telecommunications field. WiMAX technology leaders are Intel, IBM, Motorola, Nortel, and some North American operators. Intel and Motorola invested $900 million in the WiMAX project, which was considered a start. Immediately afterwards, US operators injected another $3 billion, which made the fire prosperous in an instant.
Now, the entire industry became even more exciting. A large number of WiMAX-related research papers have been published, and many companies have devoted themselves to the embrace of this so-called "3.5G" technology. Seeing that the situation is getting better, Beijing Electric is of course excited. Maybe WiMAX can completely counterattack traditional communications! This is the historical background of why Nortel has made every effort to bet! Except for mainland China, Asia has almost become the test field for WiMAX. WiMAX is deployed in Japan, South Korea, Malaysia , Philippines , etc. Taiwan has also bet on WiMAX and has issued multiple WiMAX licenses.Taiwan's Global Movement, Vimas Telecom, Yuanshi Telecom , Volkswagen Telecom, Datong Telecom, and Vida Chaoshun Telecom all obtained WiMAX licenses and were ready to do a big fight.
However, the negotiations between Qualcomm and WiMAX alliance ended in the end. In the end, all Qualcomm chips did not support WiMAX, and Intel did not foresee the rise of smartphones at that time, so there was no focus on developing mobile phone chips. Intel, who has the will but lacks strength, and a group of soy sauce parties under his command, can be imagined. So, this battle has actually been divided into a winning or losing position.
As expected, in the absence of industrial chain support, the situation of WiMAX took a sharp turn for the worse. Because network facilities cannot keep up, chip supply cannot keep up, industrial chain development is seriously insufficient, WiMAX's user experience is very poor, and the WiMAX camp has begun to collapse. By 2010, Intel, the largest pillar of WiMAX standard, could no longer hold on and announced the dissolution of the WiMAX department. The leader has run away, how can I play? Then, Nortel Canada, which turned to WiMAX, went bankrupt.
It’s not just Nortel that suffered heavy losses! In 2012, a Taiwanese operator invested more than $50 billion in one account and found that the WiMAX users of the six operators combined were less than 150,000! In short, the WiMAX camp completely lost this war, and WiMAX gradually faded out of our horizon. The future will be the world of IoT. Let’s meet on November 19-21, 2019, and meet on the 2019 (Third) Global Internet of Things Conference - Looking for Thinkers!
Statement: This article is the 76th chapter of the series "Insight - 1000 Questions on the Development of the Internet of Things", aiming to analyze and share the current development status and economic potential of the Internet of Things industry through a systematic and professional perspective. IOT Internet of Things, the Internet of Things, the Internet of Things.
Author: Wang Zhengwei Secretary-General of Zhongguancun Internet of Things Industry Alliance Chairman of the Global Internet of Things Conference Headline Account-Xinshehui and WeChat Move Yuan Shuai Authorized to release
