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Intel and telcos left in virtual RAN limbo by rise of AI RAN
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2:35 PM Does anyone now doubt that LTE and other mobile broadband services could serve as cable or DSL replacements?
2:35 PM -- Outgoing Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE: VZ) CEO Ivan Seidenberg thinks that mobile broadband could be a "modest substitute" to traditional cable service, I think that if it is a cheap enough option and works decently then it will be much more than that. "I think on the margin there will be some substitution," Seidenberg said, adding that "in time, 4G will be a modest substitute" for cable, Wireless Week reports.
If you're anything like me, you might already be considering this modest proposal. I know I've been strongly thinking about cutting the cord recently; to be honest, my cable service is hanging on by a thread right now. I could keep the cellphone, watch the TV shows I like on Hulu, get a suitable mobile data plan, and use the cash for the stupidly expensive gym I've signed up for instead. [Ed note: Or you could just sit around watching the tube with a Shake Weight instead.]
Time Warner Cable Inc. (NYSE: TWC) is offering phone, Internet and cable TV for $125. The standard price for the combo service with premium channels like HBO thrown in is around $180. Even with just basic cable and Internet you pay $75 and then you get almost nothing worth watching.
In contrast, I could get a service like Clearwire LLC (Nasdaq: CLWR)'s Rover Puck service for $50 a month with unlimited data or Verizon Wireless 's LTE for $80 a month with a 10GB cap. This becomes especially tempting now that Mad Men is done.
I need to figure out whether either service will work well in my downstairs apartment, although, to be frank, my wired cable service can be flaky at times anyway. I don't play online multi-player games, so I don't feel like I need the horsepower that wired cable can offer, mobility is more important to me.
I'm also not quite sure yet whether I would bust through Verizon's 5GB or 10GB cap for LTE. I doubt it, but it would be nice to have the extra headroom if needed.
Nonetheless, I'm definitely thinking about this and I bet some of you are too, if you haven't cut the cord already.
— Dan Jones, Site Editor, Light Reading Mobile
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