LTE Watch: Qualcomm's Next-Gen Bid in India

LR Mobile News Analysis Dan Jones, Mobile Editor 3/12/2010

A broadband wireless access (BWA) spectrum auction in India could spark a showdown between US supporters of different pre-4G technologies, in this week's rundown of Long Term Evolution (LTE) news.

Qualcomm Inc. (Nasdaq: QCOM) could be gearing up to bid in the coming BWA auction in India next year, according to the Hindu Business Line. The paper, citing industry sources, says Qualcomm is looking for carrier partners and "exploring the possibility of forming a consortium for the bidding."

The paper believes that any Qualcomm move could force Intel Corp. (Nasdaq: INTC) into the BWA fray. The PC chipmaker continues to be the major vendor interested in supporting global WiMax deployments.

No surprise here, but LTE could mean the end of unlimited data plans for Verizon Wireless . "As much data as you can consume is the big issue that has to change," CTO Tony Melone tells The Wall Street Journal, a comment that isn't making bloggers happy. Melone has, however, consistently said that the carrier can't sustain all-you-can-eat data plans since 2008. (See Verizon Mandates 3G Data Plans.)

Speaking of Verizon and LTE, is Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. (Korea: SEC) the company most likely to be supplying Verizon with its first phone using the new technology? It's a definite possibility. Consider that Samsung is already working with Verizon on test devices for LTE and has developed dongles and even a netbook outfitted with the technology.

Telia Company is planning to update its LTE network, claiming that users in Central Stockholm might see top download speeds of 80 Mbit/s by the spring. The upgrade is part of the carrier's plan to deploy LTE in 25 more locations in Sweden this year.

Alcatel-Lucent (NYSE: ALU) is promising to anounce "ground-breaking enhancements" to its LTE platform in a press conference next Thursday. Stay tuned!

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— Dan Jones, Site Editor, Light Reading Mobile

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