Qualcomm doubles down on Wi-Fi

Already a major supplier of Wi-Fi silicon, Qualcomm Technologies is looking to broaden its influence in the market with a new Wi-Fi 7-powered fiber gateway and a new cloud-based platform aimed at boosting the performance of the home wireless network for service providers and enterprise customers.

Qualcomm's new service-defined Wi-Fi platform hits on a theme that's become increasingly common in the broadband service provider arena. In addition to delivering speeds and feeds to the home on the access network, many operators have likewise shifted their focus to include cloud-powered systems that can orchestrate and analyze the condition of the home or business Wi-Fi network. In Qualcomm's case, the new platform also drills down to the application layer.

Though service providers are getting better at gaining command and control of Wi-Fi networks through internal work and via the deployment of other third-party systems, many of them still lack a high level of visibility into how services flow from their core and access the network all the way to the broadband gateway, Ganesh Swaminathan, VP and GM of Qualcomm's wireless infrastructure and networking business, said.

Qualcomm's new platform, he explained, will enable service providers to extend service level agreements to the Wi-Fi network and put them in position to program the gateway to deliver service in a more precise manner. That means operators can effectively improve the performance of the Wi-Fi connection, in areas such as latency, as network conditions change.

Related:Qualcomm goes big on Wi-Fi 7

"We look at traffic class along with service awareness and then classify, prioritize and schedule it on the air," Swaminathan said, noting that the platform is designed to work with multiple Wi-Fi standards, not just the latest version, Wi-Fi 7.

Syncing up the speeds on the access network hitting the home and within the home is now a "baseline," Swaminathan said. "Delivering just high-speed connectivity on a gateway is good, but it's not the new bar that we have to meet."

Qualcomm's move into this piece of the market will put the company in closer competition with companies such as Airties, DZS, Calix and Plume. Swaminathan said Qualcomm will use open APIs (application programming interfaces) to build a framework that can integrate with other cloud platforms that are already in use by service operators. Some customers are evaluating that type of scenario, Swaminathan said.

UPDATE:  Qualcomm clarified that it does indeed provide APIs and that it can integrate with existing solutions, but noted that Calix and Plume are among its customers, and are not considered competitors.

Related:Chipmakers swarming to Wi-Fi 7

Qualcomm's new software-based Wi-Fi management platform is agnostic in the sense that it can run on a range of access networks, including fiber-to-the-premises (FTTP), hybrid fiber/coax (HFC)/DOCSIS and fixed wireless access (FWA). But its latest move into the broadband gateway arena is fiber-focused.

Fiber-focused gateway

Taking aim at fiber initiatives focused on 10-Gig technology, Qualcomm also introduced a 10G Fiber Gateway Platform that supports Wi-Fi 7 and can be outfitted with the company's new service-defined Wi-Fi platform.

The general aim there is to transition the home broadband gateway from a connectivity-first footing to a more services-focused approach, Swaminathan said.

Qualcomm, which competes in the Wi-Fi chipset sector with companies such as Broadcom, MediaTek and MaxLinear, claims its new 10G fiber gateway is interoperable with most optical line terminals (OLTs), including pluggable modules that can support in-field upgrades as operators transition to technologies such as XGS-PON. Pluggables are also becoming important for cable operators as they deploy new distributed access nodes that can support multiple access technologies, including PON. That's also taking shape as traditional cable operators build out fiber networks in greenfield rural and edge-out deployments, or on a targeted basis on existing HFC networks.

Qualcomm's service-defined Wi-Fi platform is available now and the new gateway is sampling from a silicon standpoint. Swaminathan said Qualcomm expects customers – including service providers and enterprises – to start bringing the new products to market by next summer. Some will go with the full gateway or with Wi-Fi mesh and router devices with the new service-defined framework on board, he said.

Wi-Fi 7 wins

Qualcomm also announced a pair of service provider wins.

Charter Communications will tap Qualcomm tech to deploy Wi-Fi 7 capabilities on new routers slated to become available to Charter customers in 2024. Charter will enable management of those devices through its My Spectrum App.

Additionally, EE, BT Group brand/unit, has teamed with Qualcomm for future Wi-Fi 7 rollouts on the UK-based operator's new home broadband "Smart Hub," which is also set to debut sometime next year.