Vodafone 'quick-fix' plan to deliver broadband to rural Ireland

IrelandOffline_

Vodafone ‘quick-fix’ plan to deliver broadband to rural Ireland

http://www.telegeography.com/cu/article.php?article_id=28537&email=html

Vodafone Ireland has reportedly developed a ‘quick-fix’ solution that could deliver 3G wireless broadband services to 99% of rural Ireland, provided ComReg amends the cellco’s existing 2G concession, siliconrepublic.com reports citing the company’s strategy director Gerry Fahy. In an interview Fahy said: ‘Without these spectrum changes and making use of abundant 2G spectrum, we can’t deliver the services we’d like to. We’re anxious to see a re-farming of wireless spectrum in Ireland … We could today give 99% of the population access to 3G speeds, if we could use 3G on the old 2G networks’. Vodafone has approached the regulator asking it to consider rolling over its 2G licence for ten to 15 years to enable it to deliver high speed services without the government having to intervene.

Vodafone Ireland claims to be the Republic’s second largest broadband service provider with 190,000 fixed and mobile customers. The online journal notes that Vodafone recently signed a EUR17 million (USD23 million) deal with metropolitan area network (MAN) provider E-net to improve the operator’s 3G broadband capability throughout Ireland by bringing fibre to many of its national base stations.

drunkmonkey

how do you give 3G speeds on a 2G network, to 99% of the population quickly?

crawler

I suspect this is just lobbying for non refarming of 2G spectrum...

watty

This is serious mis-information.

yes 900MHz gives more range for 3G than a proper number of 2.1G cells.

But then the capacity / speed is 1/4 to 1/6th!

All it does is give improved 3G voice coverage, which IS extra capacity compared to GSM voice coverage.

They make about 150x as much revenue from voice per Euro spent by customer as from Data.

At 20 users per sector the current EDGE if upgraded to EDGE 2 actually gives BETTER data performance than 3G which on a GSM sized rural cell with 20 people in a sector is only about 50kbps average throughput per person.


Recycling of 2G spectrum for 3G is being lobbied by operators all over Europe, fuelled by Equipment Vendors that want to sell 3G kit and promise of extra Voice capacity.

It does NOTHING much for Data capacity and is a terribly shortsighted step.

watty

drunkmonkey wrote: »

how do you give 3G speeds on a 2G network, to 99% of the population quickly?

Switch off the GSM voice. Existing EDGE can provide MULTIPLE 240kbps channels outperforming HSPA in 5MHz of spectrum. The UpTo speed may be only 245K, but you can give that to 10 people at once. No 3G/CDMA breathing either. This can deliver twice 3G performance.


OR to get better performance with Up to 1.2Mbps for 20 people simultaneously:
Double, triple or quadruple the number of cells
Go to EDGE2
Switch off GSM voice
Switch off GPRS


3G/HSDPA is W-CDMA air interface. It's horribly inefficient and breathes badly. The quoted "wonder speeds" are for a SINGLE user in a cell with perfect signal.

http://www.radioway.info/comparewireless/CompareHSPAandFixed-v4.html


What you DON'T do is replace GSM gear with 3G/HSPA which was an obsolete pig from day 1.
3G/HSPA speeds are 50kbps both ways (dialup speed ) only "up to" 3.6, 7.2 or 14.4 with perfect signal, no voice calls and one user.

kmick

The only problem I see here is what they are delivering is not broadband. However this government are too stupid to care.

watty

IrelandOffline_ wrote: »

[In an interview Fahy said: ‘Without these spectrum changes and making use of abundant 2G spectrum, we can’t deliver the services we’d like to. We’re anxious to see a re-farming of wireless spectrum in Ireland …

The 900MHz 2G spectrum is VERY limited and should be combined with the nearby "digital dividend" 800MHz to give a DECENT chunk of spectrum for entry level Broadband via fixed Wireless. Or maybe SOME LTE.

Speed/Capacity is directly proportional to the Amount of Spectrum. 3G /HSPA is a fail for home or business broadband, it's only useful for Mobile devices, and even then is 1/2 to 1/4 performance of LTE.

There should be no new 3G allocations whatsoever. Not even on the 1800MHz GSM band. The 1800MHz would be better served by LTE if they want to move away from GSM on it.

900MHz current GSM is too valuable to waste on more Mobile. Let them build more 1.8G & 2.1G cells for their coverage, which also increases capacity.

Sponge Bob

wheeeeeeeee

spectrum grab

if they agreed to put a cell within 5km of every citizen then fine with me

The Cush

The process of reorganising the GSM900/1800 MHz to UMTS 3G/4G is well underway within the

• EU (see attached rscom08-94) starting with a request for an opinion to the RSPG in 2004 on WAPECS,

• ERO

• ComReg (Consultation - Liberalising the Use of the 900 MHz and 1800 MHz Spectrum Bands, Response to Consultation & Further Consultation, Submissions to Consultation, Report on UMTS Network Design and Cost and Invitation to Tender - Economic Advice)

.

drunkmonkey

some good insight there Watty,

one bit I don't understand, if they switch off voice on 2G to run data, what do they run their voice over...

Sponge Bob

I know the spectrum grab _background_ but am acutely aware of the lack of deliverables involved.

smellslikeshoes

I see no merit in this plan. This would do the exact same as what the NBS is already going to do. Would be a waste of spectrum.

watty

drunkmonkey wrote: »

some good insight there Watty,

one bit I don't understand, if they switch off voice on 2G to run data, what do they run their voice over...

They are under utilizing their 1.8GHz GSM. That's what is dishonest about this.

watty

Sponge Bob wrote: »

wheeeeeeeee

spectrum grab

if they agreed to put a cell within 5km of every citizen then fine with me

1km