October 19th, 2008 by 
david 
Projects India WiMAX market potential including devices to be worth $13 billion by 2012 with a base of 27.5 million WiMAX users
WiMAX Forum Announces Plans for India-based Applications Lab at Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, third in the world after Taiwan and US
The WiMAX Forum® today highlighted activity in the burgeoning Indian market to illustrate the power of WiMAX technology and its meaningful effect on emerging markets. The first commercial technology specifically optimized for mobile broadband, WiMAX provides a scalable, cost-effective solution that is the strongest candidate to provide high-speed broadband internet across India. Given its true broadband performance capabilities, early availability, cost advantages, government support and the upcoming auctions relating to the 2.3/2.5 GHz frequency bands, the WiMAX Forum projects the Indian WiMAX market including devices will be worth $13 billion in 2012. This market projection takes into account 27.5 million WiMAX users, or 19 million WiMAX subscribers in 2012.
WiMAX allows subscribers access to all applications available over wired connections with the added advantage of mobility and portability. With the current influx of WiMAX-enabled mobile devices into the market, an emergence of new applications especially suited for mobile access is expected. Robust QoS and low latency make WiMAX especially well suited for real-time applications like VoIP, content streaming, online gaming, and vertical applications such as those for safety and surveillance. Broadcast applications can also be supported through the Multicast Broadcast Service. Because the Indian telecom sector operates in a volume-driven market, India is not only positioned to spur one of the world's largest broadband wireless markets, but also to support an ancillary ecosystem that will generate further employment, enhance development in semi urban & rural areas and lead towards true sustainability.
WiMAX Forum forecasts that by 2012 the Indian market will support 27.5 million WiMAX users representing approximately 20% of the global WiMAX user base.
"In India, WiMAX represents a win-win proposition, benefiting both network operators and subscribers at the same time," explains CS Rao, Chairman, WiMAX Forum India chapter. "Broadband penetration being low, the opportunity for operators to gain large numbers of subscribers through WiMAX is incredible. Any service provider with innovative service offerings, attractive devices and go-to-market plans that maximize the utility offered by WiMAX technology to price-sensitive Indian customers can use this ready and proven technology to quickly gain market share."
At a recent global industry event, Ron Resnick, President and Chairman of the WiMAX Forum referenced India as a leading example of WiMAX technology's potential on the world stage.
Citing the recent decision by India's Department of Telecommunications to allocate and auction WiMAX spectrum to the 2.3 and 2.5 GHz frequency bands, Resnick excited the audience with India's goal of connecting over one billion new customers.
"India currently has only 4.5 million broadband users out of a population of 1.2 billion people. And with these recent regulatory decisions, India joins other major developed nations such as the US, Japan, Korea, Taiwan, and Russia in freeing up prime spectrum for mobile WiMAX deployments," said Mr, Resnick, President and Chairman of the WiMAX Forum. "With the expected demand for WiMAX-enabled devices brought on by India's planned WiMAX deployments, WiMAX Forum will add an Indian certification lab to its existing network in 2009 to stay ahead of the demand for products in this region. This will be very important to the device-hungry Indian market, which can look forward to connected laptops, USB dongles, ultra-mobile PC's (UMPCs), mobile handsets, and mobile Internet devices (MIDs)."
WiMAX Forum predicts that major rollouts of WiMAX technology in India will have a tremendous positive effect on the nation's economy. According the Indian government, the Indian economy is currently growing at 9% year over year; in particular there are an additional 8-10 million mobile phone subscribers every month. WiMAX Forum predicts that widespread access to broadband will greatly increase economic productivity by laying the groundwork for important initiatives, such as distance learning, telemedicine and e-government.
India-Based WiMAX Forum Applications Lab
WiMAX Forum also announced that it is in the early stages of planning a WiMAX Applications Lab at the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi. With successful applications labs already running in Taiwan and the US, this third lab is set to add even more diversity to the group of developers already in the WiMAX fold. IIT Delhi has a functioning WiMAX test bed and serves as an ideal location to host this lab. Created with the backing of the Indian industry and DoT, this lab will focus on enhancing WiMAX quality of experience and WiMAX community services for underserved areas. IIT Delhi already has active programs examining IT Community services, including telemedicine, distance learning and e-government. These applications are of particular interest to the Indian market, and will be explored more fully through the creation of this lab.
"WiMAX is a powerful technology that is available today to provide Indian-society centric applications like telemedicine, distance education, e-governance, etc. for urban, suburban, and rural development," added Resnick. "Imagine students from rural India taking classes from far away institutions in their homes, or sick farmers being diagnosed by top-notch physicians hundreds of miles away - these applications can all be powered by WiMAX, and we are building the capacity to research and develop them here in India."
The Robust WiMAX Ecosystem
The WiMAX Forum is made up of more than 530 member companies who are committed to the success of the WiMAX standard. WiMAX Forum membership consists of 144 ecosystem content developers, 162 service providers, 92 silicon component manufacturers and 131 system vendors.
Currently more than 35 WiMAX Forum member companies produce WiMAX base stations, 30 companies provide PC Cards, USB modems, MIDs, and other personal devices, 25 companies provide chipsets and reference designs, and seven of the top eight global device manufacturers are developing WiMAX products.
WiMAX Forum Certified Mobile WiMAX products in the 2.3 GHz and 2.5 GHz bands were released this year. By the end of the year WiMAX Forum expects to certify products within the 3.5 GHz band as well. The WiMAX Forum estimates that by 2011 there will be more than 1,000 Mobile WiMAX Certified products.
There are currently 407 deployments of WiMAX networks in more than 133 countries. The constant growth in number of WiMAX deployments across the world has led WiMAX Forum to release an interactive online mapping tool to aid people in understanding the breadth of the ecosystem. It can be found at www.wimaxmaps.org. The WiMAX Forum also expects to have a comprehensive global roaming plan available to operators in early 2009.
For more information on the WiMAX ecosystem, including the WiMAX Forum Subscriber and User Forecast, please visit the WiMAX Forum website at www.wimaxforum.org.
About WiMAX Forum®
The WiMAX Forum® is an industry-led, not-for-profit organization formed to certify and promote the compatibility and interoperability of broadband wireless products based upon the harmonized IEEE 802.16e/ETSI HiperMAN standard. A WiMAX Forum goal is to accelerate the introduction of these systems into the marketplace. WiMAX Forum Certified products are interoperable and support broadband fixed, nomadic, portable and mobile services. Along these lines, the WiMAX Forum works closely with service providers and regulators to ensure that WiMAX Forum Certified systems meet customer and government requirements. Through the WiMAX Forum Congress Events Series of global trade shows and events, the WiMAX Forum is committed to furthering education, training and collaboration to expand the reach of the WiMAX ecosystem. For more information, visit the trade show link at www.wimaxforum.org.
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