Research and Markets: 3G by Stealth - 802.11 Wireless LANs; People in Metropolitan Areas May Spend up to 80 Percent of Their Time in Wlan Hotspots by 2005.

Business Editors

DUBLIN, Ireland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 20, 2004

Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com) has announced the addition of 3G by Stealth - 802.11 Wireless LANs to their offering.

The deployment of Wireless Local Area Networks (Wlans), and more specifically 802.11 networks, is becoming widespread. The benefits of increased productivity through mobility are encouraging many SMEs, corporations and institutions to install wireless access to their existing fixed Ethernet network. Public Wlans are emerging into the mainstream, offering wireless Internet access in airports, coffee shops and hotels at speeds of 11Mbps, more than 10 times than promised by 3G networks, which have yet to come online.

3G by Stealth - 802.11 Wireless LANs is the benchmark resource for any party currently operating or intending to operate in the Wlan space. It is also a definitive guide for those needing detailed knowledge of 802.11 technology and the companies operating in this sector. The report sets out the competitive landscape and analyses the direction the 802.11 standard and its applications will take, as well as demonstrating the implications for competitive technologies such as 3G.

Report Overview

-- The report presents a summary of Wlan technology, the family

of Wlan standards, the hardware requirements, and the

advantages wireless offers over traditional fixed Ethernet

networks.

-- The technical aspects of the 802.11 standard are explored,

examining how transmission is handled in the MAC and PHY 

layers. An overview of the specific differences between the

many flavours of 802.11 is also presented.

-- The real-world deployment of 802.11 networks is illustrated

and the critical interference and security issues are

discussed. The report also looks at the main equipment players

in the Wlan space and talks about recent developments in the

sector such as drive-by hacking and renegade LANs.

-- The report compares other wireless networking standards that

either compete with or complement 802.11. In particular,

Bluetooth and the European and Japanese rivals to the 802.11

5GHz standard are examined- the HyperLAN2 and HiSwana

standards respectively.

-- A global view of the regulatory issues and agendas that cover

the unlicensed 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz portions of the radio spectrum

is discussed, highlighting the key differences between the US,

Europe and Japan and the implications for market growth in

these regions.

-- The report outlines the operational characteristics of mobile

phone technology, the various standards in use around the

world and their intended evolution path to next generation

voice and data services. We compare Wlan and 3G data

transmission abilities and discuss the present attitude of

mobile phone operators and handset manufacturers towards the

fast unfolding Wlan situation.

-- The many factors driving Wlan installation forward are

examined. The fast developing corporate and home wireless

networking markets are discussed, as is Windows XP's support

for 802.11. The findings of Microsoft's recently published

survey of the corporate Wlan market are analysed, as are the

market forecasts from IDC and Cahners InStat.

-- The report forecasts how the wireless LAN market will develop

from the current state of play going forward. In particular,

it discusses the hypothesis that proprietors of commercial

businesses (shops, cafes, hotels, airports etc.) will

eventually offer Wlan services free to the end user as a

marketing tool to leverage sales of higher margin goods and

services. It is calculated that proprietors can turn their

premises into a Wlan hotspot for about $185 per month per

2Mpbs.

-- It is envisaged that by 2005, people in metropolitan areas may

spend up to 80 percent of their time in Wlan hotspots where

they will have free wireless Internet access without needing

to roam onto 3G services. Using data supplied by the Umts

Forum, it is estimated that mobile operators stand to lose

between 12 and 64 percent of their forecast 3G revenue by

2006.

-- Finally, 66 companies operating along the entire 802.11 Wlan

value chain are examined, from chip manufacturers and

equipment vendors to application providers and the handful of

public Wlan service providers and operators now appearing. In

each category we identify the "companies to watch" - those

companies that are developing the most promising hardware,

software and services, and those that are getting the business

model right.

Report Contents:

1 Report summary

2 Companies to watch

3 The Wireless LAN

4 What is 802.11?

5 The 802.11 wireless network

6 Other wireless communication standards

7 Spectrum Regulation: A Tale of Two Continents

8 About 3G

9 The industry's attitude to 802.11

10 Factors driving 802.11 forward

11 3G by stealth - scenarios for the rise of 802.11

12 The 802.11 value chain

13 Wireless Network Software

14 Hotspot providers - public wireless LAN operators

15 Appendix

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/reports/c2137