Can Mobile Wireless Save Broadband?

from the maybe-possibly dept

I've had this conversation with a few people, and I'm not convinced it would really work, but it's interesting to see I'm not the only one who's thought of it. With all the effort carriers are making towards launching 2.5G and (eventually) 3G mobile wireless solutions, combined with all the difficulty DSL, cable and fixed wireless providers have been having, could those mobile wireless solutions be used for fixed wireless broadband instead? The article is pretty detailed and brings up most of the issues. Pricing, for instance, causes problems. The way it's set up now, mobile wireless is set to be priced on either per minute or per packet charges - and that is unlikely to work for fixed solutions. So, a flat-rate scheme would be needed. There's also no indication of how well such a setup would work (let alone the fact that, at least at 2.5G, it's still slower than most DSL and cable alternatives). However, the argument is that the carriers think it's worth doing for mobile use alone, so what's the big deal if you suddenly add fixed location users to the mix as well?
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