Comment Tweet Share Share Digg

.

See video interview here

The US is pretty fond of its wireline pipes, but Israeli IP radio firm Siklu is trying to change the world’s mind, and the wireless game, when it comes to the whole millimeter radio vs. wireline debate.

Radio technologies have long been more popular in rural, far flung areas, not easily connected by cables, but Siklu believes it can offer not only better quality, but also lower cost with its offerings.

Talking to RCR recently, Shahar Peleg Siklu’s director of product management, spoke of what he called the “iPhone Effect” – a dramatic change in the consumers’ mobile phone usage, which has turned mobile web surfing and massive data consuming into something of a routine.

The huge amounts of data being guzzled by the iPhone and its smartphone brethren has already lead to an explosion in capacity demands and the backhaul network is simply not designed to cope with the phenomenon, Peleg told us.

The capacity bottleneck in mobile networks, he explained, has shifted from the access – or air interface – to the backhaul network, but the current design of this network limits the data speeds mobile users can experience on their HSPA-enabled handsets, which in turn impairs user experience of mobile broadband.

But while subscriber demand for capacity-intensive services increases exponentially by the day, the investments required from operators to keep their backhaul network up-to-speed also increases, while the revenues generated from these services, unfortunately for operators, keep decreasing.

Already, says Siklu, backhaul accounts for approximately one-third of the total cost ownership (TCO), a fairly hefty chunk.

So what does Siklu think it can bring to the table in order to change the game?

Well, for a start, Siklu’s Wireless backhaul products slot into the regulated 71-76 GHz E-band spectrum, which the firm believes is superior, both technically and economically, to the lower 6-38 GHz spectrum.

The advantage of the E-band frequencies, explains Siklu, is mainly down to the dramatic reduction of the licensing fee incurred because the nature of propagation in the frequencies and the standardized directional “pencil beams” apparently result in a better spatial separation of the wireless links which in turn result in better frequency re-use.

Thus, says Siklu, millimeter-wave wireless links like the firm’s own EtherHaul, can be deployed with minimal interference, allowing more efficient spectrum re-use, reducing coordination requirements, and allowing regulators to adopt a “light licensing” scheme.

Under the “light licensing” schemes frequency licenses cost a fraction of the “traditional” licenses and can be obtained within minutes using an on-line registration tool. For mobile operators with hundreds or even thousands of links in their networks the lower frequency licenses means dramatic annual savings.

As if those benefits weren’t enough to give one pause for thought, Siklu also says using the E-band frequencies will relieve congestion on the more crowded 6-38 GHz spectrum, and that it is more scalable and even future-proof.

The interesting thing about Siklu, however, is that the firm has developed its millimeter wave technology from the ground up, sticking all it can onto the silicon itself, including front-end and baseband components. The firm also designs its own antennas, which can be made on the cheap, much to the chagrin of the competition.

Indeed, Siklu claims to offer gigabit-per-second wireless connectivity at the lowest price point in the entire industry, with its 1Gb capacity millimeter radios going for less than $3000, some $2000 less than the cheapest comparable competitor.

For a 10,000 link radio backhaul network that would mean costs of just $35 million including setup and maintenance over five years as opposed to a whopping $175-225 million for a microwave network with 65% less capacity or a similar amount for a competing millimeter network, according to Peleg.

Also, since the radios are so small and have such low transmitting power, Siklu posits the devices are more environmentally friendly and better for one’s health than competitive offerings. They also need less power, which means lower electricity bills.

While the argument might sound convincing on paper, it may be an uphill climb for Siklu to convince US operators that its radios might be a better investment than an underground mass of expensive fiber, but the firm is certainly optimistic. Also, realistically, most rural areas will never get a fiber connection, making radio networks all the more important and viable.

Not convinced? Watch the interview with Peleg and make up your own minds.