Also disagreeing with Mitoraj was George Manuelian, chief architect for service exchange framework at Cisco Systems, who said that in many markets mesh Wi-Fi systems will have little choice but to use WiMax as a backhaul technology to carry traffic to fiber-optic gateways. "It's hard to get wires everywhere" to provide backhaul for new wireless networks, Manuelian said.
Motorola last year acquired a startup company called Orthogon Systems, a provider of fixed point-to-point wireless systems in the 5.8-GHz frequency band, largely to beef up its backhaul portfolio.
If Mitoraj is right, and WiMax proves ineffective for wireless backhaul, it could delay the spread of WiMax systems because devices and services for such networks are not expected to be available for two to three years at the earliest. The success of WiMax depends on finding such early applications and on the availability of WiMax-enabled laptops and handsets, the panelists agreed.
"WiMax will fail without dual-mode devices" that work over existing cellular networks or Wi-Fi systems plus WiMax, Mitoraj stated.
That will require the major U.S. carriers, who to date have focused on preserving their existing cellular business at the expense of newer wireless technologies, to open up their handsets and networks to WiMax.
Subsea cable alternatives can provide a level of comfort for those concerned about disruptions. Realistically, they will continue to play a small, but critical role in the short term.
Maintaining existing network infrastructures often incurs huge technical debt before newer technologies are adopted over time.
Amid ongoing regional uncertainties, telecom infrastructure in the Middle East has expand to include terrestrial low-latency network infrastructure, which offers resilience and agility in navigating political complexities without relying solely on undersea networks.
