Qualcom buys DesignArt Networks for more than $100 million

Chip maker Qualcomm Incorporated made an unofficial announcement that it has purchased mobile backhaul infrastructure designer DesignArt Networks for more than $100 million.

An Israeli start-up company founded in 2006, DesignArt creates infrastructure solutions for 3G/4G mobile backhaul networks. It focuses on creating data-centric mobile radio access networks for wireless backhaul infrastructure using integrated system-on-chip platforms and embedded SW solutions.

Back in April, Intel and Qualcomm had both expressed interest in purchasing DesignArt. Qualcomm beat its chip maker rival to the reported tune of around $120-140 million.

Qualcomm is expected to make an official announcement soon. DesignArt will probably be integrated into its new owner's Atheros Division, which was originally semiconductor developer Atheros before Qualcomm purchased it in 2011 for $3.1 billion.

Qualcomm Incorporated received the 2012 U.S. Fleet Manager's Choice Award. It is considered to be the best supplier of advanced telematics services by Frost & Sullivan and more than 90% of Qualcomm's customers. Its recent acquisition of DesignArts further enhances its expertise in mobile backhaul products.

Mobile backhaul testing needs updates, says Frost and Sullivan analysts

Current methods of testing mobile backhaul require updates that reflect the ongoing shifts to new technologies and architectures, said analysts from Frost & Sullivan.

The 3G telecom industry is currently shifting to Long Term Evolution (LTE) and 4G technologies. At the same time, mobile backhaul is moving to new architectures like Internet protocol (IP) and Ethernet, with backhaul speed going from TDM to hit up to 10 GB at certain facilities.

Due to the recent, massive, and rapid proliferation of media-rich and bandwidth-intensive applications, network operators are reevaluating the mobile network infrastructure. Testing companies are also implementing certification programs that intend to ensure telecom-network standards are upheld. The certifications' homogenous network devices work together to implement OEM technologies across the networks.

According to Mariano Kimbara, a senior research analyst for Frost & Sullivan, these paradigm shifts are creating opportunities for mobile backhaul testing. This migration presents a number of key growth opportunities for test equipment vendors,” he told the Backhaul Bulletin.

Mr. Kimbara went on to explain that mobile backhaul test equipment vendors would find it profitable to develop solutions that ensure mobile backhaul testing can operate with multiple networks. Customers are looking for a one-stop-shop investment to get all test deployments from a single source,” he said.

Mr. Kimbara explained that one of the main factors driving demand for the mobile backhaul test equipment markets is the continuous replacement of time-division multiplexing (TDM) technologies into Ethernet and IP technologies. According to him, the industry is going through an unprecedented high growth in mobile traffic and data. The massive demand stresses the importance of a new set of dynamics and realignment for mobile backhaul.

Within this transition, it is crucial for IP and Carrier Ethernet to stay ahead of higher-bandwidth and quality-intensive service demands, such as data, voice and video services delivered over the network,” Mr. Kimbara said.

The change in the infrastructure architecture that delivers LTE services is opening up growth opportunities of testing. By 2011, there were approximately 30 commercial LTEs. And Mr. Kimbara expects that voice over LTE (VoLTE) will be first implemented in 2012.

For at least the next two to three years, the industry is expected to experience a combination of both E1/T1 (for voice) and Ethernet/IP (for data services) technologies in the mobile backhaul market,” he said.

Mr. Kimbara further said that the hybrid-network approach poses several key challenges to the industry, as such networks must be compatible with both legacy networks and new architectures. Carriers are thus forced to look for cost-efficient ways to sustain two separate, different networks. At the same time, the new architectures are attempting to match the standard set by TDM networks.

Safaricom exchanges legacy mobile backhaul for hybrid microwave backhaul

Kenyan mobile operator Safaricom is moving from legacy TDM mobile backhaul networks to hybrid microwave backhaul in order to better handle ever-expanding WiMAX and 3G data traffic.

Mobile operators around the world are upgrading legacy mobile backhaul networks designed for TDM traffic in order to handle high-speed Ethernet data for 3G and 4G mobile technologies. No two cases are the same, and operators are forced to carefully balance the introduction of new technologies, expenditures, and maintenance of existing services lest they lose customers.

Safaricom is working on maintaining its legacy E1 capacity for voice calls while also adding Ethernet/IP bandwidth for relatively-new but rapidly-growing 3G and WiMAX data traffic.

The Safaricom network is a typical mobile network built up over time with the additional complication of Safaricom's status as the leading mobile operator in Kenya and one of the largest African mobile operators. Many parts of its vast network still use legacy 2G TDM technology with Ethernet-to-E1 converters, .

More and more 3G subscribers have been signing up to Safaricom in recent years. These subscribers are using ever-increasing amounts of data bandwidth, which Safaricom’s TDM-based mobile backhaul is barely able to satisfy.

Safaricom responded to this gap by drawing on the expertise and technology of solution provider Aviat Networks. Aviat deployed its hybrid radio solution, the market-leading modular Eclipse microwave networking platform, which allows Safaricom to add IP data capacity for the unique needs of 3G subscribers while ensuring sufficient E1 capacity for voice calls.

In addition to solving its immediate issue, Eclipse will allow Safaricom to migrate to all-IP, 3G/4G-compatible mobile backhaul.