1. Mobile Broadband – Threats and
Opportunities
Woojune Kim
VP of Technology, Airvana Inc.

2. About Airvana
• Established Supplier of 3G IP-RAN to Leading Operators
– Founded: March 2000, over 500 employees worldwide
– Over 60,000 EV-DO channel cards deployed at 70+ operators
• Femtocell Pioneer & Technology Leader
– Founding member of Femto Forum; Active contributor to 3GPP, 3GPP2
– Signed contract with Sprint (USA) and KDDI (Japan) for nationwide 3G rollouts
– Multiple successful UMTS trials (2H’09)
– Partnerships with leading network infrastructure and CPE vendors
• Innovative, High Performance Femtocell Solutions
– First femtocell to deliver 7.2 Mbps HSDPA (Jul’09)
– First femtocell to deliver integrated router and ATA (Nov’09)
– Only fully programmable 16-user femtocell; software upgradable to 24 user
– First with standard Iuh based product
– First with Robust Cell Reselection technology
– Leading proponent of Open Services APIs that enable app ecosystem
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3. Our Thesis
• Mobile Data is growing Exponentially
• Macro-cellular architecture cannot meet the
long-term demands of mobile broadband
• Transformation of cellular architecture through
use of small cells is inevitable
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4. The Background
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5. Mobile Data Traffic is Growing Exponentially
Mobile broadband explosion
continues unabated.
Smartphones are driving
the industry and network
usage.
Services, services, services!
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6. Air Interfaces Are @ Point of Diminishing Return
Spectral Efficiency
(bits per second per Hz)
3G
Modulation Technology Evolution
4G Air Interfaces (LTE/WiMax) Will Deliver
Modest Gains in Spectral Efficiency
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7. Most Mobile Data Use Occurs Indoors
Source: Informa’s Mobile Access at Home Report
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8. But … In-Building Wireless Coverage is Poor
Macro Network
Internet
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9. What Can We Do ?
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10. The Solution : Spatial Re-Use
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11. An Old Idea …
1Mbps Ethernet 100Mbps Ethernet
Shared LAN (CSMA / CD) “Personal” Ethernet LAN
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12. Femtocells : Spatial Re-Use in Cellular Networks
Macro Cellular Femtocells
Shared Base Station “Personal” Base Station
• Coverage Gain: Better Signal Strength in the Home
• Capacity Gain: Dedicated Capacity for Every Home
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13. Realizing the “Personal” Base Stations
Cellular For Existing
Broadband Handsets
Operator
Internet Core Network
Femto Cell
• Small & Simple enough to put in Home
• Connects through Broadband Internet
• Support both Voice and Data
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14. Significant Improvement in User Experience
Femto Users Only
Average User Throughput (Kbps)
Macro Users Only
Network Usage (Load)
Consistent High-Throughput Data Performance
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15. What about Wi-Fi ?
For Dual Mode
Broadband Handsets
Operator
Internet Core Network
WiFi Access
Point
• Useful for Data Offload
• But Not so Good for Voice (phone number,
emergency calls ?)
• Not available on all phones
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16. The Key Technology Issues
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17. Interference Avoidance & Mitigation
Macrocell Handset Inside Femtocell Close
or Near Femto Coverage to Macro BTS
Macro Mobile Femto Mobile Macro Mobile Femto Mobile
Femtocells With
Overlapping Coverage
Femto Mobile #1 Femto Mobile #2
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18. Femtozone Applications
• Femtocells as the center of the
connected home
– Aware of both mobile and home networks
– Knows when user is home
– Connects user to home from away
Femtocell Apps
enable
Richer Mobile Apps
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19. Application Example 1: SMS ~ Alert Me!
Tom &
Sally have
arrived home
from school
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20. Application Example 2: Home Device Access
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21. Summary
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22. Femtocells : a Disruptive Proposition
Consumer Operator
• Improved Coverage • Radically Lower Costs
• Wireline Voice Quality • Improved Customer Satisfaction
• Superior Broadband Experience • Lower Churn
• Lower Home Phone Costs • New Service Revenue
• Innovative New Services • Strategic Presence in Home
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23. Thank You
Thank You
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