Mobile Broadband Usage up again over Hardline Usage: [22nd Feb 2012]

A report from mobile service optimization company Allot Communications has shown that mobile broadband traffic grew by 83% during the second half of 2011, while video streaming traffic increased by 88%. This type of broadband usage is taking up 42% of all global bandwidth with YouTube accounting for 24%. VoIP and Instant Messaging (IM) traffic also increased by 114% during the period and could be due to the decline in SMS and voice calls. Skype are responsible for most of the VoIP bandwidth usage with a 79% share, but this is less than the previous half year. Most interestingly, file sharing seems to be decreasing with a growth rate of just 29% compared to 33% in the previous six months. This is despite concerns that the use of this is increasing.


It seems that the repercussions of the collapse of the T-Mobile deal are being felt by the top bosses at AT&T. CEO Randall Stephenson has been reported as having missed out on $2 million of his bonus for the last year due to the failure of the merger. Other staff members have been forced into early retirement such as Forrest Miller, the head of corporate strategy. However, it has been pointed out that Randall still managed to make $22 million in 2011. Meanwhile AT&T has lost around $4 billion in spectrum, network sharing arrangements and cash from the deal failure. Some of this will be able to be written off, but it seems that Randall still got off lightly.


T-Mobile has launched a filing with the FCC regarding their opposition to Verizon's new spectrum and marketing deal with the cable industry. They have claimed that this would concentrate mobile service spectrum and would be contrary to public interest. The filing states that Verizon already holds enough spectrum, some of which is currently unused. They have concerns that smaller carriers will not be able to compete in the higher frequency ranges. It seems that deploying in the these ranges is more expensive and difficult. They also fear that Verizon has a deal with the cable companies to limit competition between them. It has been pointed out by experts that this is exactly what the AT&T and T-Mobile deal was hoping to achieve.


Following the announcement last week that the FCC would not back the network ambitions of Lightsquared, the telecoms company has had to lay off 45% of its staff. The company employs 330 people in Virginia and will be cutting this by almost half. In a statement the company has stated that they needed to take the action in order to remain competitive and to allow them to work through the regulatory process. They hope to find solutions to the GPS interference issues and bring privately funded broadband to a potential 260 million Americans. Furthermore a person who is familiar with the situation has been quoted by Reuters as saying that LightSquared is not yet facing bankruptcy.