Europe : Research and Markets has announced the addition of 3G by Stealth - 802.11 Wireless LANs to their offering.

The deployment of Wireless Local Area Networks (Wlans), and more specifically 802.11 networks, is becoming widespread. The benefits of increased productivity through mobility are encouraging many SMEs, corporations and institutions to install wireless access to their existing fixed Ethernet network. Public Wlans are emerging into the mainstream, offering wireless Internet access in airports, coffee shops and hotels at speeds of 11Mbps, more than 10 times than promised by 3G networks, which have yet to come online.

3G by Stealth - 802.11 Wireless LANs is the benchmark resource for any party currently operating or intending to operate in the Wlan space. It is also a definitive guide for those needing detailed knowledge of 802.11 technology and the companies operating in this sector. The report sets out the competitive landscape and analyses the direction the 802.11 standard and its applications will take, as well as demonstrating the implications for competitive technologies such as 3G.

Report Overview

-- The report presents a summary of Wlan technology, the family of Wlan standards, the hardware requirements, and the advantages wireless offers over traditional fixed Ethernet networks.

-- The technical aspects of the 802.11 standard are explored, examining how transmission is handled in the MAC and PHY layers. An overview of the specific differences between the many flavours of 802.11 is also presented.

-- The real-world deployment of 802.11 networks is illustrated and the critical interference and security issues are discussed. The report also looks at the main equipment players in the Wlan space and talks about recent developments in the sector such as drive-by hacking and renegade LANs.

-- The report compares other wireless networking standards that either compete with or complement 802.11. In particular, Bluetooth and the European and Japanese rivals to the 802.11 5GHz standard are examined- the HyperLAN2 and HiSwana standards respectively.

-- A global view of the regulatory issues and agendas that cover the unlicensed 2.4Ghz and 5Ghz portions of the radio spectrum is discussed, highlighting the key differences between the US, Europe and Japan and the implications for market growth in these regions.

-- The report outlines the operational characteristics of mobile phone technology, the various standards in use around the world and their intended evolution path to next generation voice and data services. We compare Wlan and 3G data transmission abilities and discuss the present attitude of mobile phone operators and handset manufacturers towards the fast unfolding Wlan situation.

-- The many factors driving Wlan installation forward are examined. The fast developing corporate and home wireless networking markets are discussed, as is Windows XP's support for 802.11. The findings of Microsoft's recently published survey of the corporate Wlan market are analysed, as are the market forecasts from IDC and Cahners InStat.

-- The report forecasts how the wireless LAN market will develop from the current state of play going forward. In particular, it discusses the hypothesis that proprietors of commercial businesses (shops, cafes, hotels, airports etc.) will eventually offer Wlan services free to the end user as a marketing tool to leverage sales of higher margin goods and services. It is calculated that proprietors can turn their premises into a Wlan hotspot for about $185 per month per 2Mpbs.

-- It is envisaged that by 2005, people in metropolitan areas may spend up to 80 percent of their time in Wlan hotspots where they will have free wireless Internet access without needing to roam onto 3G services. Using data supplied by the Umts Forum, it is estimated that mobile operators stand to lose between 12 and 64 percent of their forecast 3G revenue by 2006.

-- Finally, 66 companies operating along the entire 802.11 Wlan value chain are examined, from chip manufacturers and equipment vendors to application providers and the handful of public Wlan service providers and operators now appearing. In each category we identify the "companies to watch" - those companies that are developing the most promising hardware, software and services, and those that are getting the business model right.

Report Contents:

1 Report summary

2 Companies to watch

3 The Wireless LAN

4 What is 802.11?

5 The 802.11 wireless network

6 Other wireless communication standards

7 Spectrum Regulation: A Tale of Two Continents

8 About 3G

9 The industry's attitude to 802.11

10 Factors driving 802.11 forward

11 3G by stealth - scenarios for the rise of 802.11

12 The 802.11 value chain

13 Wireless Network Software

14 Hotspot providers - public wireless LAN operators