Service Providers Reveal
Broadband Wireless Access
Deployment Barriers in Sage Research
Study
Reliability, Cost Cited as Chief
Factors Early Adopters of
802.11 Report Satisfaction with Technology
NATICK, Mass., July 22, 2002 - Sage
Research
, a full-service market research and consulting firm,
has released a new study of service providers that reveals their
perceptions about broadband wireless access (BWA). In the report,
"Broadband Wireless Access Perceptions and Reality," Sage looks at the
current deployment status of BWA, service providers' likelihood to
consider BWA technologies in the future, common drivers and deterrents
for BWA technologies, and the satisfaction levels of current BWA
users. The study also uncovers specific deployment barriers for
802.11, MMDS (Multichannel Multipoint Distribution Service), and LMDS
(Local Multipoint Distribution Service) systems, as well as the
reasons current users selected the technologies, their current
satisfaction levels, and plans for future deployment. The report is
available for purchase by clicking the "SageStore" icon on the Sage
Research home page, http://www.sageresearch.com/.
"Most surprising is that we found an unexpected
number of service providers already using BWA technology, despite its relative
newness to the market," said Chris Neal, a research director at Sage Research.
"BWA still represents a small niche in broadband access, and in fact is most
often used as a secondary technology to support traditional leased lines or ADSL
(Asymmetric Digital Subscriber Line). But nearly a third of our survey
respondents use BWA technology at some point in their networks, proving that
there is opportunity for BWA technology providers."
Among the chief findings of "Broadband Wireless Access Perceptions
and Reality" are:
|
| -- | Reliability is the single most important selection criterion
for service providers. Similarly, concerns about BWA
reliability are the single biggest adoption deterrent for
service providers that have not deployed and not tested BWA
technologies. The service providers surveyed rated reliability
even higher than cost.
|
| -- | Cost is the most common concern for service providers that
have tested BWA equipment. Reliability of MMDS technology and
insufficient range of 802.11 technology were also frequently
cited factors.
|
| -- | Early Adopters of 802.11 are satisfied with the technology.
While early adopters cited cost as a reason for choosing
802.11, they have overwhelmingly stated their satisfaction
with the technology's reliability.
|
The report features more
than 20 charts and tables presenting the data that Sage gathered in the
survey.
For this study, Sage Research surveyed professionals
from a total of 49 service providers about current broadband access use,
selection criteria, satisfaction levels, and perceptions of and experiences with
broadband wireless access technologies (e.g., LMDS, MMDS, 802.11). ILECs, CLECS,
IXCs and other telephony-related service providers were among those
participating in the study.
"Broadband Wireless Access Perceptions and Reality," is available
for purchase by clicking on the SageStore link on the Sage Research
home page, www.sageresearch.com. For more information, please contact
Sage Research at (508) 655-5400 or by email at
reports@sageresearch.com.
About Sage
Research
Sage Research, Inc. is a full-service market research and
consulting firm providing global demand-side research to technology
product and service providers. With in-depth experience in the
networking and telecommunications markets, Sage delivers actionable
data and recommendations based on the most current qualitative and
quantitative methods. Practice areas include customer loyalty, market
segmentation, brand equity, business case validation, technology
adoption, and product concept testing. Founded in 1993, Sage serves a
broad client base that includes industry leaders and innovative
start-ups. For more information, visit www.sageresearch.com.
# # #
CONTACT:
Sage Research,
Inc.
Doug Haslam, (508) 655-5400 x
292
dhaslam@sageresearch.com
