It wasn’t until I started using a WiFi-enabled smartphone that I realized just how ubiquitous WiFi is. My phone constantly seeks out the nearest WiFi access point so I can use it for cheaper data access. I’d guess 90 percent of the email and data I receive on my phone is retrieved over WiFi. One recent study showed that about 65% of mobile traffic can be offloaded today, and that number is set to increase in the future.
It’s interesting that as the mobile wireless market increases capacity and speed with 4G/LTE, operators are at the same time increasing the use of WiFi offload to control costs. AT&T just inked a deal to provide free WiFi in New York’s city parks, no coincidence given that New York has been a focal point of AT&T’s mobile performance issues.
ClearAccess’ customers are highly focused on enabling these roaming applications, while at the same time improving the WiFi experience in the home. Our WiFi Signal Monitor app has been a big hit, and our ability to manage and restore settings, and report on trends in WiFi use are key differentiators for ClearVision. In Europe, WiFi is often used to provide VoIP service over shared access points, and dense housing materials have necessitated a quicker shift to “dual band” WiFi technologies for delivering over-the-top video. Both trends require coordination and management that ClearAccess can deliver.
In talking to our customers I hear that ClearVision significantly reduces the cost of deploying and supporting WiFi gateways, but with more devices in the home connecting over WiFi there are always news challenges. Our response is to add more WiFi diagnostics and reporting features to our roadmap, and in the coming months we plan to reveal new and innovative approaches to making WiFi easy to configure and support.
Last modified on Wednesday, 25 January 2012 00:05
Published in
Market Analysis
Steve Gorretta
Director of Product Management