Strategies for
deployment and
diffusion of public
accessible WLANs
By Kirsti Berg and Endre Grøtnes
1
1
Introduction and background ...................................................................... 3
1.1
Research approach............................................................................... 3
2
WLAN - technology and standards ............................................................. 4
2.1
Definitions of Wireless LANs ............................................................. 4
2.2
Differences between 802.11b and UMTS ........................................... 4
2.3
WLAN and UMTS are just part of the picture .................................... 6
2.4
Different standards for wireless LANs ................................................ 7
2.5
Working modes of WLAN .................................................................. 7
2.6
Interoperability .................................................................................... 8
3
Strategies for the deployment and diffusion of WLAN technology ........... 9
3.1
Key elements of a WLAN strategy ..................................................... 9
3.2
Strategies for site owners .................................................................. 10
3.3
Strategies for mobile telephony operators ......................................... 12
4
Market situation in Norway....................................................................... 14
5
Case studies ............................................................................................... 15
5.1
Peppes Pizza ...................................................................................... 15
5.2
Oslo airport Gardermoen ................................................................... 16
6
Conclusions ............................................................................................... 18
A.
Different wireless and mobile standards ................................................... 20
802.11 ............................................................................................................ 20
Bluetooth ....................................................................................................... 20
HIPERLAN/ 1 ............................................................................................... 20
HIPERLAN/ 2 ............................................................................................... 20
HomeRF ........................................................................................................ 21
IrDA .............................................................................................................. 21
GSM .............................................................................................................. 21
GPRS ............................................................................................................. 21
UMTS ............................................................................................................ 22
B.
Introduction to the 802.11 family of standards ......................................... 22
References, standards and background readings ............................................... 24
Abbreviations/definitions .................................................................................. 26
2
1
Introduction and background
This report is part of a larger student project in the course" IN-IS - Information
infrastructures" at the university of Oslo. The aim of the student reports is to
study the development and diffusion of technologies for mobile
communication. The student projects will discuss various aspects of two
different technologies: WLAN (wireless LAN) and UMTS (Universal Mobile
Telephone System).
This report will focus on the strategies for deployment and diffusion of
WLANs1 and look at some experiences from the deployment of public
accessible WLANs.
The project is divided into two phases. One fact-finding phase, consisting of
literature search and interviews with WLAN actors. A second phase where the
data from the different projects are discussed among all the student projects and
thereafter put together and analysed.
This report will consist of the first phases of the project. The outline of the
report is as follow. In chapter two we shortly presents the WLAN technology
and standards and some technological aspects relevant to the report. In chapter
three we present different strategies for the deployment and diffusion of WLAN
technology. In chapter four we briefly look at the market situation in Norway,
before we in chapter five presents two different cases. In chapter six we
presents some conclusions from our studies.
1.1
Research approach
There is plenty of information about wireless technology and WLANs on the
Internet. A search for different terms with different search engines gave the
following number of hits:
Term/ search engine
Wireless LAN
WLAN
WLAN+strategy
Wireless+strategy
Google
265.000
390.000
16.400
982.000
Alta Vista
21.963
90.567
9
1.876
Kvasir
915.871
660.739
47
15.236
Given this enormous amount of information we couldn't read it all and had to
concentrate on a few sources. Some of the more interesting sites we found are
listed in the reference section. The variance in results from different search
engines is worth a study on its own, but it's outside the scope of this report.
The chapter on WLAN technology and standards are primarily put together
from information provided by the standard organizations themselves. Our hits
gave a good amount of information about the basic technology and how it
worked, but none of the documents we examined gave an overview over market
strategies or discussed market strategies. The chapters on strategies for
1
In this report we will focus on WLAN following the 802.11b standard from IEEE.
3
deployment and diffusion of WLANs are therefore not based on theoretical
articles about market strategies in journals, but based on articles in the trade
press, statements from individual companies, interviews, information from
regulatory authorities and resumes from larger commercial analyses that are
found on the web.
Due to the lack of existing models we developed our own model for evaluating
and describing WLAN strategies. This model is presented in chapter three.
2
WLAN - technology and standards
In this chapter we will present different definitions of wireless LANs, introduce
the different wireless LAN standards and look at the differences between the
UMTS and the 802.11b standards in more detail.
This report will not describe wireless technology in detail. For more and deeper
information about the technology we refer to general textbooks on the subject.
2.1
Definitions of Wireless LANs
Here are some definitions of wireless LANs that we found:
From the Wireless LAN Association[1].
"A wireless LAN (WLAN) is a flexible data communication system implemented
as an extension to, or as an alternative for, a wired LAN within a building or
campus. Using electromagnetic waves, WLANs transmit and receive data over
the air, minimizing the need for wired connections. Thus, WLANs combine data
connectivity with user mobility, and, through simplified configuration, enable
movable LANs."
From webopedia.com[2]:
"WLAN - Acronym for wireless local-area network. Also referred to as LAWN.
A type of local-area network that uses high-frequency radio waves, rather than
wires to communicate between nodes."
From wirelessweek.com[3]:
"Wireless LAN - Local area network using wireless transmissions, such as
radio or infrared instead of phone lines or fiber-optic cable to connect data
devices."
For this report we will say that a Wireless LAN is a type of local-area network
that uses high-frequency radio waves to communicate between nodes in order
to give the user mobility.
2.2
Differences between 802.11b and UMTS
WLAN (802.11) standards and the new mobile telephony standards (UMTS)
are to different types of standards, but with the same goal, to deliver mobile
data communication and Internet connections to the users.
802.11 has its origin in the Internet and data communication community, while
UMTS has its roots in the old telecommunication sector.
4
WLAN technology is primarily intended as an add-on or substitute for wired
LANs. It gives the user mobility within a given location.
Mobile telephony on the other hand is primarily intended to make phones
mobile and give the user the freedom to move around in a very large area. Thus,
the phone may be used everywhere and will eventually generate more income
for the telephone operators.
The UMTS standard was from the start designed for roaming, hand over
between operators and with a high level of security. The standard also has
mechanisms for billing and settling of accounts between operators. 802.11 on
the other hand was not designed for roaming and hand over, and also lack
billing mechanisms and has a much weaker security.
802.11b have a much higher data transfer rate than the mobile telephony
standards but each access point covers a smaller geographical area than the base
stations for mobile telephony.
The 802.11b standard was developed quickly and deployment started soon after
the standard was finished. UMTS on the other hand took a long time to develop
and deployment of the standard also took a long time. There is also a lot more
services for 802.11b than for UMTS.
UMTS works in a licensed area of the frequency spectrum while 802.11b works
in an unlicensed area2. That means that everybody can put up an 802.11b
network but only operators with a concession can put up an UMTS network.
Different UMTS network are designed not to interfere with each other or other
wireless devices, but 802.11b interfere both with other 802.11b networks and
other devices that operates in the unlicensed spectrum.
A summary of the differences between 802.11b and UMTS
Property / standards
802.11b
UMTS
Geographical coverage
Low
Medium
Data transfer rate
High
Medium
Security
Low
High
Hand over
No
Yes
Roaming
No
Yes
Billing
No billing mechanisms
Billing mechanisms
Services
Many
Few
Need concession
No
Yes
Interference
Yes
No
Standardisation time
Short
Long
2
Both in US and Europe the allocated spectrum is 2.4000 to 2.4835 GHz.
5
2.3
WLAN and UMTS are just part of the picture
WLAN and UMTS are not the only competitors in the telecommunication area.
When building a telecommunication infrastructure, there are many options
available. Figure 1 aims at picturing a wide range of options.
UMTS Telephone
Internet
Comm. Tower
for UMTS
Computer
Wireless network
Access point
UMTS Telephone
GSM Telephone
ISP
Backbone
ISP and telecom carrier
backbone
GSM Telephone
Comm. Tower
for GSM/GPRS
Local area
network
ISP
Backbone
Hot-spot
infrastructure
Local network
Computer
Computer
Local area
network
Computer
Individual homes/
computers connects to the
Internet via an ISP.
Usually via
Modem, ISDN, xDSL or
cable modem
Local networks connetcs to
the Internet via an
ISP.Usually via a fixed line,
xDSL or cable modem
Wireless network
Access point
Total infrastructure for an
mobile telecom carrier
Mobile phones connetct to the
Internet wia a mobil carrier using
GSM, GPRS or UMTS
Portable computers connect to the
Internet at a Hot-spot using 802.11,
HomeRF or another WLAN standard
Figure 1 - Differences in size and scope between an Hot-spot infrastructure and a mobile
carriers infrastructure
A wireless mobile network consists typically of a high-speed local area network
with several access-points. The wireless communication takes place between
the access-point and the users lap-top, PDA or other mobile equipment with the
required communication protocol. See 2.4 for information on standards.
6
Each access-point typically sends signals 300ft3. For a user to be able to roam a
larger area, the network must have overlapping access-points that enable this
function. Enabling seamless roaming within a local network and between
different networks is a vital feature, but not satisfactory standardized yet.
2.4
Different standards for wireless LANs
Today there are many different standards for wireless LANs and wireless adhoc networks. Some of the most important are:
 802.11
http://www.ieee.org/
 Bluetooth
http://www.bluetooth.com/
 HiperLAN/1 http://www.etsi.org/
 HiperLAN/2 http://www.hiperlan2.com/
 HomeRF
http://www.homerf.org/
 IrDA
http://www.irda.org/
In addition to the wireless LAN standards there are the following standards for
data communication over mobile telephone network.
 GSM
http://www.gsmworld.com/,
 GPRS
http://www.3gpp.org/
 UMTS
http://www.umts-forum.org/
The market for wireless LANs is consolidating around the 802.11 standard. In
this report we will focus on deployment and diffusion of this standard.
See appendix A for a short introduction to each of the standards. See appendix
B for an introduction to the 802.11 family of standards.
2.5
Working modes of WLAN
The 802.11 standard define two modes: infrastructure mode and ad hoc mode.
In infrastructure mode, the wireless network consists of at least one access point
connected to the wired network infrastructure and a set of wireless end stations.
This configuration is called a Basic Service Set (BSS). An Extended Service
Set (ESS) is a set of two or more BSSs forming a single subnetwork. Since
most corporate WLANs require access to the wired LAN for services (file
servers, printers, Internet links) they will operate in infrastructure mode.
3
But can reach up to three times further, depending on free space between nodes and directions
of antennas.
7
Figure 2 - Wireless infrastructure mode
Ad hoc mode (also called peer-to-peer mode or an Independent Basic Service
Set, or IBSS) is simply a set of 802.11 wireless stations that communicate
directly with one another without using an access point or any connection to a
wired network. This mode is useful for quickly and easily setting up a wireless
network anywhere that a wireless infrastructure does not exist or is not required
for services, such as a hotel room, convention center, or airport, or where access
to the wired network is barred (such as for consultants at a client site).
Figure 3 - Wireless ad hoc mode
2.6
Interoperability
To promote interoperability between products from different vendors, the
vendors have established an organisation (alliance) to certify their products.
The certifying body4 is called Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance
(WECA). WECA’s mission is to certify interoperability of products following
the 802.11b standard and mark them as Wi-Fi5 products. WECA will also
promote Wi-Fi as the global wireless LAN standard across all market segments.
Products certified as Wi-Fi by WECA are interoperable with each other even if
they are from different manufacturers. A user with a Wi-Fi product can use any
brand of access point with any other brand of client hardware that is built to the
Wi-Fi standard.
4
WECA is not a formal certifying body according to the EN 45000 series of standards.
Wi-Fi is short for wireless fidelity and is another name for IEEE 802.11b. It is a trade term
promulgated by the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance (WECA). "Wi-Fi" is used in
place of 802.11b in the same way that "Ethernet" is used in place of IEEE 802.3
5
8
3
Strategies for the deployment and diffusion
of WLAN technology
As mentioned earlier the information in this chapter is based on articles in the
trade press, statements from individual companies, interviews, information
from regulatory authorities and resumes from larger commercial analyses that
are found on the web. We will present what we consider to be some key
elements in forming a strategy for deployment of WLAN. We will also examine
how WLAN deployment affects telecom operators UMTS offerings.
We can divide the actors in the market into hardware providers, public access
WLAN operators, regulatory authorities, service providers and business and
private users of the technology. In this report we will focus on strategies for
public access WLAN operators. There are two main categories of WLAN
operators: mobile telephony operators and site owners.
In U.S.A., Great Britain and other countries there are also large ISPs that offer
public accessible WLAN services. As we mention in chapter four there are no
such operators in Norway so we will not describe deployment and diffusion
strategies for these kinds of operators.
We will first present what we consider to be some key elements in developing a
WLAN strategy. Thereafter we will present strategies for deployment and
diffusion of WLANs for site owners and mobile telephony operators.
3.1
Key elements of a WLAN strategy
From our studies we have choosen some key elements that should be
considered for an operator developing a strategy for the deployment or
diffusion of a publicly available WLAN infrastructure:

Reasons for providing a public accessible WLAN?
There could be several reasons why an operator should provide a public
accessible WLAN. The main division is between operators that have
WLAN as their core business, they intend to live of their WLAN
deployment, and operators who see WLAN as a supplement to their other
offerings. In the first category one usually find telecom operators and ISPs.
In the latter category one usually find hotels, coffee shops, conference halls
and airports.
A third reason for putting up a WLAN could be to offer it as a community
service. The local municipal, school or library could offer WLAN
connections to their constituency.

Overall market assessment
Before putting up any business an operator ought to do a market
assessment. As long as one don't put up a WLAN as a community offering
one must figure out if it is possible to get a positive return on investment. It
means to find out how many more customers a WLAN will draw to the
business and how to make money from the enlarged customer base,
compared to the cost to get there. An operator must also figure out which
9
geographical area to cover and who the competitors are. A market
assessment can guide you when it comes to question of co-operation with
others and payment options.

Choice of standards and technologies
There are many standards and technologies to choose between when you are
in the process of putting up a public accessible WLAN. An operator has to
think of which technology and standards to support, will this offer
strengthen or weaken other technology offerings, what other technologies
should it work together with (what is my installed base?), how mature are
the standards and what are the market penetration of the different
technologies?

Co-operation with other actors in the market
When it comes to co-operation the operator have to think of thing like who
should own and operate the infrastructure, who should be the Internet
provider, possibility for roaming and co-operation with competitors.

Payment options
The main question is: For free or for fee. If this is a free offer the operator
must think of other sources of income. If the offer is for fee the operator
must think of how the customers should pay. Up front, by credit card, send
an invoice or add it to the bill. The operator must also consider the pricing
very carefully. A too high price might turn away customers, while a too low
price might not generate enough revenue.
3.2
Strategies for site owners
Site owners will concentrate on the deployment and diffusion of WLAN within
their own premises.
3.2.1 Why provide a WLAN?
The offering of a WLAN is in most cases not the core business of a site owner.
So why should a site owner provide a public accessible WLAN? Some reasons
to put up a WLAN might be:




Installing a WLAN will attract more customers to the site owners business.
A hotel owner might get more conferences at his/her hotel. A restaurant
might attract a new group of customers.
A site owner can make money from the use of the WLAN within the
premises he/she owns.
The competitors are putting up a WLAN and the site owner has to do the
same so not to loose customers.
The WLAN is a community service.
One may also ask if there are reasons not to provide a publicly accessible
network in the premises. One reason not to do it may be the possibility of
cannibalising existing business. For example, if the customers are sitting a long
time with a cup of coffee to be able to surf on the Internet, seats may not be
10
available for customers with more buying power. This must be considered in
the market assessment.
3.2.2 Market assessment
A site owner must do a market assessment to find out if he/she can get a return
on investment. A market assessment should cover all the key elements
mentioned above. In this part we will cover the customer and competition
aspect, and leave the description of the other key elements to their own
chapters. Some questions to answer are:



How much must I earn to cover my expenses?
What is my customer base, and will a WLAN give me more customers or
more business from my existing customers? Which market segment will be
attracted by this new offer?
Do I have any competitors and will this offer affect them?
Some of the competition is the customers use of cell phones, PDAs and lap-tops
with Internet-connection via other technologies. And even if WLAN offers
faster communication, price will still be a question. Pricing policies will
therefore not only consider payment methods, but the prices as well.
3.2.3 Choice of standards and technology
For a site owner the choice of technology is rather straightforward. The site
owner should support the technology his customers, or potentially customers,
are using. So in the market assessment the site owner should find out what
technology his customers are using. The site owner must also find out if the
technology will work with his installed base and decide on which access
methods to use.
3.2.4 Co-operation
Co-operation is an important question for the site owner. It goes hand in hand
with how he/she shall get a return on investment. Should the site owner build
and operate the WLAN infrastructure himself or should he team up with a
WLAN provider and let him build and operate the network. The site owner will
have more flexibility regarding payment options and choice of technology if he
owns and operates the network himself, but he must then investment more
heavily in equipment. If an operator builds and operate the network the site
owner will have few expenses in equipment but have to share any profit from
the use of the WLAN with the operator.
The site owner should also consider if there are any other businesses in the area
that he can co-operate with when he installs the infrastructure. Is the café next
door willing to participate in this offer?
3.2.5 Payment options
The first question is if the WLAN offering should be for free or for fee and also
what the fee, in that case, should be.
11
If the WLAN is for free use then the site owner must cover his expenses on
something else, preferably through increased sales on his core business. The
site owner could also get some money from advertising, but at the moment this
is a rather uncertain strategy. If the service is for free the site owner don't need
any authentication or authorisation mechanisms.
A pricing strategy must consider at least two factors: 1) How much are the
customer willing to pay for the enhanced speed, and 2) What price level will
attract the right kind of customers, those who also buy something to eat (if you
are running a cafeteria). The market is too new to provide any public accessible
market analysis covering this aspects.
If the offering should be based on fees the site owner must think of payment
options for the customer. Should the customer pay through a subscription fee or
pay every time he or she uses thee service? In the latter case the site owner have
to think of what authentication mechanisms and authorisation schemes he shall
use. Should the customer pay with credit card, up front at the counter, or
should the use of the service be added to the bill?
3.2.6 Conclusions regarding site owners
There may be many reasons for site owners to provide WLAN in their
premises. However, with the market situation in Norway, site owners will be
very vulnerable to pricing mechanisms used by the telephony operators. A
competitive pricing from the telephone operators will give the site owner’s
customer less reason to use the WLAN and may also make it less profitable for
the site owner to provide Internet access via pricing strategies from the operator
as ISP.
Based on this, we will conclude that a successful diffusion of public accessible
WLANs will depend mainly on the telephony operators strategies, whether they
see WLAN as a competitive or supportive strategy for long term success in
mobile telephony, i.e. the other technologies pictured in figure 1.
3.3
Strategies for mobile telephony operators
Mobile telephony operators will try to cover as many sites as possible with their
WLAN offerings. They will try to get the broadest deployment and diffusion of
WLANs as possible. To be able to cover the most attractive sites, they will in
many cases have to co-operate with major site owners.
Mobile telephony operators will have to co-ordinate their WLAN offerings with
their mobile telephony offerings. Because of this we will first look at the
coexistence of WLAN and UMTS before we describe possible market
strategies.
3.3.1 The coexistence between WLAN and UMTS
The UMTS-forum has the following statement about the coexistence between
WLAN and UMTS[4]:
12
"UMTS/3G and Wireless LAN are complementary rather than competitive
technologies. We believe that WLAN will stimulate the overall mobile data
services market, to the benefit of all players."
In an analysis from Spectrum the following business model was put forward[5].
"We believe that WLAN offers a potentially compelling business proposition for
fixed operators…. Rather than being a service provider, fixed operators could
provide the network to hot spot owners, leaving the hot spot owner with the
customer relationship - a "white label" solution."
In a press release from Wireless Network Strategies the following viewpoint
was expressed[6]:
"The revenues from public WLAN services will remain a relatively small
percentage of the overall mobile market. However, operators risk losing their
top business customers if they do not find a way of incorporating WLAN
services into their product portfolio."
In statements from both Ericsson and Nokia similar views can be found:
"in Nokia's view public WLAN is a complementing service offering in mobile
operator's portfolio[7]."
"TELECOMMUNICATIONS carriers must view wireless local area networks
as a taster for high-speed third-generation mobile phone services[8]."
3.3.2 Why provide a WLAN infrastructure
All the previous citations say the same thing but in different words. Telecom
operators must offer WLAN services to prepare the customers for their 3G
services and not to loose their high-end business customers. WLAN and UMTS
are viewed as complementary technologies rather than competing technologies.
For telecom operator their WLAN offerings should be viewed as one of a range
of technologies that should provide their customers with mobility and fast
access to the Internet.
Most mobile operators are also Internet providers, thus a WLAN offering is just
another offering to get more traffic. At this moment a WLAN offering will not
compete with any other offering the mobile operators have, so putting up
WLAN access points will be an alternative service and pave the way for later
offerings of mobile IP. If a mobile operator isn't an ISP with a large customerbase he should think twice before putting up a WLAN infrastructure
3.3.3 Market assessment
A market assessment is essential for a mobile operator. They must closely
evaluate their markets and find out were they could get the best long-term
return on investment. As any large company they must invest their money
where they think they will get the best short and long-term return on
investment.
13
3.3.4 Choice of standards and technology
A mobile operator must put up an infrastructure so the customers can be
"always on". This means to offer a wide range of technologies so the users can
choose the technology that suits him best. If roaming and mobile IP is key
elements in the operator's offerings then the operator should offer WLAN,
GSM, GPRS, and UMTS as well as fixed Internet access. The best alternative is
to provide the customers with equipment that can jump between the different
technologies without the user having to do anything. Today the mobile
operators live by the income from the traffic in their telephony networks. Any
cost effective method to raise the traffic would be welcomed from an operator's
point of view.
3.3.5 Co-operation
As we mention in chapter four the population in Norway live very scattered. To
reach as many people as possible it would be wise to co-operate with other
providers, team up with site owners or to share infrastructure. This is due to the
cost of putting up infrastructure in remote parts of the country. The only viable
places to put up a separate infrastructure are in crowded public places, like
shopping malls, parks, train stations and airports in the larger cities.
3.3.6 Payment options
The best solution for an operator is to provide the customers with a subscription
for all the technologies they offer. Then the customer can have one bill and
needn't have more than one username and password. The subscription could
both be prepaid as with many of today's mobile phones, or a traditional
subscription where you get the bill in the post. If the operator should offer
onetime access, it could either be in co-operation with a site owner, by selling
onetime passwords and userids or let the customer pay with a credit card.
3.3.7 Conclusions regarding operators
Mobile telephony operators will most possibly benefit from diffusion of WLAN
and should apply pricing strategies that enhance the use of public accessible
WLANs. Gardermoen Airport is an example of cooperation between the
operator and the site owner. From the operator's side this seems as a viable
strategy.
4
Market situation in Norway
On 1 December 2000 the Ministry of Transport and Communications gave
concessions to four operators for constructing, owning and operating a public
UMTS network. Later one of the operators went bankrupt and the concession
was withdrawn.
None of the operators have a publicly available UMTS network up and running.
One of the operators has recently announced that they don't want to build their
own infrastructure but prefer to be a virtual operator. According to this news
there will only be two operators with their own network offering UMTS
services, the same to operators as for GSM.
14
To our knowledge there are no other companies that will offer WLAN services
as their core business other than the two mobile operators. Traditional ISPs
have so fare not put up their own public WLAN infrastructure. The reason for
this might be the high market penetration of mobile phones in Norway. The
largest mobile operator is also the largest ISP.
On the other hand there are a lot of site owners that operates their own public
accessible WLAN infrastructure in Norway.
Norway has a scattered population so putting up an infrastructure to reach all is
very expensive. Operators must take into account the topology of the country as
well as where people are living.
5
Case studies
5.1
Peppes Pizza
Umoe catering owns and operates a range of fast food and restaurant chains.
Among these are Peppes Pizza, Burger King and T.G.I.Fridays. Today Umoe
catering has 60 Peppes restaurants all over Norway and they are opening a new
restaurant each month.
Umoe caterings WLAN offerings started one and a half year ago. Then they
were part of a larger company and had even more restaurants. They got their
telecom operator to install WLANs in on some of their key locations like
airports and train stations. They wanted the access to be free of charge and with
no access control. Due to other installation in some of the premises, some of the
installation had to use a userid/password to get access to the WLAN. This gave
Umoe experiences in different authentication and authorisation mechanisms.
The WLAN offering from the telecom operator wasn't a success in the market
so they more or less stopped it. Umoe catering then had to look for another
solution.
5.1.1 Why provide a WLAN?
The reasons Umoe catering wants to deploy a public accessible WLAN is to get
more customers to their restaurants. Especially they want more business people
as customers during the business hours. With this offer the businesspeople can
work and eat at the same time.
5.1.2 Market assessment
Umoe catering has carried out a market assessment executed by their call
centre. They also used their experiences with different authentication or
authorisation mechanisms to choose their new offering. The conclusion was
clear. In the premises with user authentication they had an average of 2
customers per day using the WLAN, while on the premises without
authentication they had 10 users per day. The premises with authentication are
also the ones with the largest customer base.
15
5.1.3 Choices of technology
Umoe catering is now utilizing another concept when they install WLAN in
their restaurants. Each restaurant buys a 1 Mbit ADSL subscription with a
WLAN access point from a telecom operator. This is the same offering as the
telecom operator gives to any business that want to connect a WLAN to the
Internet. Umoe catering adds 2-3 more access points in most locations, and also
hooks up a projector so the customers can have a presentation in the premises.
Each restaurant owns the equipment and only pays a monthly rent for the
Internet connection. Umoe have no maintenance or support agreements for the
infrastructure. If anything breaks they get a new piece in place. The motto is
"Keep it simple". Price is the main factor when Umoe buy their WLAN
equipment.
5.1.4 Co-operation and pricing
Umoe catering don't co-operate with anyone in their WLAN offer. Each
restaurant owns and operates the WLAN infrastructure. The WLAN connection
is free of charge and without any access control. They have also made sure that
the WLAN work with different VPN solutions the customers have so the
customers can access their home network.
Total cost for the installation of a Internet connection and 3-4 access points is
less than NOK 10.000, -. The subscription fee for the Internet connection is less
that NOK 2.000, - per month. Each Peppes restaurant must have an increase in
revenue at NOK 59 each day to cover the expenses.
5.2
Oslo airport Gardermoen
We tested the wireless network at Oslo airport Gardermoen (OSL). After
talking to some of the people involved in installing the WLAN we found out
that it was possible to get access to the network as a test user.
The wireless network is installed in all the public areas at Oslo Airport, and it is
intended both for travellers wanting Internet access, and businesses situated at
the airport. The network is one of Norway’s largest IP-zones with 40 – 50
access points.
OSL insists on owning the infrastructure themselves, so they can rent it out to
other operators. This is important so they can avoid interference and noise for
the network. For that reasons OSL owns the only wireless network at
Gardermoen. Other operators must buy access to the network from OSL if they
want to offer Internet access to their own customers. (Since airports are major
sites for businesspeople wanting connections to their office or the Internet OSL
thinks many operators will want to rent a place in their wireless network6)
At the moment the network at Gardermoen is not opened for public use. Users
wanting access may ask for this in the information centre in the arrival hall.
They then get a card with a username and password for an hour of free access.
This is an interim solution until OSL have contracts with other operators in
6
We were not able to confirm OSLs business plans for the wireless network. The people
involved said they couldn’t reveal that kind of information.
16
place. The net is intended to be fully operational at November 22nd. In addition
to other operators OSL is also planning to provide a short-term subscription the
same way they now give free access.
5.2.1 Logging on to the net at Gardermoen
When you start up your browser (Internet Explorer, Netscape, Opera, etc.), you
will automatically be rerouted to Oslo Airport’s WLAN portal. The first page
you will see contains the terms and conditions for use of Oslo Airport’s WLAN,
which you must accept before you can continue.
Figure 4 -The opening page at OSL
Once you have accepted the terms and conditions, a log-on window will appear.
Here you must enter a valid Username and Password for an Internet account
with an Internet Service Provider. At present, Oslo Lufthavn AS does not have
any special agreements with any ISPs regarding this service.
We got a test user access to the network. From November 22nd this will be a
paid service. None of the people we asked at the airport knew about the
wireless network. If we hadn’t investigated up front we wouldn't have know
that there is a WLAN at Gardermoen. We only got a password and a userid
after stressing that we were asked to get it from the information centre.
17
Figure 5 - A card with a password/userid for access to the WLAN at Gardermoen
We use WLAN facilities regularly and are familiar with the technology. When
we started our computer the WLANmanager installed in our computer indicated
that no network were available. We had to change the ESSID settings on our
WLAN card and restart the computer before the WLAN manager picked up the
signals from the WLAN at the airport. We also had to change the domain name
settings at the logging prompt to access the Microsoft network. For us this was
a relatively simple operation, but for the average business user this could cause
some difficulties. After we got a WLAN signal and turned on our browser
everything went without further trouble.
6
Conclusions
WLAN (802.11) is a flexible standard/technology and can be used in many
ways. Originally it was designed as an extension to a fixed wired LAN. The
first versions of the standard lacked mechanisms for roaming, advanced
security, quality of service and hand over between access points/base stations.
This was done intentionally to keep the standard small and relatively easy to
implement. So far this has been a success, and products in conformity with the
standard came on the market a short time after the standard had been approved.
There are work going on to address the areas that the original 802.11standard
didn't specify, se appendix B.
Strategies for deployment of WLAN technology can broadly be divided into
two separate categories:
 Strategies for deployment of WLAN technology as an add-on to existing
business, to get more customers. Examples are hotels, cafes, conference
centres.
 Strategies for deployment and diffusion of WLAN as your primary
business. In this category you find ISPs and telecom operators.
For both categories the following aspects should be addressed:
 Reasons for providing a public accessible WLAN?
 Overall market assessment
 Choice of standards and technologies
 Co-operation with other actors in the market
 Payment options
18
Site owners will concentrate on the deployment and diffusion of WLAN within
their own premises while Mobile telephony operators will try to cover as many
sites as possible with their WLAN offerings. They will try to get the broadest
deployment and diffusion of WLANs as possible.
In our opinion one of the most important question when you shall deploy a
WLAN is: Shall I offer it for free or for fee? This also include finding the right
price if you offer it for fee.
For firms having deployment of WLAN as their primary business they must in
our opinion take a fee for their services. Firms offering WLAN as an add-on
can choose, but if the customers stay at the premises less than 1/2 -1 hour the
offering should be for free, or else the service will be to complicated7 for the
customers to use. An exception is if the site owner just provides an access point
for a larger operator and the customer can use his ordinary subscription.
The local site owner will be vulnerable to the pricing strategy from the
Telephone operator. As long as the telephone operator consider it good business
to support WLAN, the diffusion of WLAN will most probably be successful.
On the other hand, if WLAN spread and becomes a success and the telephone
operators want to back out, the market may open up for more independent ISPs
also in Norway.
Our case studies show two different approaches to offering WLAN
connections. It's too early to tell if Peppes Pizza and OSL will be successful, but
Peppes Pizza has a much lower initial investment and has a better chance of
getting a fast return on investment, while OSL with its higher investment and
risk, has the potential to get a much higher return on investment.
As always the diffusion and deployment of a new technology is dependent on
the availability of the technology, the price for the equipment and use of the
technology and how useful the users find the technology.
7
Today there are some technical difficulties when you have to log on and a pay for a WLANservice. People will use some time to set up their computer correct and pay for the service.
19
A. Different wireless and mobile standards
802.11
802.11 refer to a family of specifications developed by the IEEE for wireless
LAN technology. 802.11 specify an over-the-air interface between a wireless
client and a base station or between two wireless clients.
Bluetooth
Bluetooth refers to a short-range radio technology aimed at simplifying
communications among Net devices and between devices and the Internet. It
also aims to simplify data synchronization between Net devices and other
computers.
Products with Bluetooth technology must be qualified and pass interoperability
testing by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group prior to release.
The Bluetooth 1.0 specification consists of two documents: the Foundation
Core, which provides design specifications, and the Foundation Profile, which
provides interoperability guidelines.
Bluetooth's founding members include Ericsson, IBM, Intel, Nokia and
Toshiba.
Bluetooth operates in the 2.4GHz ISM (Industrial, Scientific, Medical) band
and devices equipped with Bluetooth should be capable of exchanging data at
speeds up to 720kbit/s at ranges up to 10 metres. This is achieved using a
transmission power of 1mW and the incorporation of frequency hopping to
avoid interference. If the receiving device detects that the transmitting device is
closer than 10 metres it will automatically modify its transmitting power to suit
the range. The device should also shift to a low-power mode as soon as traffic
volume becomes low or ceases altogether.
HIPERLAN/ 1
HIPERLAN Type 1 is a Radio LAN standard designed to provide high-speed
communications (20 Mbit/s) between portable devices in the 5 GHz range. It is
intended to allow flexible wireless data networks to be created, without the
need for an existing wired infrastructure. In addition it can be used as an
extension of a wired LAN. The support of multimedia applications is possible.
The HIPERLAN Type 1 Functional Specification is specified in EN 300 652.
HIPERLAN/ 2
HIPERLAN/ 2 is a flexible Radio LAN standard designed to provide highspeed access (up to 54 Mbit/s at PHY layer) to a variety of networks including
3G mobile core networks, ATM networks and IP based networks, and also for
private use as a wireless LAN system. Basic applications include data, voice
and video, with specific QoS parameters taken into account. HIPERLAN/2
systems can be deployed in offices, classrooms, homes, factories, hot spot areas
20
like exhibition halls and more generally where radio transmission is an efficient
alternative or a complement to wired technology.
ETSI BRAN, responsible for Broadband Radio Access Networks
standardization within ETSI, develops the HIPERLAN/2 specifications.
In Europe HIPERLAN/2 and 802.11a will operate in the same frequency
spectrum and the use of the technology is restricted. It is up to the different
national regulatory authorities to decide on the use of the technology.
HomeRF
Short for home radio frequency. Designed specifically for wireless networks in
homes - in contrast to 802.11, which was created for use in businesses -HomeRF networks are designed to be more affordable to home users than other
wireless technologies. Based on frequency hopping and using radio frequency
waves for the transmission of voice and data, HomeRF has a range of up to 150
feet. HomeRF uses Shared Wireless Access Protocol.
IrDA
Short for Infrared Data Association, a group of device manufacturers that
developed a standard for transmitting data via infrared light waves.
Increasingly, computers and other devices (such as printers) come with IrDA
ports. This enables you to transfer data from one device to another without any
cables. For example, if both your laptop computer and printer have IrDA ports,
you can simply put your computer in front of the printer and output a document,
without needing to connect the two with a cable.
IrDA ports support roughly the same transmission rates as traditional parallel
ports. The only restrictions on their use are that the two devices must be within
a few feet of each other and there must be a clear line of sight between them.
GSM
Originally GSM stood for "Groupe Spécial Mobile". Now it stands for "Global
System for Mobile Communications". GSM is the most popular standard for 2G
mobile networks.
Today's second-generation GSM networks deliver high quality and secure
mobile voice and data services (such as SMS/Text Messaging) with full
roaming capabilities across the world.
GPRS
Short for General Packet Radio Service, a standard for wireless
communications which runs at speeds up to 115 kilobits per second, compared
with current systems' which runs at 9.6 kilobits.
GPRS has been standardised by ETSI as part of the GSM Phase 2+
development. IT represents the first implementation of packet switching within
GSM, which is essentially a circuit switched technology. Rather than sending a
21
continuous stream of data over a permanent connection, packet switching only
utilises the network when there is data to be sent.
GPRS, which has been standardised by ETSI as part of the GSM Phase 2+
development, represents the first implementation of packet switching within
GSM, which is essentially a circuit switched technology. Rather than sending a
continuous stream of data over a permanent connection, packet switching only
utilises the network when there is data to be sent. Using GPRS will enable users
to send and receive data at speeds of up to 115kbit/s.
UMTS
UMTS stands for 'Universal Mobile Telecommunications System'
UMTS is one of the major new 'third generation' (3G) mobile communications
systems being developed within the framework defined by the ITU and known
as IMT-2000
UMTS will deliver low-cost, high-capacity mobile communications offering
data rates as high as 2Mbit/ sec under stationary conditions with global roaming
and other advanced capabilities
UMTS is a modular system that incorporates several technologies that realise
the convergence of existing and future mobile and fixed networks, including the
Internet. The UMTS concept embraces also all applications and services that
can be offered to the end-user.
B. Introduction to the 802.11 family of standards
In June 1997, the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE)
finalised the initial standard for wireless LANs, IEEE 802.11. This standard
specified a 2.4GHz operating frequency with data rates of 1 and 2Mbps. When
deploying a wireless LAN using the initial version of 802.11, you could opt for
using frequency hopping spread spectrum (FHSS) or direct sequence spread
spectrum (DSSS). Since the ratification of the initial 802.11 standard, the IEEE
802.11 Working Group (WG) has made several revisions through various task
groups.
Task groups within the 802.11 WG enhance portions of the 802.11 standard. A
particular letter corresponding to each standard/ revision, such as 802.11a,
802.11b, and so on, represents the different task groups.
As all 802.x standards, the 802.11 protocol covers the medium access layer
(MAC) and physical layer. The standard in fact covers three physical layers.
These are direct-sequence spread spectrum, frequency hopping spread spectrum
and infrared. A single MAC layer supports all the three physical layers,
provides a interface to upper layers and performs certain functions normally
related to upper-layer protocols. MAC supports functions like Fragmentation,
Packet Retransmissions and Acknowledges.
22
802-11a - 802.11a is a Physical Layer (PHY) standard (IEEE Std. 802.11a1999) that specifies operating in the 5GHz UNII band using orthogonal
frequency division multiplexing (OFDM). 802.11a supports data rates ranging
from 6 to 54Mbps. 802.11a-based products became available in late 2001.
802.11b - 802.11b enhances the initial 802.11 DSSS PHY to include 5.5Mbps
and 11Mbps data rates in addition to the 1Mbps and 2Mbps data rates of the
initial standard. 802.11 finalised this standard (IEEE Std. 802.11b-1999) in late
1999. To provide the higher data rates, 802.11b uses CCK (Complementary
Code Keying), a modulation technique that makes efficient use of the radio
spectrum.
802.11c - 802.11c provide required information to ensure proper bridge
operations. This project is completed, and related procedures are part of the
IEEE 802.11c standard. Product developers utilise this standard when
developing access points. There's really not much in this standard relevant to
wireless LAN installers.
802.11d - When 802.11 first became available, only a handful of regulatory
domains (e.g., U.S., Europe, and Japan) had rules in place for the operation of
802.11 wireless LANs. In order to support a widespread adoption of 802.11, the
802.11d task group has an ongoing charter to define PHY requirements that
satisfy regulatory within additional countries. This is especially important for
operation in the 5GHz bands because the use of these frequencies differ widely
from one country to another. As with 802.11c, the 802.11d standard mostly
applies to companies developing 802.11 products.
802.11e - Without strong quality of service (QoS), the existing version of the
802.11 standard doesn't optimise the transmission of voice and video. There's
currently no effective mechanism to prioritise traffic within 802.11. As a result,
the 802.11e task group is currently refining the 802.11 MAC (Medium Access
Layer) to improve QoS for better support of audio and video (such as MPEG-2)
applications.
802.11f - The existing 802.11 standard doesn't specify the communications
between access points in order to support users roaming from one access point
to another. The 802.11 WG purposely didn't define this element in order to
provide flexibility in working with different distribution systems (i.e., wired
backbones that interconnect access points).
The problem, however, is that access points from different vendors may not
interoperate when supporting roaming. 802.11f is currently working on
23
specifying an inter access point protocol that provides the necessary
information that access points need to exchange to support the 802.11
distribution system functions (e.g., roaming).
802.11g - The charter of the 802.11g task group is to develop a higher speed
extension (up to 54Mbps) to the 802.11b PHY, while operating in the 2.4GHz
band. 802.11g will implement all mandatory elements of the IEEE 802.11b
PHY standard. For example, an 802.11b user will be able to associate with an
802.11b access point and operate at data rates up to 11Mbps. In early 2002,
802.11g decided to use OFDM instead of DSSS as the basis for providing the
higher data rate extensions.
802.11h - 802.11h addresses the requirements of the European regulatory
bodies. It provides dynamic channel selection (DCS) and transmits power
control (TPC) for devices operating in the 5GHz band (802.11a). In Europe,
there's a strong potential for 802.11a interfering with satellite communications,
which have "primary use" designations. Most countries authorise WLANs for
"secondary use" only. Through the use of DCS and TPC, 802.11h will avoid
interference in a way similar to HiperLAN/2, the European-based competitor to
802.11a. 802.11h hopes to have their standard finalised sometime before the
end of 2003.
802.11i - 802.11i is actively defining enhancements to the MAC Layer to
counter the issues related to wired equivalent privacy (WEP). The existing
802.11 standard specify the use of relatively weak, static encryption keys
without any form of key distribution management. This makes it possible for
hackers to access and decipher WEP-encrypted data on your WLAN. 802.11i
will incorporate 802.1x and stronger encryption techniques, such as AES
(Advanced Encryption Standard).
At the moment only 802.11, 802.11a, 802.11b and 802.11d are approved
standards by IEEE. 820.11 is also adopted by ISO/IEC.
References, standards and background readings
References
[1] The Wireless LAN Association - http://www.wlana.com/index.html
[2] Webophedia.com - an online encyclopaedia for computer technology
http://webopedia.com/
[3] Wirelessweeek Magazine - an online magazine for all type of wireless
information http://www.wirelessweek.com/
[4] Report no. 22 from the UMTS-forum: "Impact & opportunity. Public
wireless LANs and 3G business revenues", July 2002
[5] http://www.spectrumstrategy.com/
[6] http://www.strategyanalytics.com/press/PR00012.htm .Press release
from Wireless Network Strategies.
[7] From Nordic wireless watch
http://www.nordicwirelesswatch.com/wireless/story.html?story_id=176
4
24
[8] From wirelessweek.com
http://www.wirelessweek.com/index.asp?layout=story&articleId=NEa0
913370.7iw
Standards
IEEE WLAN standards - The standards are not freely available, but they can be
downloaded for personal use from the IEEE homepages.
http://standards.ieee.org/getieee802/
IEEE 802.11, 1999 Edition (ISO/IEC 8802-11: 1999) IEEE Standards for
Information Technology -- Telecommunications and Information Exchange
between Systems -- Local and Metropolitan Area Network -- Specific
Requirements -- Part 11: Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) and
Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications
IEEE 802.11a-1999 (8802-11:1999/Amd 1:2000(E)), IEEE Standard for
Information technology—Telecommunications and information exchange
between systems—Local and metropolitan area networks—Specific
requirements—Part 11: Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) and
Physical Layer (PHY) specifications—Amendment 1: High-speed Physical
Layer in the 5 GHz band
IEEE 802.11b-1999 Supplement to 802.11- 1999,Wireless LAN MAC and
PHY specifications: Higher speed Physical Layer (PHY) extension in the 2.4
GHz band
802.11b-1999/Cor1-2001, IEEE Standard for Information technology—
Telecommunications and information exchange between systems—Local and
metropolitan area networks—Specific requirements—Part 11: Wireless LAN
Medium Access Control (MAC) and Physical Layer (PHY) specifications—
Amendment 2: Higher-speed Physical Layer (PHY) extension in the 2.4 GHz
band—Corrigendum1
IEEE 802.11d-2001, Amendment to IEEE 802.11- 1999, (ISO/IEC 8802-11)
Information technology-- Telecommunications and information exchange
between systems--Local and metropolitan area networks--Specific
requirements--Part 11: Wireless LAN Medium Access Control (MAC) and
Physical Layer (PHY) Specifications: Specification for Operation in Additional
Regulartory Domains
Background reading/web sites
"The telecom market 2001 - Development of mobility and broadband services"
"Det Norske mobilmarkedet"
Reports from the Norwegian Post and Telecommunication Authority
"Informasjon om regelverk for trådløse nettverk (WLAN)"
Information from the Norwegian Post and Telecommunication Authority
http://www.npt.no/
25
Telecom revy - http://telecom.no/
The news magazine Computerworld - http://www.computerworld.com/
Broadband Wireless Exchange Magazine http://www.bbwexchange.com/magazines/index.asp
The Wireless LAN Association - http://www.wlana.com/index.html
Wirelessweek Magazine - an online magazine for all type of wireless
information http://www.wirelessweek.com/
Freenetworks.org - resources concerning the various free/open wireless
networking projects going on around the world.
http://www.freenetworks.org/
TheFeature - an opinionated, independent voice focused on issues relating to
the development and deployment of the wireless and mobile Internet
http://www.thefeature.com/index.jsp
802.11b Networking News - news and other features about the standard.
http://80211b.weblogger.com/
Abbreviations/definitions
Term
802.11
ARPU
ESSID
GPRS
GSM
IEC
IEEE
IMT-2000
IrDA
ITU
Mobil IP
Explanation
802.11 refer to a family of specifications developed by the
IEEE for wireless LAN technology. 802.11 specify an overthe-air interface between a wireless client and a base station
or between two wireless clients.
Average return per user
The Extended Service Set ID (ESSID) is the name of the
network you wish to access. It is used to identify different
wireless networks
General Packet Radio Service
Groupe Spécial Mobile or
Global System for Mobile Communications
International Electrotechnical Committee http://www.iec.ch/
Abbreviation of Institute of Electrical and Electronics
Engineers, pronounced I-triple-E.
ITU initiative for a global standardised 3G wireless network.
Infrared Data Association.
International Telecommunication Union http://www.itu.int/
Mobile IP is a technology that allows a network node
(“mobile node”) to migrate from its “home” network to other
networks, either within same administration domain, or to
other administrative domains. Mobile IP is able to track a
mobile host without needing to change the mobile node long26
SWAP
UMTS
UNII
WECA
WI-FI
WLAN
term IP address.
Shared Wireless Access protocol
Universal Mobile Telecommunications System
Short for Unlicensed National Information Infrastructure.
Designated to provide short-range, high-speed wireless
networking communication at low cost, U-NII consists of
three frequency bands of 100 MHz each in the 5 GHz band:
5.15-5.25GHz
Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance.
Short for wireless fidelity and is another name for IEEE
802.11b.
Acronym for wireless local-area network
27