White Space represents a white-hot opportunity for Voyant.
Voyant’s ability to continuously create solutions (leveraging their large IP portfolio) for emerging multi-billion dollar wireless markets, validates why we think this company represents “The Next Generation of the Internet”.
Voyant’s white space radio announcement makes them a player in both the 700 MHz spectrum and in the White Space initiatives, and puts the company on the radar screens of Google, Microsoft, Intel, Dell, HP, Earthlink and Philips, the White Space Coalition (WSC) and all 700 MHz players.
By February 17, 2009, TV broadcasters will must transmitting using the 700 MHz spectrum, previously used for analog television.
The FCC divided this into two chunks, an upper and a lower band. These have been auctioned off already and winners included Verizon, AT&T, and many others. They intend to use this spectrum for things like 4G cell phones. This will end up being similar to how they dictate cell phone spectrum today. A carrier (like Verizon) mandates exactly what the RF wave form is and things are fixed...then it becomes a commodity and a race for volume production of integrated chip sets etc...just like cell phones and WiFi now.
The second part is the so-called White Spaces. This is the one where Voyant intends to play. The FCC has decided to open up the spectrum, which is currently occupied primarily by UHF TV stations. They have decided to allow unlicensed operation, as long as it doesn’t interfere with licensed users. Access to these White Spaces will also begin on 17 Feb 2009.
Unlike the 700 MHz and traditional cell phone spectrum, this is where there will be open access, a need to sense presence and then avoid primary users (digital TV), legacy users (wireless microphones), and other white space users through adaptable and over-the-air-programmable radios and devices.
Google does the heavy lifting for Voyant.
Earlier this year, Google submitted a proposal to the FCC that would allow unused television broadcast channels (“white space”) to be used for free mobile broadband services. Microsoft’s Bill Gates also urged the FCC to free up the white space spectrum for the same reason: cheap broadband access.
Google calls access to white spaces "a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to provide ubiquitous wireless broadband access to all Americans."
It is this huge amount of freed-up spectrum that creates a white-hot opportunity for Voyant.
Analog TVs not connected to satellite or cable service (think bunny ears) will stop working come February 17, 2009 – though digital TVs will still work. Much of the spectrum used to broadcast free analog TV to those TVs at the park, stadium parking lots, during power outages (storms), grandma’s house etc, instead will be freed up for other uses, like connecting mobile devices to the Net.
700 Mhz and the unused space in between TV channels (white space) represent another multi-billion dollar opportunity for Voyant .
What is “white space” and how big could it be?
White space is the unused regions of spectrum located between populated broadcast channels 2-51 on TVs not connected to satellite or cable service. Let’s say there was a Channel 21 and a Channel 23 in your area; then the spectrum of Channel 22 in your area is a white space. On your radio dial you might have a station at 97.3 and unused frequencies until 97.9. Your “bunny ear” TV has that same “space” in between populated channels, although you can’t see it. There is a lot of spectrum available in between these TV channels, and Google sees it as a prime spot for use of mobile handsets running its open-source Android platform.
Google’s Rick Whitt called white space “Wifi 2.0” or a “WiFi on steroids” and represents a $100B year plus market. It propagates much further, goes through walls much better than WiFi and is much cheaper. Every American could immediately have broadband Internet access. Billions of devices could also be connected to the Net too.
Companies like Verizon and T-Mobile are not currently envisioned to be the players in the white space. They are focused on 4G cell phones in the other licensed spectra that they own and control.
This spectrum should spawn a new generation of devices for broadband internet access in rural and suburban areas along with many other applications enabled by the attractive, very large areas that these bands are capable of covering.
Instead of “free analog TV”, think of this spectrum soon being used for “free Internet” with data transmission speeds of billions of bits per second. White space has the capability to replace WiFi as the default Internet connection for laptops, PCs, mobile phones, iPods, Playstations, cars, buses, refrigerators, digital cameras, RFID etc…anything that can, or will be, connected to the Internet.
White space, the Internet service provider for the “Internet of Things”.
White space operation can enable a ubiquitous Internet service provider that transmits directly from towers into businesses, homes at high speed over distances much greater than Wi-Fi. In addition, it is more competitive, cheaper and it is a great broadband solution for large areas without cable, dsl or fiber.
The White Space Coalition, made up of Google, Microsoft, Intel, HP, Dell, Earthlink, and Philips are devoted to making use of white space in the analog television spectrum to offer wireless broadband.. Because some companies have been having problems of late with their white space devices, and Microsoft withdrew its prototype after the device failed in three tests, a huge opportunity awaits for Voyant.
Coincidentally we know Voyant is already talking to some of these companies in regard to RocketStream, this white space radio product announcement makes them even more desirable and sought-after as a solution provider.
The FCC will soon make this white space available. Cognitive radio is exactly what is needed for this market.
When Technology Review listed “cognitive radio” as one of the most significant emerging technologies, we started digging for all of the potential players. We immediately added this nanocap to the list, and saw big cap potential. In our opinion, the 700 MHz spectrum auction and Google’s “open access” initiative creates a few multi-billion opportunities for Voyant.
A cognitive radio figures out which frequencies are quiet and picks one or more over which to transmit and receive data. In this case, it has to be agile. Voyant’s cognitive radio expertise is ideal for devices connecting to 700 MHz and the white space spectrum. Those devices include much more than mobile phones.
Former FCC chief engineer Edmond Thomas said he believes white space broadband could deliver download speeds of up to 80Mbps, which would make it extremely competitive with fiber-to-the-premises solutions like Verizon's FiOS networks.
Cognitive radio, combined with "white space" radio, finds channels in the UHF TV band that aren't currently being used by broadcasters and uses them for data connections, without interfering with existing TV signals. If they detect any interference with another user, they jump to a different frequency. That’s the “cognitive” part.
Google’s open-source white space initiative could be the biggest advancement for the Internet since the introduction of the browser. The browser enabled PCs to connect to the Internet. Voyant’s modulation techniques, in white space, could enable every American to receive true broadband Internet access and billions of devices to be connected to the Net.
Think the cable and satellite companies are worried? They should be.
The last time a spectrum auction was held by the FCC was in the early 1990’s for cell phone use. One micro cap company came up with a revolutionary modulation technique called Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) that allowed transmission across this spectrum. In 1993, the U.S. Telecommunications Industry Association adopted their CDMA technology as a cellular standard. Back in 1993, this company had a market capitalization under $100m. Today they are valued at over $70 Billion dollars.
The company that delivers the modulation standard for this spectrum has the capability to be even bigger than Qualcomm. Because of their early arrival here, they may be able to influence the standards here and follow a Qualcomm-like model
This is music to our ears.
At Voyant’s Investor Conference in Oct 07, CEO Dana Waldman outlined the 700Mhz and White Space markets as an opportunity for Voyant utilizing its unique Intellectual Property and engineering know-how.
“What Qualcomm and their modulation techniques (CDMA) did for the cell phone spectrum (standard) is what Voyant can do for the 700 MHz, white space spectrum”.
Qualcomm with their modulation techniques (CDMA) formed the standards for cell phone spectrum auctioned in the early 90’s. Voyant’s goal is to have their technology embedded on any device connected to this network.
Today they are delivering on that vision.
Voyant’s WSR is already in development, it has a real paying customer, it has generic capability across WS and other bands, including the 700 MHz auctioned bands and a subset of the ISM bands.
If Voyant’s modulating techniques can become the “standard” for 700 MHz and white space, their nano cap days should be over.
The two immediate major revenue opportunities for white space will be the modulation technique that connects any device to it (licensing) and delivering content to those devices. Voyant has the capability for both with their white space radio and their high-speed data transfer solution RocketStream.
We think it’s very possible a partnership with one or more of the WSC companies, or an inclusion in the White Space Coalition could develop. All of these companies want to see the white space take off and with Microsoft’s failing white space devices, Voyant and their white space radio makes them more valuable than ever.
A couple things we found interesting in the latest press release.
“The software-defined WSR can be reprogrammed over-the-air, allowing it to be remotely upgraded or reconfigured”.
“easily configured to support a broad range of other customers and applications” We see numerous applications for this white space radio.
“Voyant may use the WSR in its own aviation broadband service”. If that is the case, using this spectrum could allow them to bypass the wireless carriers as partners for their “true” aviation broadband service.
What we see:
Voyant’s mgmt team demonstrates (again) their ability to deliver a state-of-the-art solution for an emerging multi-billion dollar wireless market and provide a state-of-the-art solution utilizing their $200+ million stable of intellectual property.
By creating big broadband wireless pipes, they are proving why they are truly the “Next Generation Internet Company”.
The big picture here is Voyant’s ability to create “big pipes” for RocketStream to deliver content through them.
Voyant’s white space radio solution and recent order leads us to believe their Harris partnership could provide many more opportunities than just an aviation broadband solution. This announcement also puts the company on the radar screens of ALL 700-MHz-related players (hardware, content, service providers etc)
The company recently moved their headquarters to Mountain View CA, the headquarters of another major Internet company. If the company continues to introduce solutions that create these wireless big pipes solutions that can use RocketStream to deliver content on them, we think the company will be permanently stationed in Mountain View, although perhaps under a different name...
Voyant has already projected revenues from their aviation broadband solution in’09, and with the Feb 17, 2009 availability of white space; we feel Voyant is a quarter or two away from a significant ramp in revenues and Wall Street exposure. |
