Infonetics Research: Carriers name Motorola, Alcatel-Lucent, Alvarion, Huawei top mobile WiMAX vendors

Carriers recently surveyed by analyst firm Infonetics Research named Motorola, Alcatel-Lucent, Alvarion, and Huawei as the "top vendors" in the mobile WiMAX equipment market. Nine additional vendors received votes for top vendor from a smaller number of carriers surveyed.

The survey, Perception Is Everything: WiMAX Vendor Leadership Service Provider Survey , published this month by Infonetics, shows that the top 4 named vendors are front-runners in announcing mobile WiMAX customer numbers, and the first 3 lead in worldwide revenue share. Interestingly, not all service provider respondents named their own mobile WiMAX vendor as a top vendor.

"Most WiMAX operators lack the deep pockets of longer established mobile incumbents. Vendors need a cohesive cost of ownership strategy that incorporates infrastructure, backhaul costs, and end-point costs. One of the reasons Huawei scores consistently highly in service provider vendor ratings in our survey is that Huawei presents a compelling cost/quality story that has resonance for the small, regionally focused, and often greenfield operators that typify the WiMAX arena," said Richard Webb, directing analyst for WiMAX at Infonetics Research.

The survey, conducted in October and November 2008, asked purchase decision makers at incumbent, competitive, and mobile operators that own and operate a mobile WiMAX network (or will by 2010) about their:

--  Mobile WiMAX and cellular mobile network deployment plans
--  Most important criteria for choosing a mobile WiMAX equipment vendor
--  Familiarity with 10 mobile WiMAX vendors
--  Perception of the top vendors in the mobile WiMAX market
--  Ratings of 10 mobile WiMAX vendors based on 7 criteria: handsets and
    applications, WiMAX network performance, end-to-end solutions, pricing,
    product feature/roadmap, service and support, and ecosystem

Of the operators surveyed, 41% are from Europe, the Middle East, and Africa (EMEA), 23% are from Asia Pacific, 18% are from North America, and 18% are from Central and Latin America (CALA).

For report highlights , log in to Infonetics' online portal from www.infonetics.com (see WiMAX Continuous Research Service). For sales, contact Larry Howard, vice president, at larry@infonetics.com or 1 (408) 583-3335.

Infonetics Research ( www.infonetics.com ) is an international market research and consulting firm serving the communications industry since 1990. A leader in defining and tracking emerging and established technologies in all world regions, Infonetics helps clients plan, strategize, and compete more effectively.

Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=908002

Press Contact Richard Webb Directing Analyst - WiMAX, Microwave, and Mobile Devices Infonetics Research 1 408-583-3369 or 44 (0) 1689-851-618 Email Contact