O2 Shines Light on Fixed-Mobile Convergence

U.K. mobile operator O2 (News - Alert) is joining AT&T in adopting a cap for its high-end data plans.  AT&T has set a 2 Gbyte cap while O2 now says it will set a 1 Gbyte cap. Most observers rightly will focus on the shift this represents in broadband pricing. The other, more subtle angle is the way the new rules will shape the way most people experience fixed-mobile convergence.


There are several ways to look at fixed-mobile convergence, of which the ability to use devices or applications on either a fixed and mobile networks is but one scenario. But the ability to use a smartphone on both mobile and Wi-Fi networks is emerging as the common way most people experience fixed-mobile convergence, both on the device and application levels.

There are other angles, but the mobile now is assuming the greatest role there, as well. One form of convergence is the ability to receive a voice call, and use messaging features, on either a fixed or mobile device, at a fixed or remote location. That can be done in any number of ways, using an IP PBX (News - Alert) or hosted voice service. Increasingly, the informal way most people do this is simply by using their mobiles.

And though fixed-mobile convergence traditionally has been seen as a matter of voice and messaging integration, mobiles are emerging as a key part of the 'three screens' and 'place-shifting' video experience as well.

The use of Wi-Fi is key to the integration. Data caps mean users will have actual incentives to use their in-home Wi-Fi connections (fixed network access) rather than their mobile usage buckets, even when using the same display device. On the other hand, reliance on Wi-Fi access also suggests the emerging new 'killer app' for fixed broadband providers: wireless offload.

Irrespective of the current level at which caps are set, or future changes in those caps, users now have incentives they did not have in the past to use Wi-Fi connections. By definition, this changes the user experience from 'only mobile' to fixed-mobile, with transparency of application use.

At a high level, widespread use of Wi-Fi by mobiles also will change the context in which fixed-line and mobile service providers try to emulate advantages held by the other network, and in the case of mobility, change end user thinking about when a wireless service is a viable substitute for a fixed connection.

Fixed networks will always have an advantage in terms of raw bandwidth and cost per megabit. Mobile networks obviously have the advantage of location independence and device innovation and capability. Fixed networks tend to be used in a shared mode (members of a family or household or business) while mobile use is nearly always personal.

Those general constraints tend to illustrate the key challenges each network faces when attempting to shift usage from a rival access mode. Fixed networks tend to be shared, so substitution of a personal access and device for a shared access does not work so well. Nor is it as transparent as one might think to substitute a wireless data connection for a fixed connection.

On the other hand, fixed networks can replicate the mobility function, in a direct sense, only within a limited area immediately around a household or place of business. Also, fixed network devices continue to be primarily 'voice' handsets, whereas mobile devices increasingly are computers that also handle voice in a seamless way. That means the rate of innovation and replacement are much higher in the mobile space.

At some genuine level, it will be easier for a mobile network to exceed fixed line value at the application level. But it never will be possible to replicate fully the bandwidth a fixed network can offer. At a real level, fixed mobile convergence will be driven from the mobile side of the business, for the most part, as the full suite of mobile device services can be supported from a fixed connection.

Likewise, most fixed-line voice applications can be supported on a mobile network and device, as well as an emerging number of video applications. The point is that the mobile device, and applications that can be used on it, are emerging as the focal point of real-world convergence for most people.