ABI: WiMAX May Not Deliver on Its Royalty Promises

ABI: WiMAX May Not Deliver on Its Royalty Promises

According to ABI Research, WiMAX solutions in the future will generate fewer royalties than LTE or UMB. WiMAX, the firm said, has effectively “democratized” the 4G space, but this democratization of IP will result in more, not fewer, IP royalties for the technology. ABI Research director Stuart Carlaw said that the diversification of IP holdings in 4G technologies and especially WiMAX is something of a double-edged sword.

“On one hand, the number of companies with vested interests in the technologies’ success is far greater; on the other hand, the number of companies likely to succeed in any market is apt to be far smaller than the number of companies that hold IP,” said Carlaw in a statement. He noted that the only vehicle left for WiMAX providers hoping to recoup R&D dollars is to look for revenue from licenses.

ABI Research’s recent study, “4G Intellectual Property and Royalties,” indicates that 4G technologies are likely to see similar royalty rates to those for 3G devices no matter the efforts of next-generation mobile networks, EU legislation and similar initiatives. Carlaw further explained that the industry should be braced to expect royalty rates for 4G technologies in the range of 4.8 percent to 7.7 percent with the best position being somewhere around 3.2 percent.