(found on Slashdot) Original Article March 27, 2003 CDMA Pushed on Postwar Iraq By Michael Singer A coalition is underfoot in the U.S. Congress to replace European with American cell phone technology in Iraq as soon as the conflict is over and the country rebuilds. Congressman Darrell Issa (R.-Calif.) Wednesday introduced a bill based on a letter to the Pentagon, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and other lawmakers demanding that the Department of Defense and USAID show favor to CDMA (define) technology made by San Diego-based QUALCOMM (Quote, Company Info). Iraq needs a mobile-phone service. According to the U.N.'s International Telecommunication Union's 2001 survey, Iraq, North Korea and Afghanistan were the last three major countries without a major mobile infrastructure. The current reconstruction plan involves using U.S. funds to install a European-based wireless technology known as GSM (define) for a new Iraqi cell phone system. Issa's bill (HR 1441) would give preference to American companies, including QUALCOMM. "If European GSM technology is deployed in Iraq, much of the equipment used to build the cell phone system would be manufactured in France, Germany, and elsewhere in western and northern Europe. Furthermore, royalties paid on the technology would flow to French and European sources, not U.S. patent holders," Issa said in his letter to Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld and USAID Administrator, Ambassador Wendy Chamberlain. While QUALCOMM's roots are deeply embedded in U.S. military, the wireless giant is taking a neutral stance to the issue. "QUALCOMM is supportive of the effort to promote the deployment of CDMA in post-conflict Iraq. CDMA offers significant voice and data advantages over GSM, and is the basis for the next generation of wireless communications. Deploying CDMA will provide the most advanced wireless services, including position location capabilities, to those individuals working to rebuild Iraq," QUALCOMM spokesperson Christine Trimble issued in a statement. Politics aside, a massive CDMA launch may cause problems for the region now, but not in the future. If CDMA were the dominant technology in Iraq today, customers traveling to a nearby country that has only a GSM network wouldn't be able to use a CDMA phone there. Down the road, the lines will be less rigid. While the two technologies can co-exist, they are not compatible -- yet. Both are evolution in process from 2G to 3G. They are as follows: CDMA > CDMA2000 1XRTT > CDMA 1X-EV DO(data only)/DV (data and voice) TDMA > GSM > GPRS > Enhanced Data GSM Environment (EDGE) > UMTS or WCDMA. "From a purely technological there neither has an advantage. As you move towards 3G, the lines disappear," said Jupitermedia Senior Analyst Joe Laszlo. "It depends on what you prioritize. CDMA does use the radio spectrum better and has a marginal advantage in terms of cost of equipment, but GSM is more widely available." There are combinations of the two technologies. QUALCOMM, for example, is currently testing a hybrid CDMA/GSM technology in China called GSM1x. GSM and CDMA platforms have historically been broken down along geographic lines. GSM is used all over Europe, plus many countries in the Middle East, Asia, Africa, South America, Australia, and North America, while the United States is firmly rooted in CDMA and TDMA (define) technology. Asia and Latin America have gotten a blitz of CDMA technology courtesy QUALCOMM, but neither country has established a de facto standard. CDMA carriers include Verizon, Sprint PCS and QUALCOMM with an estimated number of 67 million users. GSM holds upwards of 60 percent of the mobile phone market. Backers of the GSM standard include Nokia and Ericsson. The standard uses 900 MHz and 1800 MHz in Europe. In North America, GSM uses the 1900 MHz. Issa's other motivation for standing behind CDMA is that some of its cell phones include an internal global positioning system (GPS) feature that allows the precision location of callers in times of emergency. The congressman claims European GSM cell phones do not have integrated GPS. "If U.S. relief workers in Iraq are equipped with CDMA cell phones with GPS, they will be immediately locatable in case of terrorist attack or kidnapping. Finally, because U.S. CDMA systems are compliant with the U.S. Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, this system provides all necessary access for law enforcement in post-conflict Iraq," Issa said in his letter. The bill is expected to be referred to the House International Relations and the House Armed Services committees for debate this week.
After today's JDAMs, the Baath party GSM system may be no more. If Iraq goes CDMA, they will be the 4th country in the Middle East with CDMA networks.
Another article on the same report.... The California, USA, Congressman Darrell Issa has initiated a campaign to promote CDMA as the technology of choice for any future mobile phone network in Iraq. He has written to U.S. Agency for International Development demanding that the American CDMA system be used in preference to a system that he considers inherently European, and specifically French. His letter harks back to the older, and long abandoned name for GSM - Groupe Speciale Mobile, presumably for its French language overtones, as opposed to Global System for Mobile Communications, its anglophile name today. He says that if "European" GSM technology is deployed in Iraq, much of the equipment used to build the cell phone system would be manufactured in France, Germany, and elsewhere in western and northern Europe. Furthermore, royalties paid on the technology would flow to French and European sources, not U.S. patent holders. He seems to be under the impression therefore that Motorola has no interest in bidding for a GSM infrastructure contract - nor would Lucent, or Canada's Nortel Networks. This may well concern the shareholders of those companies who would be expecting them to bid for any available contracts. He also says that CDMA phones incorporate GPS location technology, which may be a surprise to the vast majority of cell phone owners who will be hunting through their handset manuals looking for this function. His legitimate concern is that relief workers could be kidnapped or attacked, and a location aware handset would then enable them to be found. However, inserting GPS into a cell phone is nothing to do with whether it is GSM or CDMA - but down to the handset manufacturer simply implementing a location based solution. Also, GPS is not the only solution for locating a cell phone, network based solutions exist that can be deployed on both technology platforms. The fact that a GPS handset will be able to give its location anywhere in Iraq is pointless if the phone is out of cellular coverage though. Of course, the greatest irony could be that a CDMA network is deployed - and Nokia wins the bulk of the handset sales contracts. Ironic, as Nokia, one of the "northern Europe" companies that Issa wants to block from working in Iraq makes CDMA handsets, but uses its own proprietary chipsets and doesn't pay royalties to Qualcomm. It may be worth noting that Congressman Issa represents San Diego, hometown of Qualcomm who owns the CDMA technology used in cell phones. Also, in January, the US government's, National Communications System (NCS) awarded a priority connection contract, ensuring phone service would be unaffected by network congestion to T-Mobile, a GSM network.
excellent info Kenster ! could you give the source, please? topnic.com/cgi/read.cgi/t65886160 Fri 28 March 2003 03:49PM GMT GSMers hit back at US Congressman's Iraqi mobile plea It's all a bit embarrassing, really... The GSM community has responded to a southern California congressman who has called for the adoption of CDMA mobile technology in post-war Iraq, to ensure the rebuilding efforts don't benefit European vendors at the expense of American industry. Congressman Darrell Issa two days ago wrote a letter to US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and the US Agency for International Development, urging them not to back the building of a cellular phone system in Iraq based on GSM. Rob Conway, GSM Association CEO, said in a statement: "Congressman Issa's intervention that GSM is an 'outdated French standard' is as ill-timed as it is misinformed. At the moment our first priority must be to offer our support and sympathies to the people putting their lives on the line to liberate Iraq. "The right time to debate the technology will be when the real conflict is over." The congressman's comments have been criticised on the web and by many within the industry, for two main reasons. First, he has chosen to concentrate on the French and European connotations of GSM. Though the most prevalent cellular phone standard around the world it is ubiquitous in Europe and Issa has chosen to refer to it as 'Groupe Speciale Mobile' rather than the more up to date moniker 'Global System for Mobile Communications'. At a time when the US has relabelled French fries as 'Freedom Fries' and suggested a boycott of French wine - because of the country's opposition to the current conflict in Iraq - the choice of language is significant. However, the GSM Association has pointed out GSM equipment is also widely sold by North American vendors such as Lucent, Motorola and Nortel. Second, Congressman Issa represents the 49th District of California, north of San Diego - an area that is home to Qualcomm, the US vendor that owns most of the patents to CDMA, the mobile standard that is GSM's main rival. Qualcomm is also a contributor to Issa's political coffers, though the company - in common with much of US big business - has in the past made donations to a number of candidates, notably backing Democrat campaigns such as ex-President Bill Clinton's. Qualcomm declined to comment for this story. Some experts believe Issa's claims are not just insensitive and poorly timed but also in vain. Consultancy Ovum has written that Iraq, to aid roaming and international development, is likely to fall in line with the standard used in countries around it such as Turkey, Israel, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia - and that standard is GSM. At the moment, there are only a few people with mobile phones in Iraq - mostly in eth ruling elite - because of UN sanctions. Tony Hallett
Sure, here's the link: http://www.cellular-news.com/story/8581.shtml I believe Israel also has a CDMA 800Mhz network but I doubt there's gonna be a lot of roaming traffic between Israel and Iraq. I wonder if after Iraq is done with, the US will try to build a CDMA network in Cuba after Castro is gone? That'll help to broaden coverage as we already have CDMA in Jamaica and the Dominican Republic. Cuba is actually a hot vacation spot for Canadians and Spaniards.
Wow, our troops have not even reached Baghdad, and they are already trying to figure out what kind of wireless network to build there. Ok, I guess I will put my 2 cents worth in.........As much as I would like to see them build a CDMA network, I think its more realistic if they do a GSM network, so to keep what the rest of the region is using. Hmmmm, wonder who is going to build and pay for this network? Our taxpayers? The people of Iraq?
It gets more surreal every day! They need to win the war first, then worry about cell phones. This kinda undermines their argument that it's all about liberating the Iraqis and protecting us from terrorism, along with other talk about contracts, etc. PS: Not that there's anything wrong with it, but Issa sounds like a Middle Eastern name. I wonder if the congressman has some family or friends over there that might benefit from this deal. Like they say, follow the money...
Coalminer, It's U.S. tax dollars. That's what this pork barrell politician and full time idiot Issa is squealing about. I normally wouldn't do this, but as a former soldier this ticks me off completely! So I am repeating my comments in response to another version of this report that was posted in the wireless technologies forum. In that article a Cingular official was approached for comment about this fool not knowing that GSM is provided by U.S. companies. "The gentleman from Cingular is of course correct. This is absolutely pathetic. What is even worse and perhaps should scare us all the more, is the fact that technical decisions such as this and others that directly affect consumers are being made by people who most likely don't have a clue what the acronyms mean and are only responding to corporate dollar signs and the desire to get elected again. The only "technical" item these people are adept at is inflaming public opinion through promoting protectionism, scare tactics, generating hysteria, and taking full advantage of the opportunities they have created. The situations that forced this action upon us should be resolved and decisions as to how the reconstruction is to be handled should be made in a world forum in cooperation with the people of the country who must live there. These decisions should not be made or even influenced by political opportunists who are looking to line their own pockets or those of their local constituency. We must rise above tactics such as these if we are to progress as members of the human race."
^^ Oh like Cheney? His company where he used to be CEO got picked to re-build (or something) the Iraqi oil wells, something with oil anyway. Hmm sounds fishy IMO. Wonder if that company still pays him something?
Actually, the USAID turned them down because they never submitted a bid, suggesting that they tried to circumvent the process....
Qualcomm is in his district - and is one of his biggest contributors according to articles in the Guardian and the Wall Street Journal - - sheureka
I was surprised to see a reporter (Jorge Ramos) using his cellphone in the desert near the Kwait border. He was using it to let one of the soldiers talk to his mother. Yes, it was a cell phone, not a satellite phone because it had no antenna and I could clearly tell it was either a Nokia 3310 or 3330 phone as he was showing it to the camera. GSM networks must be really robust in those areas to reach into the desert areas like that. He said it was incredible because it worked everywhere in the areas he was. We are still dreaming of having cellular networks that work like that.
Based on my experience in the Middle East, the cellular coverage is quite good. I took a jitney down the Sinai Peninsula last September from Taba to Dahab (45 km north of Sharm al Sheik). In the northern part of this route, I could connect to Israeli, Jordanian, and Saudi networks in addition to the Egyptian networks. I could maintain the connection with Jordan Fastlink until we were well south of Nuweiba. When I reached Dahab, I could choose either Egyptian Mobinil or the Saudi network. The Saudi side of the Gulf of Aqaba does not have many inhabitants based on few visible clusters of lights at night. However, the cellular coverage is excellent. I would expect that Kuwait would also have excellent cellular coverage.
You know, that doesn't supprise me considering a.) how ricj=h the roch people/companies in some of those countries are (almost on par with the U.S.) and b.) In a dessert country, if you can't make a call when your truck breaks down in the middle of the desert at night. Your not stuck, you ate probably dead.
Speaking of bunkers, I wonder what they use down there to communicate. Here's a good article: Saddamâ??s Bunkers There are miles and miles of tunnels, too, criss-crossing Baghdad. I hope they don't have to go into them and hunt Saddam and his cronies down. On a side note, I was checking out at Circuit City last night and noticed the guy in front had a USMC ID card in his wallet. I asked if he was going to Iraq and he looked at me in total surprise. Then I explained how I'd seen his ID card and he said he wasn't going....
Issa is only getting flamed from the GSM community. http://www.e-insite.net/eb-mag/index.asp?layout=article&articleid=CA289153&spacedesc=news
