Motorola fights on in ultrawideband battle

JB: This common signalling mode will let piconets [a small network of devices] talk to each other regardless of their signalling mode. This helps with worldwide issues of regulations, performance and scalability. If you want to have a short-range, fixed architecture Wireless USB link you can do that, but other devices in range can choose higher speed, shorter distance or slower speed, longer distance links at the same time. It makes for much better power use and range of options.

The details have yet to be decided, but the common signalling would be a very robust 10 megabits a second, which would add less than 1 percent overhead to a link. Several of the CE [consumer electronics] companies in the MBOA have said that this makes a lot of sense, especially as there's no proof that everything people are saying today will work as promised.

With the standards process, we'll produce a report, get other companies to report on how they'll build on that compromise, and create a proposal that includes the common signalling mode. We don't know what Intel will do -- they're asking us questions about direct sequence, about some of the issues they've concentrated on. We'll spend time talking to Intel if they'll listen to us, and time talking to the CE companies in MBOA. If Intel is really interested in creating a broad market for UWB they can't walk away.

The only reason would be to lock the market down and force people to live with their solution, poisoning the market for the wider range of solutions. Companies like Apple are saying "we want to use it for something like an iPod" -- they want a total solution, not just a piece. The companies in 802.15.3a have not been offered an alternative for a permanent solution. Now they have one. Keeping this in the IEEE keeps it open -- places like Japan are worried that the MBOA are taking the standard away from the IEEE, and Japan wants to be involved with this to create a global standard.

MR: In my view, Intel has been posturing -- when we start shipping, they'll have to listen. It's been cast as a standards battle between Intel and whoever, but it's a race to get a solution to market first. What any organisation wants to do is achieve through standards or a special interest group what it can't achieve in the market alone. When Intel might say there's no industry support [for the Motorola proposal], how can they explain that five meetings in a row didn't move the needle from 60:40? People who don't want to fight with Intel in public will fight to keep a path alive in private.

JB: CE companies like Samsung, Sharp and so on don't want a Wireless USB solution. They want a solution that fits their space -- peer to peer, portable devices talking to fixed devices, mixed modes, and a very good quality of service -- which Wireless USB hasn't demonstrated. Certain products will take Wireless USB, but not things like digital cameras and hard disk-based portable solutions like the Apple iPod. Wireless USB is too complex and power-hungry. Intel and its companies look at UWB as a PC standard.