"The millennial generation expects to be able to consume content whenever and wherever it wants," he says. "That necessitates a certain amount of mobility. In this evolving context, what had been a set-top box attached to a television now becomes a mobile or a tablet sitting in the bedroom, on public transport, or sitting in some other private room where content is consumed."
Walkenhorst expects technology to evolve to the point where devices will connect seamlessly to the best wireless network available, regardless of technology and without the user having to worry about access credentials.
"LTE [long-term evolution] today is a nearly always-available network. Mobile devices just connect to a service provider. You don't need to put in a password. The phone or the SIM card provides the equivalent of a certificate that allows me to join. There is no reason we cannot take that type of technology and apply it to all forms of wireless. When this happens wireless will become a more ubiquitous technology. People just want it to work. They don't care if it's LTE, Wi-Fi or some other wireless technology," he explains.
Also driving the move to wireless is the cost and, in some cases, the difficulty of providing fixed network broadband access into homes, Walkenhorst argues.
"The cost of putting fiber into the home is anywhere from $1,000 to $1,500. Most of that is spent on trenching and on repairs to the customer's neighborhood. But if I get to within 100 meters of the home and use broadband wireless technology for those last few meters, I can avoid most of those costs. In a large multi-dwelling unit, I can put fiber into the building and put in wireless repeaters and provide access to individual units through wireless. Then I don't have to run Ethernet cable or copper or coax to every unit."
Walkenhorst says Technicolor intends to leverage its leadership of the home gateway market to become a lead player in this wireless broadband future.
"Technicolor is the world's best customer-premises equipment gateway manufacturer. We understand what it means to provide wireless in the home, via Wi-Fi. Now we are looking at ways to extend wireless broadband networks into the home. We have a number of partners and new technologies we are working with. We have a plan, and we are executing on it now."
To listen in on the podcast or read the full Q&A with Walkenhorst visit:
http://thefuturetrust.technicolor.com/article/content-experiences-everywhere/technicolors-connected-home-cto-jon-walkenhorst-sees-the-future-of-broadband-and-its-wireless/
Journalists and analysts are free to pull quotes from this Q&A feature with attribution in media and market reports. For more details and context, contact:
Lane Cooper
+1 323 817 7547
Lane.cooper@technicolorpr.com
Alicia Garcia Llanas
Alicia.Garcia-Llanas@technicolor.com
+44 (0) 7896 954 944
Andre Rodriguez
+1 323 817 6716
andre.rodriguez@technicolor.com
Jayne Garfitt
Proactive PR
jayne.garfitt@proactive-pr.com
+44 7788 315587
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