Multi-industry effort completed to ensure fair sharing of spectrum

Austin, TX—September 21, 2016—As the result of a cross-industry effort and extensive research, discussion, and testing, Wi-Fi Alliance® today announces the availability of the industry’s Coexistence Test Plan. The test plan completion marks the successful culmination of several months of collaboration involving dozens of companies from both the Wi-Fi® and LTE-U communities. The test plan will help ensure LTE-U devices can demonstrate they share unlicensed spectrum fairly and will serve as a valuable tool for vendors and service providers seeking to improve how their deployments coexist with Wi-Fi networks. The Coexistence Test Plan is the only available mechanism that includes a comprehensive set of test scenarios agreed upon by industry as adequate to determine proper sharing, and Wi-Fi Alliance encourages all LTE-U vendors and operators to use the test plan to ensure their LTE-U devices and network deployments coexist fairly with Wi-Fi.

The industry developed the Coexistence Test Plan using an inclusive process that incorporated contributions from both the Wi-Fi and LTE-U communities. Early agreement on foundational principles, such as a commitment to maintaining the typical connectivity experience for Wi-Fi users and a clear definition of fairness, allowed completion of the work on an aggressive timeline and guided development of test plan specifics. These same, shared principles augmented by robust technical data were instrumental in finalizing aspects of the test plan where consensus was unachievable. Coming to an industry-agreed solution required compromises from all sides. Therefore, the test plan is designed to be used as an unedited whole. Alternate test approaches, such as selectively omitting or modifying portions of the test plan would not have been acceptable in this cross-industry effort since those tactics will not provide assurances of fair coexistence.

“Delivering a cross-industry coexistence testing solution was an unprecedented and difficult task, and the outcome will help ensure the billions of people who rely on Wi-Fi every day will continue to benefit from the same great user experience they have enjoyed for more than 15 years,” said Edgar Figueroa, president and CEO, Wi-Fi Alliance. “Wi-Fi connectivity underpins our daily lives, and Wi-Fi Alliance has an obligation to represent the needs of Wi-Fi users worldwide.”

Wi-Fi Alliance is not seeking any regulatory mandates for coexistence. Companies from several industries, including the LTE-U and Wi-Fi industries, agreed to develop the full Coexistence Test Plan in Wi-Fi Alliance. Wi-Fi Alliance encourages LTE-U vendors to test every LTE-U device against the entire Coexistence Test Plan, as it is the best way to demonstrate that LTE-U products share spectrum fairly. To that end, Wi-Fi Alliance is qualifying independent test laboratories to conduct the test regimen.

The full Coexistence Test Plan is available here: https://www.wi-fi.org/file/coexistence-test-plan

About Wi-Fi Alliance®

www.wi-fi.org

Wi-Fi Alliance® is a global non-profit industry association – our members are the worldwide network of companies that brings you Wi-Fi®. The members of our collaboration forum come from across the Wi-Fi ecosystem and share a common vision of connecting everyone and everything, everywhere. Since 2000, the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ seal of approval designates products with proven interoperability, industry-standard security protections, and the latest technology. Wi-Fi Alliance has certified more than 30,000 products, delivering the best user experience and encouraging the expanded use of Wi-Fi products and services in new and established markets. Today, billions of Wi-Fi products carry a significant portion of the world’s data traffic in an ever-expanding variety of applications.

Media contact:

Morgan Mathis

Highwire PR for Wi-Fi Alliance

wi-fi@highwirepr.com

+1-415-963-4174 ext. 37

Austin, Texas, July 14, 2016 – Today, the United States Federal Communication Commission adopted the Spectrum Frontiers proposal to identify and open substantial amounts of high-band spectrum (known as millimeter bands) for flexible use wireless broadband. The new rules would open nearly 11 GHz of spectrum, 7 GHz of which would be dedicated to unlicensed usage. Wi-Fi Alliance® welcomes this action as a necessary step to support the rapidly growing need for high-performance connectivity, driven by the billions of Wi-Fi® devices deploying every year and users’ seemingly limitless demand for data. By doubling the amount of unlicensed high-band spectrum available, the Commission will accelerate Wi-Fi’s delivery of a projected $547 billion in economic value by 2017.

Wi-Fi has enabled significant advancements, helping to connect billions of people around the world and becoming a necessary part of everyday life as the world’s default form of connectivity to the Internet. Nearly 2.5 billion Wi-Fi devices were sold in 2015 alone, with cumulative shipments expected to reach more than 28 billion in 2020. Today, Wi-Fi hotspots number nearly 5 million worldwide and more than 450 million households around the world currently use a Wi-Fi network. Given the expected number of connected devices, it is more important than ever to establish sound spectrum policy.

With WiGig devices entering the market now, the Spectrum Frontiers action is appropriate and timely. It will hasten delivery of next-generation services such as 5G and spread the ubiquity and economic benefits of Wi-Fi products to the millimeter wave bands. 

About Wi-Fi Alliance®
www.wi-fi.org
Wi-Fi Alliance® is a global non-profit industry association – our members are the worldwide network of companies that brings you Wi-Fi®. The members of our collaboration forum come from across the Wi-Fi ecosystem and share a common vision of connecting everyone and everything, everywhere. Since 2000, the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ seal of approval designates products with proven interoperability, industry-standard security protections, and the latest technology. Wi-Fi Alliance has certified more than 30,000 products, delivering the best user experience and encouraging the expanded use of Wi-Fi products and services in new and established markets. Today, billions of Wi-Fi products carry a significant portion of the world’s data traffic in an ever-expanding variety of applications. 

Media contacts:
Elliott Suthers
Highwire PR for Wi-Fi Alliance
wi-fi@highwirepr.com
+1-415-963-4174 ext. 6

New role will further Wi-Fi Alliance leadership in global regulatory discussion

AUSTIN, TEXAS and WASHINGTON — July 7, 2016—Wi-Fi Alliance® announced today the appointment of Alexander Roytblat as senior director of worldwide regulatory affairs. In this newly created role, Roytblat will lead Wi-Fi Alliance engagement with regulatory bodies around the world. The appointment comes at an important time for the Wi-Fi® community, as topics ranging from spectrum allocation, fair coexistence, and the introduction of new technologies promise to influence the wireless landscape.

“Wi-Fi is one of the world’s most ubiquitous and important technologies, touching nearly all aspects of our everyday lives,” said Edgar Figueroa, president and CEO of Wi-Fi Alliance. “One of Wi-Fi Alliance’s primary missions is to advocate for fair worldwide spectrum rules. Alex’s appointment will allow us to further that mission, as Alex employs his extensive experience to engage directly and effectively with regulatory bodies around the world.”

Mr. Roytblat joins Wi-Fi Alliance from the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC), where he served as the assistant chief of the Global Strategy & Negotiation Division, International Bureau. In this role, he led a team dedicated to the resolution of technical, regulatory, and policy issues pertaining to international radio regulations. During his time at the FCC, Roytblat served as the vice chair of the U.S. delegation to the World Radiocommunication Conference in 2003, 2007 and 2012, as well as the vice chair of the Department of State’s International Advisory Committee – Radiocommunication Sector. With over 20 years of experience in the field of international telecom regulations, he is an internationally recognized industry advocate.

“Wi-Fi Alliance plays a unique and critical role in promoting wireless connectivity for billions of consumers worldwide, while acting as a champion for sound spectrum policy and also as a facilitator of industry-wide collaboration and innovation,” offered Roytblat. “I’m honored to be joining the Wi-Fi Alliance executive team, and look forward to working with our members on the mission of connecting everyone and everything, everywhere.”

About Wi-Fi Alliance®
www.wi-fi.org
Wi-Fi Alliance® is a global non-profit industry association – our members are the worldwide network of companies that brings you Wi-Fi®. The members of our collaboration forum come from across the Wi-Fi ecosystem and share a common vision of connecting everyone and everything, everywhere. Since 2000, the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ seal of approval designates products with proven interoperability, industry-standard security protections, and the latest technology. Wi-Fi Alliance has certified more than 30,000 products, delivering the best user experience and encouraging the expanded use of Wi-Fi products and services in new and established markets. Today, billions of Wi-Fi products carry a significant portion of the world’s data traffic in an ever-expanding variety of applications. 

Media contacts:
Elliott Suthers
Highwire PR for Wi-Fi Alliance
wi-fi@highwirepr.com
+1-415-963-4174 ext. 6

Expanded features bring higher performance, speed, and capacity to Wi-Fi networks

Austin, TX, June 29, 2016 – Wi-Fi Alliance® is expanding Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ ac to include new features that provide a higher-performance mobility experience. New “wave 2” features enable Wi-Fi® to more efficiently handle high-bandwidth applications from an increasing number of smartphones, tablets, TVs, and other consumer electronics devices simultaneously connected to Wi-Fi networks. Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac delivers greater network capacity and multi-gigabit speeds to benefit consumers, service providers, and enterprises.

Multi-user Multiple Input Multiple Output (MU-MIMO) is among the most anticipated new features of Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac, allowing more devices to operate simultaneously on the same network without sacrificing speed or performance. In addition to increased network capacity enabled with MU-MIMO, devices supporting the full set of new features are capable of achieving up to three times the speed of devices supporting only original Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac features. The newly introduced features are:

• MU-MIMO: Networks with MU-MIMO are capable of multitasking by sending data to multiple devices at once rather than one-at-a-time, improving overall network efficiency and throughput
• 160 MHz channels: Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac increases the maximum channel bandwidth from 80 MHz channels to 160 MHz channels, potentially doubling transmission speeds
• Four spatial streams: Device speeds are proportional to the number of spatial streams. Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac now includes support for four spatial streams, up from three spatial streams.
• Extended 5 GHz channel support: Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac encourages device support for a greater number of available channels in 5 GHz. Support for additional channels makes more efficient use of available spectrum and reduces interference and congestion by minimizing the number of networks operating on overlapping channels.

“Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac gives users a greater experience in dense environments by maximizing Wi-Fi network resources, providing a richer set of features, and enabling the full potential of the technology,” said Andrew Zignani, research analyst, ABI Research. “Wi-Fi Alliance assists in the proliferation of certified products into the market, and we expect an increasing number of data-intensive devices to support the new features for Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac that will benefit device end users through this certification process.”  

Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac was the first version of Wi-Fi to break the gigabit barrier, accelerating the shift to greater utilization of the 5 GHz band. Now, more than 65 percent of devices are dual-band, operating in both 2.4 and 5 GHz. The Wi-Fi CERTIFIED interoperability certification program will increase product support for newly supported features from a wide variety of mobile devices and access points, and 96 percent of devices will be dual-band by 2020. Access points supporting new features are expected to dominate the market within the next five years.

“In today’s world, people have more Wi-Fi devices per person and per household, and those devices require significantly more bandwidth,” said Edgar Figueroa, president and CEO of Wi-Fi Alliance. “Wi-Fi Alliance updated the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac program to meet increasing user demands and to stay ahead of emerging applications, while preserving interoperability.”

The first Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac products to support new features and which comprise the test bed for interoperability certification are:

• Broadcom BCM94709R4366AC
• Marvell Avastar 88W8964
• MediaTek MT7615 AP Reference Design and MT6632 STA Reference Design
• Qualcomm IPQ8065 802.11ac 4-stream Dual-band, Dual-concurrent Router
• Quantenna QSR1000 4x4 802.11ac Wave 2 Chipset Family

For more information and a list of Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac products, please visit: www.wi-ficertifiedac.com.

Industry response to Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac with wave 2 features:

“The Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac program, based on the IEEE 802.11ac standard, has been an unmitigated success for billions of Wi-Fi users worldwide. The program delivered a combination of very high throughput, improved rate-vs-range, and interoperability, while continuing the well-established trend to higher capacity 5 GHz unlicensed spectrum. The next wave of 802.11ac technology is here, offering even higher network efficiency and up to twice the throughput. Broadcom is ecstatic our BCM94709R4366AC access point and station platform has been selected for the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac wave 2 test bed.” - Clint W. Brown, Broadcom Director, Wireless Combo Connectivity Group

“Cisco has always been proud to be among the industry leaders in wireless technology. That’s why it’s so important to have the backing of Wi-Fi Alliance to help spur the wireless community forward in adopting the 802.11ac Wave 2 features. Wi-Fi Alliance understands that 802.11ac Wave 2 products are an integral part of the next wave of connectivity and will ultimately make communication faster, easier and far more efficient for customers.” - John Apostolopoulos, VP/CTO for Enterprise Segment, Cisco Systems

"As one of the vendors shipping 802.11ac wave 1 access points that were certified in the original Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac program in 2013, we are excited to support new wave 2 features in our Aruba 330/320/310 Series access points. HPE/Aruba believes in the importance of product interoperability to assure our customers' success. We are committed to submitting products to Wi-Fi Alliance for evaluation and certification under the second release of the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac program." - Christian Gilby, Director of Product Marketing at Aruba, a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company

“Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac is an important certification program that enables Wi-Fi to bring gigabit access to users. The new Wave 2 features with Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac will provide customers with a remarkable end user experience in a broad variety of applications." - Dr. Wen Tong, CTO, Huawei Wireless

“Imagination’s IP technologies are at the heart of many devices, including mobile handsets, tablets, TVs, set-top boxes, and connected cars, that support high-throughput applications such as Ultra HD and 4K video and multimedia streaming. We are already seeing strong demand for new Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac wave 2 features in building the next wave of connected devices for such applications. We will support the new wave 2 features in our Ensigma RPUs, which provide highly scalable and flexible connectivity IP solutions.” - Richard Edgar, Director of Communications Technology, Imagination Technologies

“Intel is glad to see Wi-Fi Alliance continue to advance Wi-Fi technology with the launch of the second wave of the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac program, adding features such as downlink MU-MIMO to improve network data capacity in dense environments such as enterprise networks. Wi-Fi CERTIFIED solutions lead to broad industry adoption and pave the way for interoperability and improved user experience.” - Eric Mclaughlin, Connectivity Product Line Manager, Intel

“Today’s announcement marks another great milestone for Wi-Fi technology. As the demand for wireless connectivity continues to grow in our daily lives, the second wave of Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac brings to the table another major step-up in terms of Wi-Fi speed, performance, and network capacity. Marvell is proud to be a leading provider of wireless technology by offering a full suite of MU-MIMO capable wave 2 chipsets, delivering best-in-class performance across multiple ecosystems. We look forward to continuing our collaboration with Wi-Fi Alliance to enhance today’s user experiences with cutting edge technology.” - Kevin Tang, AVP of Marketing, Wireless Connectivity Business Unit at Marvell Semiconductor, Inc.

“Consumers today expect to use multiple devices on a constant basis without any connectivity issues. At MediaTek, we’re committed to delivering great user experiences by empowering smartphones, tablets, televisions and other consumer electronics, enabling seamless, cross-device connections. We are proud to see our technology once again embraced by Wi-Fi Alliance for the latest interoperability testing based on the IEEE 802.11ac program. We have included the Wave 2 features in our products and are working with our OEM partners to bring enhanced network capability to markets.” - SR Tsai, General Manager of Home Smart Device Business Unit, MediaTek

“Qualcomm Technologies has led the industry on 802.11ac Wave 2 MU-MIMO with over 100 commercial devices available to date. Today’s announcement will further accelerate commercial adoption, delivering an enhanced Wi-Fi experience in our increasingly congested, connected world. We are proud of our engineering team’s accomplishments to have led this new program, be included in the interoperability test bed and are committed to continue leading innovation within Wi-Fi Alliance in the areas of network capacity improvement and superior user experience.” - Rahul Patel, senior vice president and general manager, connectivity, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. 

“Thanks to Wi-Fi Alliance, the benchmark of Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac ensures that Wi-Fi enabled products deliver the necessary features and benefits for the best consumer experience. We are grateful to be part of the Wi-Fi Alliance ecosystem and excited to be among one of the first vendors selected into the updated Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac certification program with our QSR1000 4x4 802.11ac wave 2 chipset family. As the requirements and utilization of Wi-Fi networks grow much faster than ever, interoperable Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac wave 2 features and capabilities will become even more important for future connectivity at home, at work, or in public places.” – Dr. Sam Heidari, CEO at Quantenna Communications

About Wi-Fi Alliance®
www.wi-fi.org
Wi-Fi Alliance® is a global non-profit industry association – our members are the worldwide network of companies that brings you Wi-Fi®. The members of our collaboration forum come from across the Wi-Fi ecosystem and share a common vision of connecting everyone and everything, everywhere. Since 2000, the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ seal of approval designates products with proven interoperability, industry-standard security protections, and the latest technology. Wi-Fi Alliance has certified more than 30,000 products, delivering the best user experience and encouraging the expanded use of Wi-Fi products and services in new and established markets. Today, billions of Wi-Fi products carry a significant portion of the world’s data traffic in an ever-expanding variety of applications. 

Media contacts:
Elliott Suthers
Highwire PR for Wi-Fi Alliance
wi-fi@highwirepr.com
+1-415-963-4174 ext. 6

Austin, Texas, March 7, 2016 – Wi-Fi Alliance commends the Senate Commerce Committee on its approval of the MOBILE NOW Act. The approval represents the broad consensus on the economic and social benefits of unlicensed spectrum and the critical role unlicensed spectrum plays in driving innovation. The amended bill directs the FCC and NTIA to develop a national plan for making adequate unlicensed spectrum available to meet growing consumer demand, and it requires the allocation of 100 MHz of spectrum for unlicensed use.

Continued reliance on unlicensed technologies as economic drivers means that additional unlicensed spectrum is necessary to meet the Nation’s growing wireless demands. Wi-Fi is a shining example of how unlicensed spectrum improves people’s lives every day – carrying a majority of Internet traffic, making connectivity affordable for more citizens, and even playing an integral role in carrier networks. Additional unlicensed spectrum will help enable the groundbreaking innovations of the future.

“Wi-Fi Alliance recognizes the MOBILE NOW Act as an important step in ensuring adequate spectrum allocation for unlicensed use to meet growing demand,” said Edgar Figueroa, president and CEO of Wi-Fi Alliance. “We support all efforts to ensure unlicensed spectrum remains a central piece of a National spectrum strategy.”

Wi-Fi Alliance would like to recognize the leadership of Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Thune (R-SD) and Ranking Member Nelson (D-FL) in developing this legislation and building consensus on initiatives to reduce obstacles to wireless innovation. We also recognize Senate Commerce Communications Subcommittee Ranking Member Schatz (D-HI) and Senators Booker (D-NJ), Gardner (R-CO), and for their roles in enhancing the MOBILE NOW Act by advocating for policies that maximize the benefits of unlicensed spectrum.

About Wi-Fi Alliance®
www.wi-fi.org
Wi-Fi Alliance® is a global non-profit industry association – our members are the worldwide network of companies that brings you Wi-Fi®. The members of our collaboration forum come from across the Wi-Fi ecosystem and share a common vision of connecting everyone and everything, everywhere. Since 2000, the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ seal of approval designates products with proven interoperability, industry-standard security protections, and the latest technology. Wi-Fi Alliance has certified more than 25,000 products, delivering the best user experience and encouraging the expanded use of Wi-Fi products and services in new and established markets. Today, billions of Wi-Fi products carry a significant portion of the world’s data traffic in an ever-expanding variety of applications. 

Media contacts:
Elliott Suthers
Highwire PR for Wi-Fi Alliance
wi-fi@highwirepr.com
+1-415-963-4174 ext. 6

Look for smarter, higher performing, and more ubiquitous Wi-Fi

Las Vegas, NV, January 7, 2016 – Wi-Fi® has accomplished more in 16 years than many technologies do in their lifespan – including enabling the rise of mobile internet by carrying a significant portion of the world’s data traffic, advancing data rates from 11 Mbps to more than 1,100 Mbps, connecting users in more than 450 million households worldwide and more than 47 million global public hotspots, and contributing more than $222 billion in economic value.

Wi-Fi Alliance® has developed a list of predictions for 2016 that demonstrates Wi-Fi’s steady march forward as it continues to deliver an even better user experience.

Smart everything.
The number of connected devices will reach 38.5 billion in 2020. This growth is due in part to manufacturers adding intelligence and connectivity to products not typically thought of as “high-tech,” like your Wi-Fi connected vacuum, coffee maker, door locks, or slow cooker. In 2016, companies that do not specialize in developing connectivity technologies – particularly those developing products for the Smart Home – will leverage a new Wi-Fi Alliance Implementer membership category, which will allow them to more easily deliver Wi-Fi connected products with secure operation, certified interoperability, and legacy compatibility with the 6.8 billion Wi-Fi products currently in use. The average home has more than eight devices on the network, and that number will continue to grow. Companies have come to understand the value of Wi-Fi certification in assuring users that they can control their home connectivity devices securely and reliably for years to come, and Wi-Fi will continue to play a role in shaping a user-friendly and seamless Smart Home.

Wi-Fi is in more places you want it to be.
Seventy-three percent of Americans say it is very important to have access to Wi-Fi in their daily lives. Wi-Fi’s value is also recognized around the world, and last year we saw global Wi-Fi infrastructure investments pickup with assistance from cities and companies such as Google and Facebook. In 2016, city Wi-Fi deployments will increase, with some leveraging Wi-Fi CERTIFIED Passpoint™ to enable seamless roaming with other cities miles and even continents away. Sports fans will take advantage of enhanced Wi-Fi as stadiums and sports arenas amp up their Wi-Fi networks to keep pace with record wireless traffic numbers, and travelers will remain connected on-the-go through services from providers such as Boingo who keep users connected in airports and railways around the world. Users demand availability of Wi-Fi no matter where their day takes them. In 2016, Wi-Fi in cars, homes, and in-flight will be a standard amenity with auto manufacturers offering Wi-Fi connectivity in an expanding line of vehicles, airline carriers such as Air China upgrading their services and JetBlue announcing they will offer free Wi-Fi on every flight in 2016, and homebuilders supplying homes with connected automation packages.

Protecting unlicensed spectrum is a priority.
Everyone understands and agrees with the need to protect the billions of Wi-Fi users. In late 2015, there was an important shift towards a collaborative model for delivering on Wi-Fi and LTE-U coexistence. In 2016, industry will make progress on a test regimen for LTE-U devices, and Wi-Fi Alliance will emerge as the premier forum for this collaboration. Working within Wi-Fi Alliance, industry will deliver an agreed upon test plan which will promote fair sharing by all LTE-U devices. Users are concerned that another technology will negatively affect their Wi-Fi usage, and preserving the benefits of unlicensed spectrum for the billions of business, education, enterprise, and government users who depend on Wi-Fi every day will remain a priority this year.

Wi-Fi location will emerge.
Wi-Fi will enable a new breed of innovative applications built on location-based information. Wi-Fi location capabilities will bring users even closer to the world around them, enabling a variety of robust applications and usages – both indoors and outdoors. Retailers will be some of the first to leverage location awareness – a market that will reach $43.3 billion in four short years – and service providers will follow shortly after. Wi-Fi location will enable a range of usages for consumers, enterprises, healthcare providers, and the Internet of Things. While location-based services are now popular, Wi-Fi location will offer a variety of advantages over existing technologies, including the ability to deliver precise indoor location data.

Wi-Fi portfolio of technologies gets even better.
In 2016, a variety of new programs will make Wi-Fi better than ever. An update to Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ ac will bring new features such as Multi-user MIMO to increase performance and network capacity, taking Wi-Fi beyond the gigabit Wi-Fi speeds already supported. This second wave of features will enable users to realize the full potential of Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac, and help meet carrier requirements by supporting faster and more scalable operator networks. As a complement to Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac, the WiGig CERTIFIED™ program is expected to launch, bringing multi-gigabit performance to in-room connectivity. Wi-Fi Alliance will also progress on work in new frequency bands, following the introduction of Wi-Fi HaLow™, to provide users with longer range and lower power connectivity – ideally suited to enable a variety of power-efficient use cases in the Internet of Things and other industrial applications, among others. To enable continued innovation through its expanding portfolio, Wi-Fi Alliance will work with regulators worldwide to increase spectrum availability for Wi-Fi technologies.

Wi-Fi brings even more value for carriers.
In 2016, carrier Wi-Fi that is faster, more robust, and even easier to use and manage will emerge. While Passpoint was the first of a series of Wi-Fi Alliance programs to enable a more cellular-like experience in Wi-Fi hotspots, new operator-focused programs and deployment guidelines will help scale service provider Wi-Fi networks, enable greater device mobility, more easily provision devices on the network, improve network utilization, and bring performance enhancements for dense deployments. A list of our current work areas, including those specifically related to carrier Wi-Fi can be found here.

About Wi-Fi Alliance®
www.wi-fi.org
Wi-Fi Alliance® is a global non-profit industry association – our members are the worldwide network of companies that brings you Wi-Fi®. The members of our collaboration forum come from across the Wi-Fi ecosystem and share a common vision of connecting everyone and everything, everywhere. Since 2000, the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ seal of approval designates products with proven interoperability, industry-standard security protections, and the latest technology. Wi-Fi Alliance has certified more than 25,000 products, delivering the best user experience and encouraging the expanded use of Wi-Fi products and services in new and established markets. Today, billions of Wi-Fi products carry a significant portion of the world’s data traffic in an ever-expanding variety of applications. 

Media contacts:
Elliott Suthers
Highwire PR for Wi-Fi Alliance
wi-fi@highwirepr.com
+1-415-963-4174 ext. 6

Wi-Fi to enable versatile connectivity well into the future

Las Vegas, NV, January 5, 2016 – Wi-Fi Alliance® announced today that Wi-Fi® shipments have reached 12 billion units, and are expected to surpass 15 billion units by the end of 2016. With an installed base of more than 6.8 billion devices, Wi-Fi has become one of the most prolific technologies around the world. To support Wi-Fi’s widespread adoption, the Wi-Fi Alliance 2016 technology roadmap includes programs that will increase Wi-Fi performance and network capacity, and will provide unique capabilities to meet diverse connectivity demands across a variety of applications and markets.

“The Wi-Fi industry’s growth has been closely paralleled by the growth of Wi-Fi Alliance certification programs,” said research director Phil Solis, ABI Research. “With more than 12 billion Wi-Fi products shipped to date, another 3 billion expected in 2016, and shipments of dual-band devices operating in 2.4 and 5 GHz increasing year-after-year, Wi-Fi momentum shows no signs of slowing down.”

Wi-Fi Alliance 2016 Technology Roadmap

• Higher performing Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ ac: Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac will soon get a boost with a set of new features, which provide increased performance and capacity in Wi-Fi networks. By the end of 2019, households worldwide will have more than 10 billion devices capable of connecting to a home router. The second wave of Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac features, such as wider channels and Multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO), will deliver a better experience not only at home, but also in enterprise and service provider networks. Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac is expected to be the highest shipping version of Wi-Fi to date.
• Multi-gigabit, in-room connectivity with WiGig CERTIFIED™: WiGig CERTIFIED will soon complement Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac by bringing multi-gigabit performance to in-room connectivity. The WiGig® market is expected to see significant growth in 2016, and WiGig will enable scenarios such as streaming multiple, simultaneous ultra-high definition or 4K videos. Tri-band devices supporting 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz, and 60 GHz will offer the best of Wi-Fi and WiGig to meet the needs of a growing number of demanding use cases.
• Wi-Fi location is coming soon: Over the last decade, Wi-Fi product capabilities have expanded to include screen mirroring, seamless hotspot authentication, and proximity awareness. A Wi-Fi location program will soon enable a new breed of innovative applications based on location information. Devices supporting Wi-Fi location will determine their precise location both indoors and outdoors when within the coverage area of a location-enabled network. Wi-Fi location capabilities will offer numerous benefits for consumers, retailers, enterprises, and service providers.

“The foundation for Wi-Fi’s success is a set of core technologies which constantly evolve to meet market connectivity demands,” said Edgar Figueroa, president and CEO of Wi-Fi Alliance. “Wi-Fi technologies keep getting better, and increased network capacity, higher performance, and enhanced capabilities will enable Wi-Fi to continue to meet the needs of existing and emerging markets, and continue to deliver the best possible user experience.”

In addition to Wi-Fi CERTIFIED ac and WiGig CERTIFIED, the recently announced Wi-Fi HaLow™ will enhance Wi-Fi’s portfolio of core connectivity solutions and extend Wi-Fi’s reach further into the Smart Home, connected car, Smart City, and industrial environments. Wi-Fi Alliance has certified more than 25,000 products and has numerous Wi-Fi enhancements underway that will further proliferate Wi-Fi CERTIFIED technologies around the world. Wi-Fi advancements to both core technologies as well as technology capabilities will soon enable carriers to deliver a better user experience in managed networks or environments with a high density of active devices.

About Wi-Fi Alliance®
www.wi-fi.org
Wi-Fi Alliance® is a global non-profit industry association – our members are the worldwide network of companies that brings you Wi-Fi®. The members of our collaboration forum come from across the Wi-Fi ecosystem and share a common vision of connecting everyone and everything, everywhere. Since 2000, the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ seal of approval designates products with proven interoperability, industry-standard security protections, and the latest technology. Wi-Fi Alliance has certified more than 25,000 products, delivering the best user experience and encouraging the expanded use of Wi-Fi products and services in new and established markets. Today, billions of Wi-Fi products carry a significant portion of the world’s data traffic in an ever-expanding variety of applications. 

Media contacts:
Elliott Suthers
Highwire PR for Wi-Fi Alliance
wi-fi@highwirepr.com
+1-415-963-4174 ext. 6

New technology will extend Wi-Fi® solutions for the Internet of Things

Las Vegas, NV, January 4, 2016 – With industry momentum mounting around a low power Wi-Fi® solution, Wi-Fi Alliance today announced the Wi-Fi HaLow™ designation for products incorporating IEEE 802.11ah technology. Wi-Fi HaLow operates in frequency bands below one gigahertz, offering longer range, lower power connectivity to Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ products. Wi-Fi HaLow will enable a variety of new power-efficient use cases in the Smart Home, connected car, and digital healthcare, as well as industrial, retail, agriculture, and Smart City environments.

Wi-Fi HaLow extends Wi-Fi into the 900 MHz band, enabling the low power connectivity necessary for applications including sensor and wearables. Wi-Fi HaLow’s range is nearly twice that of today’s Wi-Fi, and will not only be capable of transmitting signals further, but also providing a more robust connection in challenging environments where the ability to more easily penetrate walls or other barriers is an important consideration. Wi-Fi HaLow will broadly adopt existing Wi-Fi protocols and deliver many of the benefits that consumers have come to expect from Wi-Fi today, including multi-vendor interoperability, strong government-grade security, and easy setup.

“Wi-Fi HaLow is well suited to meet the unique needs of the Smart Home, Smart City, and industrial markets because of its ability to operate using very low power, penetrate through walls, and operate at significantly longer ranges than Wi-Fi today,” said Edgar Figueroa, President and CEO of Wi-Fi Alliance. “Wi-Fi HaLow expands the unmatched versatility of Wi-Fi to enable applications from small, battery-operated wearable devices to large-scale industrial facility deployments – and everything in between.”

Many devices that support Wi-Fi HaLow are expected to operate in 2.4 and 5 GHz as well as 900 MHz, allowing devices to connect with Wi-Fi’s ecosystem of more than 6.8 billion installed devices. Like all Wi-Fi devices, Wi-Fi HaLow devices will support IP-based connectivity to natively connect to the cloud, which will become increasingly important in reaching the full potential of the Internet of Things (IoT). Dense device deployments will also benefit from Wi-Fi HaLow’s ability to connect thousands of devices to a single access point.  

“Wi-Fi Alliance programs have been instrumental in shaping and guiding the industry,” said Phil Solis, ABI Research. “Wi-Fi’s portfolio of technologies continues to address market needs, and Wi-Fi’s evolution will allow it to address a variety of new use cases.”

Wi-Fi HaLow complements existing Wi-Fi technologies and expands Wi-Fi Alliance’s overall portfolio with a low power solution that will enable Wi-Fi to maintain its critical role in the IoT. Additional IoT-related activities are underway in Wi-Fi Alliance that are helping to further proliferate Wi-Fi in the Smart Home and other segments. In particular, Wi-Fi Alliance is developing a new secure and simple way to connect and configure devices without a display or input mechanisms, as is the case with many Smart Home devices today. In addition to an expanding list of programs to address unique market needs, Wi-Fi Alliance recently announced a new membership category that will enable a wider variety of devices not historically thought of as high-tech, including vacuums and door knobs, to include certified Wi-Fi connectivity.

For more information on Wi-Fi HaLow, please visit: www.wi-fi.org/wi-fi-halow

About Wi-Fi Alliance:

www.wi-fi.org

Wi-Fi Alliance® is a global non-profit industry association – our members are the worldwide network of companies that brings you Wi-Fi®. The members of our collaboration forum come from across the Wi-Fi ecosystem and share a common vision of connecting everyone and everything, everywhere. Since 2000, the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ seal of approval designates products with proven interoperability, industry-standard security protections, and the latest technology. Wi-Fi Alliance has certified more than 25,000 products, delivering the best user experience and encouraging the expanded use of Wi-Fi products and services in new and established markets. Today, billions of Wi-Fi products carry a significant portion of the world’s data traffic in an ever-expanding variety of applications. 

Media contacts

Elliott Suthers

Highwire PR for Wi-Fi Alliance

wi-fi@highwirepr.com

+1-415-963-4174 ext. 6

Austin, Texas, November 13, 2015 – U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI) introduced the Promoting Unlicensed Spectrum Act this week, promoting the availability of additional unlicensed spectrum, requesting for the development of a national unlicensed strategy, and calling for balance between radio frequency bands made available for licensed and unlicensed use in future spectrum allocation and assignment actions. More information about the proposed legislation can be found here.

Wi-Fi Alliance supports this bill and commends Senator Schatz for his recognition of the role of unlicensed spectrum in fostering innovation and driving economic value.

Wi-Fi is a shining example of the value unlicensed spectrum brings to billions of users around the world. Recent research on behalf of Wi-Fi Alliance further demonstrates Wi-Fi’s integral role in users’ lives, with 72 percent of respondents saying their work productivity would be significantly impacted and nearly half saying their productivity at home would be impacted if they did not have access to Wi-Fi. Balanced spectrum allocation and assignment will enable Wi-Fi to continue to be central to users’ daily lives.

In addition to the direct benefits to users, unlicensed spectrum offers untold benefits to the economy. Unlicensed spectrum contributed $222 Billion in economic value in 2013. Wi-Fi Alliance is encouraged by the Promoting Unlicensed Spectrum Act as a step toward growing valuable unlicensed spectrum resources, and enabling billions of business, education, enterprise, and government users to continue to benefit from Wi-Fi innovation for years to come.

Methodological note: The survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Poll on behalf of Wi-Fi Alliance between October 5-7, 2015. Harris Poll and Wi-Fi Alliance surveyed 2,032 adults ages 18+.

About Wi-Fi Alliance®
www.wi-fi.org
Wi-Fi Alliance® is a global non-profit industry association – our members are the worldwide network of companies that brings you Wi-Fi®. The members of our collaboration forum come from across the Wi-Fi ecosystem and share a common vision of connecting everyone and everything, everywhere. Since 2000, the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ seal of approval designates products with proven interoperability, industry-standard security protections, and the latest technology. Wi-Fi Alliance has certified more than 25,000 products, delivering the best user experience and encouraging the expanded use of Wi-Fi products and services in new and established markets. Today, billions of Wi-Fi products carry a significant portion of the world’s data traffic in an ever-expanding variety of applications. 

Media contacts:
Elliott Suthers
Highwire PR for Wi-Fi Alliance
wi-fi@highwirepr.com
+1-415-963-4174 ext. 6

New research demonstrates central role of Wi-Fi, underscores need for fair sharing in unlicensed spectrum

November 4, 2015, Palo Alto, CA – In an effort to advance dialogue and understanding about fair spectrum sharing by LTE-U devices, Wi-Fi Alliance® is hosting a Coexistence Test Workshop today aimed at fostering dialogue among Wi-Fi® and LTE industries. Attendees include Amazon, Broadcom, Dell, Ericsson, Gibson Brands, Google, Intel, NTT, Qualcomm, Toyota, Verizon, and many others. Wi-Fi Alliance is taking action in a variety of ways to encourage the industry to address concerns related to unlicensed spectrum coexistence, and to help protect billions of users who rely on Wi-Fi every day from being adversely affected by LTE-U.

New research conducted on behalf of Wi-Fi Alliance demonstrates Wi-Fi’s integral role in users’ lives. 68 percent of respondents cite they would be very annoyed if they did not have access to uninterrupted Wi-Fi in their daily lives and 72 percent say their work productivity would be significantly impacted if their Wi-Fi usage were interrupted. Although consumers recognize the potential benefits of a technology like LTE-U, three quarters are concerned about the technology impacting their Wi-Fi. Because of this concern, 53 percent of respondents are interested in the LTE-U issue as it unfolds.

Wi-Fi Alliance will release an initial set of LTE Coexistence Simulation and Testing Guidelines, which will ultimately provide a harmonized approach to characterizing how well LTE-U devices coexist with Wi-Fi. When completed, the Wi-Fi Alliance Coexistence Guidelines will provide a common foundation on which to determine fair sharing behaviors of all LTE-U devices, regardless of brand. The Guidelines consider myriad use cases where Wi-Fi is used today, including video, VoIP, and dense and dynamic Wi-Fi environments. The Guidelines focus on key performance indicators that matter for coexistence, expected real-world topologies of mixed Wi-Fi and LTE-U environments, and realistic network loading scenarios. It is expected that these initial Guidelines will continue to evolve as a result of dialogue and input from industry, including LTE-U vendors.

“Wi-Fi has been a model of good unlicensed spectrum stewardship, and we expect similar etiquette from all technologies sharing that spectrum,” said Edgar Figueroa, president and CEO of Wi-Fi Alliance. “Cooperation among a broad cross-section of industry provides the best opportunity to deliver a viable solution for fair coexistence.”

The development of Coexistence Guidelines is one of several important elements to help resolve concerns related to Wi-Fi and LTE-U coexistence without regulatory intervention. Another element is simulating how different parameters in Wi-Fi and LTE-U affect coexistence behavior. The Coexistence Guidelines and such simulations will inform the testing of actual devices and provide a consistent method for measuring coexistence across the ecosystem. This combination of activities will help ensure there are minimal adverse effects to the 5.4 billion Wi-Fi devices in use. Companies who engage with Wi-Fi Alliance through events such as the Coexistence Test Workshop can play a role in steering and contributing to these important activities.

Companies sharing the goal of ensuring Wi-Fi and LTE-U coexistence are encouraged to participate in Wi-Fi Alliance’s planned activities. A variety of future events, presentations from the Coexistence Workshop, and additional Wi-Fi and LTE-U resources will be made available at: http://www.wi-fi.org/discover-wi-fi/unlicensed-spectrum.

Methodological note: The survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Poll on behalf of Wi-Fi Alliance between October 5-7, 2015.  Harris Poll and Wi-Fi Alliance surveyed 2,032 adults ages 18+.

About Wi-Fi Alliance®
www.wi-fi.org
Wi-Fi Alliance® is a global non-profit industry association – our members are the worldwide network of companies that brings you Wi-Fi®. The members of our collaboration forum come from across the Wi-Fi ecosystem and share a common vision of connecting everyone and everything, everywhere. Since 2000, the Wi-Fi CERTIFIED™ seal of approval designates products with proven interoperability, industry-standard security protections, and the latest technology. Wi-Fi Alliance has certified more than 25,000 products, delivering the best user experience and encouraging the expanded use of Wi-Fi products and services in new and established markets. Today, billions of Wi-Fi products carry a significant portion of the world’s data traffic in an ever-expanding variety of applications. 

Media contacts:
Elliott Suthers
Highwire PR for Wi-Fi Alliance
wi-fi@highwirepr.com
+1-415-963-4174 ext. 6