Both the wireless and traditional telecommunications markets are expected to undergo a paradigm shift, said Intel`s Developer Forum keynote speakers in Amsterdam today.
Ronald J Smith, senior VP and GM, wireless communications and computing group, Intel, predicts that, with the introduction of 2.5G and 3G wireless networks, voice alone will not be able to cover carriers` costs. "Data appears to be the key," said Smith. "At Intel we know a little bit about data, maybe enough to take a byte out of the market," he quipped.
To address this market, however, Smith believes that rapid application and device development is required to satisfy the users. This process is slowed by device authorisation, and red tape surrounding the roll-out of new wireless services. Intel believes that new services and applications can still hit the market quickly, provided devices are rich enough to carry these apps.
Intel`s personal Internet computing architecture - PCA - includes processing, memory and micro-signal architecture, and Intel conveniently has product that fulfils the three segments of its PCA design. It announced today that it will integrate its PCA onto one chip, which will include xScale architecture (Intel`s next-generation mobile processor), its Flash RAM offering, and its Baseband chipset for micro-signal processing, all at 0.13 micron.
Smith said the consolidation onto one platter will result in less power consumption, greater speed, and a smaller footprint.
Mark Christensen, corporate VP, Intel, also spoke about telecommunications, but in the "wired" metropolitan area network sense. Ethernet is expected to take over from SONET networks in the next year, with the planned 10Gb Ethernet standard. This will require wire-speed processing of data - another space that Intel plays in.
Christensen also sees a convergence of carrier services onto an IP-based network.
Similar to predictions of wireless networks, Christensen predicts change in this industry to be driven primarily by economic concerns, as voice services become less profitable for carriers, and data takes centre stage.
Little mention was made of Intel`s IA-32 and IA-64 platforms in the keynote, despite Intel`s imminent roll-out of its 64-bit architecture.
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