All end-user wireless devices andapplications have common needs, which is to support multiple air interfaces andmultiple frequencies. With the number ofair interfaces growing at a rapid pace, end-user device/application vendors arefinding it difficult to manage bill of material (BoM) cost and minimize time tomarket. With each additional air interface and frequency there is an extrahardware component cost, larger hardware silicon area, higher power consumptionand longer development times. As opposed to infrastructure equipment like macrobase stations, end-user devices have shorter life cycles, possess sizelimitations, consume less power and be competitive in terms of time to marketand cost. Although the end-user is unaware of the growing complexity indevices, which is directly related to the increasing number of air interfaces,vendors are acutely aware of the challenges that are being posed.

Multiprotocol Multiband (MPMB) SDRallows a common software based platform to support and adapt to multiple airinterfaces and multiple frequencies with minimal or almost no change inhardware. Although SDR has been largely seen as a defense oriented technology,the next phase for SDR is going to be its adoption in commercial applications.Within commercial applications, SDR is expected to have a major impact inend-user devices and applications. This is because end-user devices like mobilehandsets have economies of scale and have a significantly larger market sizewhen compared to infrastructure equipment like macro base stations.

This report focuses on thetechnological innovations that are making it possible for SDR to be applied inthe commercial end-user devices andapplications. These innovations include wideband and tunable RF components,soft baseband modems and reconfigurable processor designs. These innovationsare being introduced by a large variety of component vendors who arespecifically targeting the end-user devices and applications market. The report also touches upon thechallenges facing SDR in the commercial world. One of main challenges is thefear of cannibalization of the traditional device replacement revenue streamdue to the emergence of software based platforms that can offer incrementalfunctional software upgrades.

In the end, the report aims toidentify the market opportunity of SDR in commercial end-user devices andapplications categorized by the following areas:

- MobileHandsets/Handhelds/PDAs

- Wireless BroadbandModems (External and Internal)

- Picocell/Femtocells

- Automobiles/VehicularCommunication

- Machine to Machine(M2M) Communication

The report will also provide theoverall market opportunity for commercial SDR, both in macro base stations andin end-user devices and applications.