The evolution of 2G, 3G, and 4G mobile telecommunications technologies has been researched and written about ad infinitum. More recently, the topic of WiMAX, a particular 4G technology which promises to deliver 70 Mb/s data speeds over a 50 km radius, has been the focus of much attention and hype.

Many telecom analysts had come to the conclusion that 4G was just a distraction from making 3G work until the IEEE approved the 802.16e standard for mobile WiMAX in December 2005. Subsequently, the WiMAX Forum announced the first certified fixed WiMAX (802.16d or 802.16-2004) equipment in January 2006.

With this new found credibility, manufacturers and network operators are looking again at the benefits promised by 4G technologies and they are starting to invest serious time and effort in developing fixed and mobile products which should be commercialized within the next three years.

The report addresses the following key issues:
- What are the dynamics between 3G & 4G - competing or complimentary?
- What are the standards and regulatory issues in 4G?
- Which manufacturers are leading 4G development?
- How are carriers approaching the 4G issue at a strategic level?
- What would be the impact of 4G on networks, in terms of bandwidth requirements, under different penetration scenarios?

Thus, the overall purpose of this report is to give the reader some fresh perspectives on the issue of 4G by looking at this technology, not as an isolated phenomenon, but as part of an ongoing technological evolution and to provide some ground-breaking analysis in terms of average user bandwidth demand, as well as the usual measurements of subscribers, penetration rates, installations, and equipment sales.

This report should be of interest to:
? Fixed network operators
? Wireless network operators
? Wireless Internet Service Providers
? Equipment suppliers
? Component suppliers
? Venture Capital funds