Nov 16, 2012 - 8:38AM PT
Google-Dish: Perfect match or disaster in the making?
<http://gigaom.com/mobile/google-dish-perfect-match-or-disaster-in-the-making/>
By Kevin Fitchard
GigaOm.com
http://gigaom.com/mobile/google-dish-perfect-match-or-disaster-in-the-making/
According to the WSJ, Dish Network and Google have been in talks about
launching an LTE network. Google would bring cash, while Dish would
bring spectrum, but neither company has the infrastructure or expertise
to run a mobile carrier. Maybe that's why Google is interested.
The /Wall Street Journal's/ newest rumor has it that Google is in talks
with Dish Network
<http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324735104578121553147711538.html?mod=googlenews_wsj>
to launch a nationwide 4G network, using the latter's satellite
spectrum. According to the /Journal/, the talks are in their early
stages and the newspaper's sources don't even know if they'll amount to
anything concrete. But it's interesting to once again see Google's name
mentioned in another possible tie-up with a mobile operator.
I still think the idea of Google becoming a carrier is laughable (you
can read why here
<http://gigaom.com/mobile/will-google-buy-t-mobile-not-a-chance/>), but
it's looking more and more likely that Google wants to put some skin in
the mobile broadband game through strategic investment. In fact it's
already done so in the past
<http://gigaom.com/2009/09/15/google-gets-its-wimax-clearwire-launches-silicon-valley-network/>,
plopping down $500 million to fund Clearwire's WiMAX ambitions. WiMAX
didn't exactly work out -- it sold its Clearwire stake this year
<http://gigaom.com/2012/03/29/investors-customers-take-clearwire-on-a-roller-coaster-ride/>
-- so now Google may be setting its sites on LTE.
Dish is a satellite communications and TV provider with a hankering to
become a terrestrial mobile operator
<http://gigaom.com/2011/08/23/following-lightsquared-dish-ups-the-ante-in-spectrum-speculation/>.
Over the last few years it's scooped up a bunch of satellite
communications licenses that it's asking the Federal Communications
Commission to clear for LTE use
<http://gigaom.com/2012/03/05/fcc-avoiding-lightsquared-mistakes-with-dish/>.
Dish claims that wants to become a legitimate contender in the 4G market
and is looking for partners to help it get its LTE network off the
ground -- or so it claims. Dish is just as likely to flip its spectrum
for a quick profit
<http://gigaom.com/2012/05/18/dish-sure-well-build-lte-just-give-us-four-years/>
once it gets the FCC to open up its spectrum.
Assuming for the moment that Dish is sincere, however, what would a
partnership with Google bring it? Obviously money: Google has deep
pockets and building a network 4G network from scratch is an expensive
proposition, costing the companies well upwards of $10 billion. Ideally
Dish would like to partner with an entrenched mobile carrier, one that
already has the core and tower infrastructure in place to host its radio
network as well as the back office and customer service operations to
actually run a nationwide mobile carrier.
Google has the cash and Dish has the spectrum, but neither Google nor
Dish bring expertise and infrastructure, which would put both at
disadvantage. They would have to start from square one, replicating what
the major wireless operators have spent more than a decade building. If
that sounds like a huge disadvantage, that's because it is.
But then again Google may be looking to start from scratch. Partnering
with an established mobile operator, means embracing the traditional
carrier business models of expensive mobile data tiers and long-term
contracts as well as a mindset still grounded in protecting old-school
voice and SMS services and their revenues. There's a reason why Google
invested in Clearwire. It wanted to challenge the traditional way of
selling wireless services. It may now see the same opportunity with Dish.
--
=================================================
George Antunes Voice (713) 743-3923
Associate Professor Fax (713) 743-3927
Political Science Mail: antunes at uh dot edu
University of Houston
Houston, TX 77204-3011
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