Briefs: U.S. wireless backhaul spending increases

Investment in backhaul services by U.S. wireless firms is increasing and will likely continue to rise for the foreseeable future, a research report concluded.

The study released this week by Light Reading said operators want to improve the backhaul links between their base stations and core network in order to accommodate new services.

"In the last year, many mobile carrier executives have been approving hikes of 15 to 25 percent in annual backhaul expenditures to get enough capacity to their base stations for a high-quality HSPA or EV-DO end-user experience," said report author Patrick Donegan.

Backhaul is the process of transmitting voice or data traffic from a cell phone or other wireless device to the central network.

Donegan predicted that company efforts to reduce backhaul spending a year or two after the launch of HSPA or EV-DO (High Speed Packet Access or Evolution Data Only) were "far from assured."

Copyright 2006 by United Press International