Scalper1 News
Apple ( AAPL ), Samsung and other smartphone makers will need more advanced chips and antenna components as wireless service providers combine multiple radio-frequency bands to improve network capacity and data speeds, says a Citigroup report. AT&T ( T ), Verizon Communications ( VZ )and Sprint ( S ) are among the wireless firms turning to “carrier aggregation,” a term for combining two or more frequency bands to provide a single communications channel with more bandwidth. This juggling act requires more complex radio frequency chips, says Citigroup. It forecasts a growing market opportunity for chipmakers Qualcomm ( QCOM ), Broadcom ( AVGO ), Skyworks Solutions ( SWKS ), Qorvo ( QRVO ), Murata and others. Wireless firms are using carrier aggregation as mobile video traffic surges. “Carrier aggregation is like adding more lanes to widen the highway and creating more space for more cars to travel on the highway at the same time,” says the report. While Apple designs its own antennas, there’s still a market opportunity for Amphenol and AAC Technologies to supply China-based smartphone brands, says Citigroup. Apple’s iPhone 6S series supports 23 frequency bands and the number is expected to keep growing in future devices, says Citigroup. Xiaomi’s new Mi 5 supports carrier aggregation to double its data download speeds, says the report. In the U.S., AT&T was the first to move to carrier aggregation for 4G LTE-A network upgrades, followed by Sprint and Verizon, analysts say. “According to Cisco ( CSCO ) (Systems), mobile data traffic is expected to grow more than 50% in the next five years,” said Citigroup. It expects more “world” phones to be built, with the ability to roam on 4G LTE networks as subscribers travel. Scalper1 News
Scalper1 News