Cost per bit is a useful metric to capture costs associated with the delivery of data, and make comparison across technologies, operators, or markets. Yet cost per bit estimates cited as absolute values may be misleading or inaccurate.

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Mobile operators need to increase network capacity. What will bring the increase in capacity? Wi-Fi off-load, femtocells, small cells, policy, traffic optimization, or more macro base stations?

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The growth in data traffic is not uniform across the network, or across subscribers. Traffic caps may reduce traffic, but do not increase network efficiency which is what operators need

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Mobile operators manage traffic to minimize the impact of congestion and distribute network resources among its subscribers in a balanced way. What do they tell subscribers about how they manage traffic?

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Amazon has just announced that it now sells more Kindle digital books than paperbacks--to be precise 115 digital books to 100 paperbacks. "This is remarkable when you consider that we've been selling hardcover and paperback books for 15 years, and Kindle books for just 36 months," said Steve Kessel, senior vice president at Amazon. Indeed, Amazon's willingness to challenge its own business model and its relationship with it main suppliers--book publishers--and to do so successfully in face of increasing competition is quite unparalleled.

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Mobile operators are introducing traffic caps and active traffic management tools, but are they doing enough to enable subscribers to choose how to use their traffic allowances?

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Mobile broadband requires operators to change the way they manage data services. The transition to a 4G IP network will give them the tools to manage traffic actively and achieve three goals:

• Increase network efficiency and capacity, lowering transport costs
• Offer service plans that are more flexible, fair, and personalized
• Maximize revenues from subscribers, applications and content providers, and vertical applications

We just published a white paper sponsored by Cisco on the transition to 4G IP networks.

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Clearwire introduced a pre-paid service, Rover. Will it help make pre-paid data plans mainstream in the US?

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What if cellular data plans were not for devices but for the subscribers using them? And if multiple devices were allowed on the same plan? Could subscribers use more devices to connect and attach an higher value to their data plan?

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Some WiMAX operators have indicated their intention to move to LTE or their interest in transitioning to the new technology. A transition from WiMAX to LTE is possible, and in some cases it will be a straightforward and relatively inexpensive network upgrade, but in all cases it will require good planning from the operator. In this column published in FierceBroadbandWireless we discuss what it takes for WiMAX operators to move to LTE.

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