Sidecut Reports

Ever since we put together our first Sidecut Report on WiMax and its comprehensive look at the impact of the New Clearwire deal on the U.S. market, we have been intrigued by the prospect of the 2.5 GHz spectrum holdings that Sprint and the old Clearwire brought to the table.

So instead of just wondering about it, we spent some time asking questions and came up with a new product, something we are calling a Sidecut QuickCut — in this case a 12-page look at the New Clearwire’s spectrum depth, and how it gives WiMax an unquestionable boost over other wireless data operations coming to the U.S. market.

Titled “Deep and Wide: Why New Clearwire’s Spectrum Holdings Give WiMax a Boost in the U.S. Wireless Market 4G Deployment Race,” our “QuickCut” report takes a focused look at the role spectrum holdings play in wireless data services deployment for both Clearwire and its competitors in the so-called “4G” marketplace. Though the shorter form factor makes for a quicker read than our definitive 34-page full Sidecut Report on WiMax, there is still room to learn:

– Why having more spectrum depth means faster wireless services that are easier to deploy

– Why the 2.5 GHz frequency may be better at delivering wireless data than the highly touted 700 MHz band, especially in urban deployments

– Why the big telcos, AT&T and Verizon, are concerned about Clearwire’s spectrum holdings

– How New Clearwire’s spectrum holdings increase the chances for WiMax’s successful entry into the U.S. broadband services marketplace

The QuickCut WiMax Spectrum Report now even has its own spiffy button in our rapidly growing list on the right hand side of this page. If you are reading this via RSS, you can order via immediate download by clicking on this link. More about this report soon, after we recover from launching two reports in a single week while staying up all night watching the Olympics.

Interesting post today from Robert Scoble, who rambles on with a bunch of reasons why he thinks tech blogging has failed, claiming he’s guilty as charged on some of his “fail” points.

While I think that tech bloggers in specific areas are still providing the best coverage, Scoble is right on when he says the mainstream or A-list of tech bloggers spend too much time chasing their own tails or the obvious headline of the day. Partly I think this is due to the overwhelming business-case need to get viewer traffic, to satisfy advertiser page-view needs. As I said before, that’s a game Sidecut Reports doesn’t want to play, and why instead we are charging money for our reports.

Given that tech blogging is also having problems lately with disclosure and ethics, I think there need to be new models to help separate what’s worthy from the rest. Let’s see if Sidecut Reports is one that works.

As I slowly catch up with email and messages, let me apologize for not noting ahead of time that Sidecut Reports was going to be MIA last week. Though I am now able to sit upright at the keyboard, there will probably be slow going for the next week or so as I continue to recover from some long-planned back surgery that took place last Monday.

For the scientists out there, the procedure I had done was a Posterior Lumbar Spinal Fusion — in simpler terms, I now have some sweet titanium screws and frames in my lower back to correct a congenital condition that was pinching nerves in my legs, making it difficult to stand or walk for long without pain. (Anyone who saw me hobbling down the jetway-landing strip hallways of NXTComm in Vegas last month could clearly see there was a problem that needed fixing.)

As we slowly ramp back up to speed here you can always order our WiMax report to get yourself up to speed on the expected impact of the “new” Clearwire deal and what its chances are for success.

Sidecut Reports is pleased to announce the new, updated version of our WiMax report, which includes a comprehensive study of the “new” Clearwire WiMax deal and its $3.2 billion of investment from a group that includes Google, Comcast, Intel and Time Warner Cable.

Motivations behind the investments and the combination of WiMax assets from Sprint Nextel and Clearwire Corp. to form the “new” Clearwire are explored and explained in the revised edition of Sidecut’s previous in-depth look at the U.S. WiMax market, a report that all but predicted the inevitability of the deal announced May 7, 2008. In the new report readers will learn:

– The new opportunities and challenges for Clearwire’s national focus, which is a departure from previous plans

– The motivations for Google’s $500 million investment, which go beyond business goals for search and mobility to include public-policy goals

– Why the big telcos, AT&T and Verizon, may not see WiMax as a prime competitor (even as they step up marketing and lobbying efforts to make life harder for WiMax)

– Why cable providers like Comcast may be looking to WiMax to expand their user footprint beyond its current regulatory limits

The report also contains a WiMax technical and historical backgrounder, as well as an updated look at the WiMax business opportunities for enterprises, investors and entrepreneurs in markets including mobile Internet businesses, software development, and mobile device manufacturing. Titled “Game On, WiMax! Why the “new” Clearwire gives WiMax its best chance at success in the U.S. marketplace,” the new report is available for immediate download from our website.

Sidecut Reports, a new independent editorial research firm, all but predicted the blockbuster WiMax investment announcement in our original report, which came out a week before the historic agreement.

“Perhaps the new investors came to the same conclusions we did at the end of our initial report,” said Paul Kapustka, founder and editor of Sidecut Reports. “While there are significant challenges for starting any new network, the already-working nature of WiMax combined with the breadth of spectral and infrastructure assets of Sprint and Clearwire made investing in such a joint venture something close to an even-money bet.”

When I wrote that Sidecut Reports was launched to save tech journalism, I was only partly kidding. Reading this post from Doc Searls makes me think I have allies in the argument that says the hunt for revenue via online ads and more click-throughs is a race to zero.

That’s why we are using a subscription model, because for our goal of delivering long-form content in a highly specialized subject area (like our inaugural WiMax report), it seems to make the most sense and holds the promise of actually making it into a business by doing better reporting, not just more more more about the same stuff everyone else is following.

Interesting to see that Herb Greenberg, a pioneer in online business media, is also getting out of the publishing business and moving toward a research model. Saying Herb and I are doing the same thing, of course, is like saying that between me and Barry Bonds, we have 762 home runs. But it is one more voice on this side of the conversation.

Make no little plans, the man said. So why just launch another research outlet? Instead, we decided to tackle the problem of diminishing long-form tech journalism with our new idea, called Sidecut Reports.

While this blog has been live since the start of the year, today marks the “official” release of our inaugural report, titled Xohm Or Go Home: Why 2008 Is WiMax’s Breakout Year in the U.S. — Or Else! It’s available for immediate purchase and download by clicking the blue button to the right.

To better explain our goals, we also issued a couple of press releases today, one about the company and one about the WiMax report. In terms of Sidecut the company, this statement gives you the general idea of what we’re up to:

Led by longtime industry journalist Paul Kapustka, Sidecut Reports represents the future of technology journalism, providing business professionals in a wide range of disciplines with deep background, up-to-the minute information, and decision-making analysis on pertinent topics that goes far beyond blogs at a price far less than that charged by traditional analyst operations.

That price is $149.95, and it gets you a whole lot of targeted information on a specific topic that you may have wanted to know more about, but didn’t have the time to find on your own. At Sidecut, our goal is to do the digging, reporting and analysis to give you the information you need to make intelligent business and investing decisions. In the case of our first report, here is some of what you get for your small investment:

The report begins with the latest news on the planned launch of Sprint’s “Xohm” WiMax network and then adds in a technical backgrounder on WiMax itself before exploring the technical and business reasons behind WiMax’s opportunities and challenges, concluding with several predictions for WiMax’s fate in 2008. Prepared in an easy-to-read style accessible to those who may not have completely understood WiMax before, the report is also free of any vendor influence, making it much different than analyst reports that may have been tailored to suit sponsor interests, or may be too deep in technical minutae to be understood by a wider audience.

Sure, we’re having a little fun with the “saving tech journalism” idea but you will be hard-pressed to find any mainstream tech publishers letting their reporters do long, in-depth pieces anymore. You’ll also come up empty-handed if you are looking for long analytical input from most tech blogs; they simply don’t have the time to do the deep digging it requires to produce something like our WiMax report, which is 23 PDF pages long, and also free of any vendor influence.

Over the next week or so, I’ll have some more blog posts explaining why I picked WiMax as the topic for our inaugural report — basically it’s because the technology itself (true mobile wireless broadband) interested me from a geek level, which made digging into the business and market nuances a fun and informative ride. The complexities of the world of WiMax — including the parameters set by available spectrum, the marketing might of an interested player like Intel, and the potential competition from the big telcos — confirmed all my thoughts behind Sidecut, in that it takes something of our reports’ length to fully explore and understand all angles of these kinds of topics. If your business, investment decisions or startup plans have a possibility of embracing the true mobile broadband promise of WiMax, spending $149.95 on our report is an incredible value for the “return on investment” our information and analysis will provide.

While we ponder copying the solid long legal statements drafted by lawyers with good intentions for ethical reporter behavior, let’s just start simply and say, for the record, that Sidecut Reports is an Editorial Operation.

What does that mean? It means that all material in every report we sell is obtained through good old-fashioned reporting, by calling or contacting sources, asking them questions and writing down the answers. Then we do more research, reading, and thinking, for the analysis part.

That means no monetary influence from vendors, lobbyists, or other interest groups. No editorial reviews or approvals from vendors or sources interviewed for these reports. No outlandish gifts or paid-for trips by vendors, lobbyists or interest groups to gain “exclusive” interviews. No shady relationships with hidden “site sponsors” who hide behind astroturf fronts to publicize their agendas. All we ask our sources for is the same access given to other credible media types, and we’ll do the rest from there — with the loyal support of our readers, who will help pay for the quality journalism and analysis that such editorial freedom makes possible.

Like other editorial houses with impeccible ethical credos, Sidecut Reports does not own any stock, stock options, warrants, or even IOUs from any of the companies we cover. We’ll add more good ethical ideas to this post as we find them but for now we hope you get the idea.

If you would like to receive Sidecut Blog postings in email, please use the handy sign-up box on the right side of our home page.

Right now the email list sends an email every time we have a blog post; if you would prefer a weekly email with selected updates, let me know via a direct email to kaps at sidecutreports.com, and I will add that feature if there is enough demand.

As of this writing, we are projecting four Sidecut Reports will be completed in this calendar year, with the first one, “Xohm or Go Home: Why 2008 Is WiMax’s Breakout Year in the U.S. — Or Else!” all ready for your credit card on our ordering page.

The WiMax report is the first in our “Wireless Broadband” coverage category. For the purchase price of $149.95, you not only get the full report PDF, you also get a yearly subscription for report updates and news flashes on that topic area for the full calendar year.

Reports will be issued in the following categories as they are completed:

PUBLIC POLICY — Report on “Network Neutrality,” due out by early June, 2008.

INTERNET VIDEO INFRASTRUCTURE — Report due out late Q2 2008.

ADVANCED TELEPHONY — Report due out Q3 2008.

For editorial calendar information or report structure, send me an email to kaps at sidecutreports.com.

As those who have been following the situation closely may have guessed, I am no longer doing active duty as editor in chief of VON Magazine. Since I have exactly zero details on what happened, I am not able to answer any questions about the current state of Pulvermedia, or the ongoing status of the VON.X shows or VON Magazine. What I can tell you is that there has been no activity at VON Magazine or its websites since March 21. And that going forward, if you have questions about the Magazine, websites or shows, they should be directed to Jason Chudnofsky or Scott Kargman at Pulvermedia.