Back in 1978, I was admitted to Northwestern Polytechnical University.

Chapter 486 Qualcomm's founder wanted CDMA technology for free?
Silicon Valley, USA.

The former high-tech center has now become somewhat desolate.

When Loongson emerged, its advanced performance and reasonable price quickly made it the mainstream in the market.

Even a game console uses a Loongson chip!

Many high-tech companies in Silicon Valley are slowly declining.

Intel, the largest processor manufacturer, is rapidly declining to the point that... its manufacturing plants are constantly being sold off.

With Grove dead, Gordon Moore had no choice but to step forward. Under his leadership, factories were sold off one by one in order to keep Intel afloat.

"Your factory looks pretty good!" Don Linda, head of Motorola Mobility, looked at the equipment in the factory with great interest.

"Yes, this factory was originally used to produce memory chips. It was Intel's greatest hope for defeating the island nation's electronics industry, but now..."

When the island nation's chip industry rose to prominence, their decline began! Although the final blow came from the East, it was the island nation itself that truly led them downhill.

Intel made its fortune with memory chips, but the island nation's electronics industry has taken over the memory chip industry!
Thinking about this, Gordon Moore felt another pang of sadness.

"Yes, after Motorola acquires it, we will mass-produce chips used in mobile phones, and then..."

"Mobile phones? Your mobile phones are going to use chips too?" Gordon Moore asked curiously.

In 83, the DynaTAC 8000X was launched. It was a behemoth weighing 794 grams and priced as high as four thousand US dollars. However, it was still in short supply in the market. After all, it was the beginning of mobile communication technology!
The internal components are all discrete, with transistors, resistors, and capacitors densely packed together, which makes this mobile phone such a large device.

Although this mobile phone became a hot commodity in the market, Motorola still needed to innovate technologically. In order to reduce weight, the next generation of mobile phones would need to use integrated circuits!

“That’s for sure,” Don Linda said. “To reduce the weight of mobile phones, we have to use chips. We’re already designing specialized mobile phone chips! The next mobile phone will be at least half the thickness, and with about ten chips on it, it will be able to perform all the functions of the mobile phone!”

Don Linda is very proud when she talks about this.

Motorola was a major player in the electronics industry. They had previously manufactured many chips, such as general-purpose processors. Although the x86 architecture became famous later, Motorola was the leader in the field when general-purpose processors first appeared. Many early microcomputers used Motorola's microprocessor chips.

"Are you able to use digital technology?"

Don Linda shook her head: "We believe that digital technology is meaningless. Our analog signals are already very good. Don't be fooled by the noise from the Europeans; they still use our Motorola technology to build networks, don't they?"

In the 1G era, Motorola was undoubtedly the king, making money all over the world, counting money until their hands were sore.

So, they were actually developing 2G technology, but they were moving slowly. After all, they made a lot of money in the 1G era, which gave them the illusion that they could keep making money forever.

As a result, the 2G era was surpassed!
Right now, Motorola is riding high, with their analog technology being used for networking all over the world, so they're not going to start researching digital technology now.

"Aren't you afraid of Northwestern Polytechnical University...?"

"Northwestern Polytechnical University is indeed very strong in the processor field, but in the mobile communications sector, Motorola is number one!"

"I heard that the military once used equipment from Northwestern Polytechnical University to successfully penetrate Soviet radio communications; their technology..."

"Alright, that's enough, Moore. You guys are scared of Northwestern Polytechnical University, but we at Motorola aren't afraid of them! This factory is worth at most three hundred million US dollars. Are you going to sell it or not?"

Gordon Moore sighed: "Of course I'll sell him. Oh, and Martin Cooper..."

"He's already left the company. Hmph, he won't achieve anything without Motorola."

Martin Cooper was born in 1928. He received his master’s degree from Illinois College of Engineering in 1950 and then joined Motorola, working in a laboratory in Manhattan, New York.

He had been researching mobile phones for a long time, starting with the initial military backpack radios and then moving to handheld phones in the 1973s. Even so, it took him another ten years to finally commercialize them.

Over the past decade, Martin Cooper and his team have carried out five technological innovations, finally enabling commercialization.

However, to everyone's surprise, in 1983, when Motorola's first mobile phone was officially sold, Martin Cooper chose to leave Motorola and founded a new company in October of that year to... be responsible for billing mobile phones.

It wasn't until 1992, ten years later, that he founded ArrayComm, a company responsible for researching and developing antennas for mobile communications.

This guy probably went out to make money, and then he'll get into technical stuff.

Perhaps even he felt that the mobile phone he developed was sufficient to meet market demand for the next ten years?
Don Linda shook her head helplessly. Intel was arrogant and domineering back then, and then it lost its position as the microprocessor leader. Now... it's Motorola's turn!

At the same time, MIT.

"Yang, your MIT should have advanced mobile communication technology. You could build a base station on campus, so we wouldn't need to go looking for roadside phone booths anymore, and we could make calls anytime!"

Yang Tian looked at Martin Cooper, who was sitting in front of him talking non-stop, and knew that if he continued like this, it would never end, so he interrupted him.

How many users can your mobile phones support simultaneously?

"We use frequency division multiple access technology, where each user has a dedicated channel, which can support twenty to thirty users making and receiving calls at the same time."

"So, if I'm the thirty-first person, I won't be able to get through?"

"Just wait a little while, and once one person finishes, the channel will be cleared."

Yang Tian shook his head: "No, I don't want to wait."

In the era of mobile phones, having such a phone looked cool, but in reality, the signal was terrible. You had to search for places with good signal to make calls, and there was also the possibility of crosstalk. More importantly, the number of customers it could accommodate was limited!
A base station can cover a radius of ten kilometers. In such a large area, it can only allow a maximum of twenty or thirty users to make calls at the same time, and they often cannot get through!

Yang Tian looked down on this outdated technology.

Seeing Yang Tian's reaction, Martin Cooper frowned: "Yang, aren't you usually very receptive to new technologies? Why are you so dismissive of our new technology now? Is there... an even better technology?"

Yang Tian nodded: "That's right!"

"Where is it? Let me see!"

Yang Tian turned his computer monitor so that the other person could see it.

"Come on, take a look at these patent registration applications. Although I haven't received the actual product yet, I can guess that this new type of mobile phone should be on the market soon."

patent?

Martin Cooper looked over and his heart skipped a beat.

Walsh codes and orthogonal codes, Rake receivers, soft handoff, power control...

These are all... underlying patents in CDMA technology!
Even with the development of 4G and even 5G, it is still based on these underlying patents. In the future, Huawei will have the most 5G patents, but it still has to hand over the underlying 3G patents to Qualcomm!

The first technology is the core coding method of CDMA; the second is solving the most critical multipath interference problem; the third is achieving seamless handover between base stations and reducing call interruptions; the fourth is dynamically adjusting the transmission power...

Under each technology, the name of Northwestern Polytechnical University is listed!
"You mean, the East is developing CDMA technology? How is that possible? Code Division Multiple Access is the most difficult technology. Right now, even Europe is only planning Time Division Multiple Access technology!"

The old mobile phone used analog signals and could only use FDMA, which is frequency division multiple access. Each channel occupied a frequency band, so the number of channels was determined by the number of frequency bands. Twenty or thirty channels were already considered very powerful. If there were more, the phone wouldn't be able to hold them all.

To further increase capacity, digital technology is needed. The easiest way to implement it initially is time division multiple access (TDMA), which divides time into slices within the same frequency band and assigns each slice to a user in turn. GSM commonly uses eight channels, which means that the same frequency band can be used by eight users at the same time.

If twenty-five frequency bands are used, a single base station can accommodate two hundred users at the same time.

Time slicing is simple and easy to implement, which is why GSM technology became the mainstream in the 2G era. Moreover, because it's digital technology, besides making calls, it also allows sending text messages and accessing the internet!

Code division multiple access (CDMA) requires encoding to distinguish between components, which is extremely difficult!
"The most advanced technology in the world is, of course, in the East. Don't compare the East with backward Europe."

Martin Cooper's heart sank.

"So... Motorola mobile phones will soon be obsolete?"

"Yes. Given Northwestern Polytechnical University's research and development speed, I estimate that a physical prototype will be available very soon."

Martin Cooper doesn't know how he got out of the office; he just felt... the sky was falling!
Their analog phones are first-generation, European digital phones are second-generation, and the technology developed in the East is truly third-generation.

Now, the first generation has just started making money, the second generation has just started research and development, and Dongfang has already iterated to the third generation?

How is this still playing?
Is Motorola destined to decline like this?
Boom!
Martin Cooper felt a bump and almost fell backward. Looking up, he saw an elderly professor also stepping back.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry... Wait, Martin Cooper?"

“Evan Jacob?” Martin Cooper looked at the person opposite him. This professor from MIT had also been researching communication technology. Why was he in such a hurry?

"Hmm, what brings you to MIT?"

“I’ll do it…” Martin Cooper said with a hint of helplessness.

He came to sell Motorola mobile phones, and then he got rejected.

"Did you know that Northwestern Polytechnical University in the East has registered a large number of CDMA patents?"

Why bring up something you shouldn't talk about? Isn't this like reopening old wounds and rubbing salt into them?
Martin Cooper nodded helplessly: "Yes, I just found out."

"You know? That's great! Have you considered using these technologies to develop even more advanced mobile phones?"

At this moment, Evan Jacob felt an indescribable excitement.

This guy is the founder of the famous Qualcomm! However... he only left MIT in 1985, and the early CDMA-level technology he developed was for satellite communications. It wasn't until the 1990s, after several life-or-death trials, that Qualcomm finally grew into a major player.

He hasn't resigned yet; he's still a professor at MIT, and he's also considering how mobile communications should develop. When he discovered these patents from Northwestern Polytechnical University, he went almost crazy and headed straight for Yang Tian's office, only to... bump into Martin Cooper!

“These technologies…are already patented, and if we use them, it means we'll have to pay hefty patent fees…”

"That's not necessarily true. With the relationship between MIT and Northwestern Polytechnical University... Okay, I'm not going to talk to you anymore. I'm going to find the president!"

The president of Northwestern Polytechnical University is the son-in-law of the president of MIT!
Therefore, Northwestern Polytechnical University has to give MIT face!
Seeing Evan Jacob rush into Yang Tian's office, Martin Cooper also turned back.

Inside the office.

"President, please coordinate with Northwestern Polytechnical University to license the CDMA technology patents to us free of charge!"

Snapped!
The pen in Yang Tian's hand fell onto the table.

"Evan, what are you thinking! Why would Northwestern Polytechnical University license such an advanced patent to us? And for free?"

"Because Qin Liang is your son-in-law!"

"roll!"

Countless alpacas floated past Yang Tian's head.

What utter nonsense are you spouting!

Qin Liang is my son-in-law, so he should license his most advanced patents to us, for free?

"President, I have a feeling this technology will soon be widely adopted and become the most advanced technology in the world. Back then, it was MIT that popularized game consoles, and now, of course, we should be the ones to popularize mobile phones! MIT's expenses are also very high; if we can monopolize..."

Evan Jacob paused here, looking at the person standing at the door.

"Martin Cooper, you've come at the right time. Do you think CDMA will become the mainstream in the future?"

Martin Cooper, the father of the mobile phone, who single-handedly created the iconic analog era's first mobile phone, is now... being asked to admit that his technology is outdated?
Martin Cooper looked embarrassed.

"Hey buddy, don't you know? The CDMA underlying technology has been fully developed, all that's needed is the upper layer. This technology is absolutely the most advanced. You don't think that brick-like device that can only accommodate twenty or so users, often has no signal, and is always interfering with the sound, represents the future, do you? Your kind of technology should have been thrown into the trash heap a long time ago!"

Martin Cooper's face flushed red and then turned pale.

"Dude, the competition in this field is fierce, and the technology from Northwestern Polytechnical University... is truly impressive!"

Intense competition?
Martin Cooper's thoughts drifted back to more than a decade ago, to 1973, when the first mobile phone was developed. He took the phone to the street and called someone he knew.

To this day, he still remembers the reaction of the person on the other end of the phone.

"This is Yul Engel."

"Yule, this is Cooper. I'm talking to you on a real mobile phone, a real cell phone!"

There was silence on the other end of the phone.

Yul Engel, a mobile phone expert at Bell Labs, and a long-time rival of Cooper.

Now... the tables have turned, and Motorola has fallen behind so quickly!
"If you don't want to, then forget it. Principal, the Spring Festival in Dongfang should be coming soon, right? Can I go to Dongfang with you?"

Irwin Jacob's eyes were full of anticipation.

Yang Tian thought for a while and said, "Alright, I can take you there. However, I can't decide how this technology should be licensed. It's up to them."

"Good, good, good."

"I'm going too!" Martin Cooper suddenly exclaimed. At that moment, he also really wanted to go and see the East!

"That's more like it, buddy. If we work on CDMA together, we're sure to make a fortune. As for Motorola... well, you've already left Motorola, so it's none of your business!"

New York, Manhattan, Motorola Labs.

"Our chip production problem has been solved. Next, we only need to complete the chip design, and then we can develop even smaller mobile phones!" Don Linda looked at everyone: "Ladies and gentlemen, Motorola is destined to monopolize the world's mobile phone industry!"

Some companies are born to lead the world.

“Don, look here, we’ve found… some problems,” engineer Louis said.

Don Linda looked at the computer screen: "CDMA patents? It doesn't matter, these technologies are all military-grade. Frequency hopping and spread spectrum are none of our business..."

"If these technologies are used for civilian purposes, then we..."

"Impossible! How could these technologies be used for civilian purposes? Don't worry!"

Europe, Postal and Telecommunications Management Conference Mobile Special Task Force.

"We absolutely cannot allow Motorola mobile phones to dominate the European market; this is an important symbol of European independence and autonomy!"

"That's right, we can work together to develop a unified standard that can support cross-border roaming!"

"Technically speaking, we must surpass Motorola!"

"We at Nokia believe that frequency division multiple access (FDMA) technology is the simplest; it only requires converting Motorola's analog signals into digital signals..."

"No, frequency division multiple access technology is too outdated and can only accommodate too few channels. We at Ericsson believe that time division multiple access technology should be adopted!"

"Ladies and gentlemen, none of these technologies are advanced enough. The most advanced technology should be Code Division Multiple Access. This technology is definitely the future. We at Siemens believe that we should choose the most promising technology!"

The proverb "Three monks have no water to drink" applies here; Europe's choice of technology is often not based on technology, but on politics—a result of various trade-offs. Pierce, the person in charge, lamented.

Now, the wrangling has started again.

It would take them many years of empty talk just to set the standards!
just now……

Thump thump thump... Just then, someone walked in.

"Ladies and gentlemen, we have just discovered that Northwestern Polytechnical University in the East has registered a large number of CDMA patents!"

what?
Everyone stood up.

While they were still arguing, the Easterners had already surpassed them!
Pierce took a deep breath: "I think we should go and see what's happening in the East!"

(End of this chapter)