NEW Energie expects to launch new broadband wireless services based on Nortel WiMAX technology in the second quarter of 2006 to areas which have little fixed broadband coverage. WiMAX is a next-generation technology that uses advanced wireless transmission techniques to bridge the 'last mile' connection between an operator's network and a user, eliminating the need for fixed copper or cable in the ground.
"WiMAX offers immense potential for growth," said Dr. Holger Hegemann, president Nortel Central Europe. "It overcomes the traditional cost barrier to broadband access -- namely a high-quality, but often expensive-to-deploy fixed connection to the home or business. In essence, WiMAX brings the possibility of broadband everywhere that much closer, so that the blank spaces on Europe's broadband map will at last gradually disappear."
"We have very high hopes for WiMAX," said Frank Korsten, NEW Energie broadband wireless access project manager. "The technology enables us to offer customers broadband connections without having to use physical wire or cable connections over the last mile. For regional carriers WiMAX offers the prospect of a valuable additional source of revenue."
The pilot installation in also showed the user-friendliness of a potential WiMAX service. Users in Erkelenz were able to simply 'plug and play' the small indoor WiMAX modem into their computer, said the release. The flexibility of the service also allowed for an individual to automatically update the speed and cost of their specific wireless connection to a level that suited their usage profile.
Nortel is a member of the WiMAX Forum and has contributed to the 802.16 standard by helping develop underlying technologies like OFDM and MIMO for more than seven years, and holds several key patents in these areas.
