XOHM Launch delayed again
CTIA Wireless, April
2008
The launch of XOHM,
the pioneer mobile WiMAX service from Sprint which was expected in April 2008 after the commercial trials in three markets
( Chicago, Washington and Baltimore), has been put off ahgain, with no announcement yet on the exact launch dates.
The launch delay in
the XOHM service was expected considering that the bulk of new mobile WiMAX devices are expected to be available only by June
2008 onwards. The Wave 2 certified devices (Certification by the WiMAX forum) are also expected to be available at the same
time.
On the whole it is
better to have a well matured launch rather than one with unwired turnouts.
http://www.wimax-home.com
Cable
MSOs to invest in Sprint-Clearwire WiMAX Venture?
As per industry news, Major MSOs such as Time Warner
and Comcast are in talks with Sprint and Clearwire to invest upto 1.5 Billion. There are other MSOs as well which are looking
at investing and joining the bandwagon.The coming in of Cable MSOs in a WiMAX venture was only to be expected and has been
in the air for some time now. The winning in the 700 MHz auction of the telecom majors such as Verizon and AT&T has also
set the cat amongst the pigeons as to how these companies will leverage this very valuable broadcast spectrum.
Will it be using technologies such
as WiMAX ( the profiles are yet to be developed for 700 MHz) or will they use it with mobile 3G technologies and FLO? Or other ways of using the bands with open access? These questions will be answered
very soon.
In the meantime for those who have
been left out in auctions, it is time to focus on new strategies. What can be more innovative than the Sprint and Clearwire
WiMAX networks which have been in making for a while now? WiMAX networks do have clear advantages in providing QoS based connectivity
for streaming applications as well as multicast channels. The MSOs need this sorely for VoD content as well as for enabling
triple play services. They can also target a host of mobile devices which are Wimax enabled for video and multimedia applications.
With new Systems on Chip(SoC) with
ultra low power consumption and conformance with Wireless ( 802.11n) as well as mobile WiMAX wave 2 certification profiles
making a strong surge, the mobile WiMAX scene is set to be a witness to major changes. Many new applications and devices will
get powered and the broadcast sector is set to be one of the largest gainers in this regard.
http://www.wimax-home.com
