Major Service Providers Join Wimax Forum, Broaden
Support For Global Broadband Wireless Access Standard.
As further validation that WiMAX technology is
poised to deliver broadband on a wide scale, the WiMAX Forum
today announces that major service providers including BT (NYSE:
BTY), France Telecom (NYSE: FTE), Qwest Communications (NYSE:
Q), Reliance Telecom and XO Communications (OTCBB: XOCM.OB) have
joined the organization. Service providers now make up nearly 25
percent of the WiMAX Forum membership.
"WiMAX technologies have considerable potential
as extensions to our broadband offerings in the UK," said Mick
Reeve, Group Technology Officer for BT Group. "We believe
interoperability will be important in this area and we are
pleased to be part of the WiMAX Forum in shaping the
technologies and how they are used."
"We see wireless broadband as an important access
component to our portfolio of network and communications
services," said Aamir Hussain, Qwest's director of broadband
technologies. "We look forward to working with the WiMAX Forum
to achieve standardized broadband wireless access solutions at a
significantly lower price point than what is currently available
today."
Through WiMAX Forum-led efforts, the economies of
scale made possible by standards-based, interoperable products
will drive price and performance levels unachievable by
proprietary approaches. As a result, service providers worldwide
will be able to deliver economical broadband data, voice and
video services to both residential and business customers.
"Service provider representation in the WiMAX
Forum now spans the globe, representing every major market
opportunity for broadband access worldwide," said WiMAX Forum
President Ron Resnick. "With nearly 85 percent of the supplier
market and now some of the world's most prominent service
providers committed to WiMAX, it's clear that WiMAX can deliver
on the global challenge of providing broadband on a ubiquitous
scale. This is a major boost as we gear up to begin
certification and interoperability testing later this year and
move toward the introduction of the first WiMAX-Certified(TM)
products in 2005."
As a result of the growing service provider
membership, the WiMAX Forum created a Service Provider Working
Group. This committee serves as an opportunity for carriers to
provide input to the various product and spectrum requirements
to ensure their specific market needs are supported in WiMAX
technical documents.
