Motorola Continues WiMAX Leadership with 802.16e Network Deployments, Devices, and Mobile WiMAX Handoffs

(Business News & Technology News, 18 Dec 2007)

Motorola Inc. has issued a year-end update on its wi4 WiMAX solutions and customer engagements. For the past 12 months, Motorola has increased its number of contracts for commercial WiMAX networks to 15, and demonstrated the historic first live mobile WiMAX 802.16e handoffs between continuous WiMAX cells supporting voice, data and multimedia applications during WiMAX World USA in Chicago.

The company also:
- Increased to more than 57 the number of WiMAX engagements in 38 countries worldwide, including 44 active trials.
- Is on track to support Sprint/Xohm soft launch in Chicago by year end 2007 and is on schedule with deployment for the planned commercial launch in Q2 2008.
- Delivered thousands of access points to customers worldwide and delivered tens of thousands of CPE units or PC cards for customer engagements including trials and commercial deployments currently underway.
- Completed the deployment of the first 802.16e commercial WiMAX network in Pakistan for Wateen Telecom. The operator has since launched nationwide commercial services to corporate and consumer markets.
- Unveiled its test WiMAX mobile device and WiMAX chipset which will be embedded in consumer electronic devices to provide mobile Internet access.
- Completed the first phase deployment of two additional commercial WiMAX systems in France and Germany.

"We've seen tremendous progress in the deployment of 802.16e WiMAX technology worldwide this year," said Fred Wright, Senior Vice President, WiMAX and Cellular Networks, Motorola Home & Networks Mobility. "With the recent and impending launches of commercial service by major broadband wireless operators worldwide, WiMAX is set to become a mainstream broadband wireless technology at least two years ahead of other alternative technologies. While we spent the majority of 2007 proving the commercial viability of WiMAX technology, we will see the commercial launch of dozens of WiMAX systems in 2008 with a wide variety of customer premises equipment, PC cards, mobile devices, and innovative applications."

"2008 promises to be another exciting year for WiMAX and the entire 4G landscape," said Phil Marshall, Vice President, Enabling Technologies, Yankee Group. "We expect that in 2008 several large scale national WiMAX deployments will be announced in Asia and Europe. Currently our conservative forecasts are calling for 37 million WiMAX globally subscribers by 2011."

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