Wi-Fi Alliance Welcomes Atheros Communications as New Sponsor Member

(Business News & Technology News, 9 Apr 2008)

Atheros Communications has become a Sponsor member of the Wi-Fi Alliance and has appointed a director to the organization's board. An active member since 1999, Atheros is among a group of companies that lead a global, non-profit trade association of approximately 300 member companies. Atheros joins current Sponsor members Apple, Broadcom, Cisco, Dell, Intel, Microsoft, Motorola, Nokia, Sony, and Texas Instruments.

The Wi-Fi Alliance, which created the term Wi-Fi, develops testing and certification programs to help ensure the best user experience with Wi-Fi technology. The organization's Wi Fi CERTIFIED programs, which have been a driving force in the growth of the Wi-Fi market, address interoperability across manufacturers' products and help ensure strong security. According to analyst firm In-Stat, the Wi-Fi industry shipped 300 million chipsets in 2007 and is growing at a compound annual growth rate of 40 percent. More than 4,300 products have been Wi-Fi CERTIFIED to date.

"Atheros is one of the founders of the Wi-Fi industry. They introduced the first 802.11a chipset in 2000 and have long been an active participant in the Wi-Fi Alliance," says Edgar Figueroa, Executive Director of the Wi-Fi Alliance. "Atheros is a valuable addition to the leadership of the Wi-Fi Alliance as we continue to enable the best Wi-Fi user experience in increasingly diverse applications, product categories and regions."

"Wi-Fi technology has transformed the way consumers use computing and entertainment products, and is fast becoming a must-have feature in all types of electronics," says Craig Barratt, President and CEO of Atheros. "The test programs and market building activities of the Wi-Fi Alliance have played an important role in the adoption of Wi-Fi and continue to contribute to the industry's future success. As a longstanding participant in the Wi-Fi Alliance, Atheros is pleased to join its board and we look forward to helping lead the organization as it works to realize the full potential of Wi-Fi."

Click here for a list of Wi-Fi Alliance members and a searchable database of Wi-Fi CERTIFIED products