Fixed wireless access technology based on WiMAX should succeed because it will reduce cost and will meet users’ increasing demand for bandwidth.
That is the view of Carlton O’Neal, v-p marketing at system supplier Alvarion. “We’ve been on a curve and it’s all about getting the cost down. We’re trying to get down the cost curve and WiMAX is just the next step to that,” said O’Neal
He pointed out that just 0.5 per cent of broadband connections are fixed wireless, but estimated that 20 to 30 per cent of customers will be unable to get broadband through fixed lines and will have to go the fixed wireless route.
But analyst iSuppli said WiMAX will primarily be limited to serving niche market applications in the near term, with less than five per cent of broadband subscribers using it by 2010.
www.alvarion.com
See also: Electronics Weekly's roundup of content related to WiMax