The company will also make a $500 million (Rs 2,000 crore) investment through the acquired company in the next 2-3 years to build and acquire WiMax networks across 50 countries. Worldwide interoperability for microwave access or WiMax is a telecommunications technology that provides wireless data over long distances through various mediums. This is the third acquisition by the company as it had acquired US-based ethernet services provider Yipes Holdings for $300 million.
Telcos may have begun their WiMAX rollouts, but the results are yet to show. Consider this. Tata Teleservices which deployed its first WiMAX network in Bangalore in March, and is expecting to gather a subcsriber base of about 2 lakh by the end of the year, has enrolled just about 7,000 customers in the city.
WiMax Forum, the representative body of WiMax operators, alleged that BSNL had deployed its WiMax services on the frequency division duplex-based spectrum band, which does not conform to international standards for WiMax technology. The forum also sought easier rollout obligations for the successful bidders of BWA spectrum.
Qualcomm has possible intentions of hoarding spectrum should it win the spectrum in the forthcoming auction, Wimax Forum chairman C S Rao said.
Intel believes country's Wimax market alone could touch Rs 21,000 crore (Rs 210 billion) in the next three years as the Indian telecom market has now become more attractive after the announcement of 3G and broadband wireless access licence policy. The country is adding more than 6-7 million wireless subscribers every month and Intel believes after the roll-out of Wimax services around 7 to 8 per cent of the new customers would subscribe to WiMax service.
This would be company's second acquisition in the WiMax space. In February, the company had acquired a significant stake in a French WiMax chip manufacturer Sequans Communications. The financial details of the acquisition were not disclosed. Further, RCom will expand its reach across countries in the Saarc region, Mediterranean and other South African nations. RCom intends to provide high-speed broadband services, voice, video and data suite and 4G services.
Intel Capital, the investment arm of Intel Corp, is seeking further investment opportunities to support its WiMax (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) strategy, since it believes the technology could shake up the wireless data market.
Indian Internet Service Providers are upbeat about Worldwide Inter-operability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) as a solution for the country's last-mile connectivity problems.
Both Long Term Evolution Time Division Duplex and Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access are broadband wireless access technologies.
WiMax is a telecommunications technology that provides broadband speed without the need for cables. "The subscriber equipment cost or the cost of the instrument that facilitates WiMax is still priced at about $ 175-200 (Rs 8,225-Rs 9,400). So ways and means have to be worked out to offer a feasible tariff," explained a senior BSNL executive.
WiMAX technology provides wireless transmission of data using a variety of modes.
The company aims to roll out wireless broadband connectivity through WiMax technology commercially this year, especially in urban areas. Initially, it will start its operations in three states -- Maharashtra (excluding Mumbai), Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh.
Tata Communications unveils an ambitious plan to become global leader in wireless broadband by launching the world's largest commercial network
The only hope for WiMax operations in South Asia will be India, according to the Yankee Group, since even in countries like the US and other advanced nations, the technology "cannot be rated as successful".
Soma Networks, a US-based provider of mobile Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) products and services, plans to launch compact WiMAX-enabled devices in India within six months.
Rural India is divided into 6000 blocks of population.BSNL has rights to 1000 blocks and has invited tenders for installing a WiMAX base station in each of those blocks to provide connectivity to villages. Rural India is divided into 6000 blocks of population. BSNL has rights to 1000 blocks and has invited tenders for installing a WiMAX base station in each of those blocks to provide connectivity to villages.
The Indian telecom boom is not only about numbers. In what is the first of its kind in the domestic telecom industry, telecom operator Aircel will deploy WiMax networks in all 23 circles across the country.
The government has set a target of achieving 100 million broadband subscribers by 2014 as against 8.59 million users by the end of February 2010.
Union minister of state for agriculture and consumer affairs K V Thomas launched the facility at a function in Kochi on Saturday.
WiMAX is generally said to deliver 70 megabits per second over 50 kilometers but can either operate at higher bitrates or over longer distances.
"While telecom operators may get a licence for spectrum and have the money to build networks, they may not necessarily have the management skills. We are in talks to explore possibilities of knowledge transfer and help operators build capacities by lowering entry barriers," said Barry West, CTO, Sprint, and president, Xohm. Globally, Sprint is not doing well. It is now banking on WiMax to boost its revenues.
The department of space and the department of telecommunication are at loggerheads over the use of 2.5 MHz spectrum band for commercial operations, which DoS claims will interfere with sensitive satellite communications.
MTNL intends to allow one successful bidder each in its licensed area of Delhi and Mumbai for the deployment and operation of its Wi-Max system on exclusive, revenue-sharing basis. The network proposed to be deployed should provide fully converged broadband data and voice services such as access to internet, VPN clients, QoS to individual subscribers and cell support video conferencing, the PSU in said its global expression-of-interest notice.
The issue of which technology to use in wireless broadband services, TD-LTE or WiMax, is becoming keener.
The DoT and CAG developments come in the wake of reports of revenue loss and misuse of WiMax licences.
Sources said BSNL is now looking at putting in place tougher terms and conditions for the new tender as the original tender was under controversy, with BSNL facing allegations of non-transparency in the bidding process to select its WiMax franchisee partners. More than 20 companies made a bid earlier this year to act as a WiMax partner to BSNL in a number of circles across India.
The bids were slated to be opened on December 4. WiMAX or Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access provides for wireless transmission of data and up to 75 Mb/sec speed. The 802.16d -- also frequently referred to as 'fixed WiMAX' has no support for mobility.
Many developing countries are using WiMax deployments to leapfrog past copper wires, notes the World Economic Forum (WEF) Global Information Technology Report 2007-08. For instance, in India, Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access, or WiMAX, has been promoted as the answer to the country's last-mile connectivity issues.
Television channels like Aaj Tak, Star Ananda, Maa TV and Kairali may soon have to go off the air.
It's the Year of Broadband in India and Frank Hanzlik, MD of the Wi-Fi Alliance, wants Wi-Fi to rise above the din created by WiMax (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) and 3G.
A 40 million Euro research and development centre on wimax technology, a joint venture between C-DOT and Alcatel, was inaugurated in Chennai on Friday.
A delay would also result in a loss of opportunity to add at least 10 million broadband customers per year, which would have helped increase broadband penetration. India had a total of 5.65 million broadband connections as on January 31, 2009, way below the 9-million subscriber target set by the DoT for 2007. The meagre growth -- the country is adding around 1 million subscribers per annum -- will make it difficult to meet the government's target of 20 million users by 2010.
Intel, the world's largest chipmaker, is understood to be in talks with leading Indian telecom companies like Tata Communications (formerly VSNL), Bharti Airtel and Reliance Communications that could bid for broadband wireless access spectrum to be auctioned by the government in January 2010.
The company will structure its services under four business segments -- Data, voice, WiMax and National Long Distance services -- that would help it increase focus on customer segments and improve revenue generation. The group will realign operations of Reliance Globalcom (formerly Flag Telecom), Reliance Globalcom Services (earlier acquired Yipes Enterprises) and Reliance Vanco Group (formerly Vanco Group) under the four proposed verticals.
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