Report indicates 13 new WiMAX deployments in April

The need of the hour is to get data from one point to another as fast as possible. The availability of internet on the move has become necessity for many. The global WiMAX network has been growing significantly over the past years, with the advancements in telecommunication technology. According to a latest report published by WiMAX Forum, there have 13 new WiMAX network deployments in the month of April.

WiMAX Forum has started publishing its report starting this month that will contain an executive summary, global deployment update, POPS summary, monthly featured operator profile, certification update, regulatory update, survey data results and a third party research update. It will track a total of 468 WiMAX deployments in 139 countries.

According to a research by the Forum, currently WiMAX deployments cover over 430 million POPs globally. By the end of 2010, this number would reach almost 800 million POPs worldwide.

Countries like Iran and Chile have started showing more interest in WiMAX technology. The Iranian Communication Regulatory Authority has granted four six-year licenses for operators to offer fixed WiMAX services in the country. In Chile, the government announced that it had awarded a license for 30 MHz of spectrum in the 2.3 GHz band to INVERCA Telecommunications.

Last year, there were 82 products that were launched, which were certified by the WiMAX Forum and the first quarter of 2009, 15 products of WiMAX Forum Designated Certification Laboratories were WiMAX Forum Certified. The products are used by 25 base station vendors, 27 subscriber station vendors and four mobile station vendors.

A survey conducted in the first quarter by the WiMAX Forum Network Operations Task Force with the sample consisting of 70 WiMAX operators. In response to a question on the importance of certification, 89 percent of respondents were of the opinion that their company would require WiMAX Forum Certification for devices. Also, 74 percent of respondents to a question on sales channels plan to sell WiMAX devices through general retail stores.

Agencies