Unwired: Good old fashioned broadband access will drive 4G
- 29 September, 2009 12:22
- Comments 7
Unwired claims the need for traditional Internet access will provide the driving force behind uptake of its forthcoming 4G services.
The wireless ISP and Seven Network subsidiary, Unwired, padded out the list of vendors involved its 4G network rollout in Perth this week. It is building and managing the network for wholly-owned subsidiary, Vividwireless, using WiMax technology.
“There is still growing demand for good old fashioned broadband access in the home – because Perth has lots of DSL blackspots – and on the move,” an Unwired spokesperson said. “There is no need for new killer applications to justify people buying more data. The growth in demand for wireless data is exponential here and around the world.”
Unwired has now enlisted Juniper for router and security appliances, and HP for core servers and PowerOne for power supplies.
Verizon Business has also signed on to provide redundancy Internet access, while Optus will supply optic fibre links from 15 hub sites to the point of presence (PoP) that will be in the Perth iX datacentre.
The quartet join Huawei, which was selected in early September from a list of 13 vendors to supply mobile WiMax equipment. DragonWave was also named microwave backhaul supplier for the planned 150 base stations last week. Future Long Term Evolution (LTE) hardware, seen as the imminent heir of 3G networks, is supported by Huawei.
Unwired currently offers services exclusively in Sydney and Melbourne and plans to expand its 4G network into other capital cities besides Perth. No specific timeframe, however, has been released.
“How and where we decide on other locations is still a matter we are keeping to ourselves,” the spokesperson said. “At the moment, our focus is through the Vividwireless service and to deliver what we promised to the people of Perth, which is a genuine 4G wireless experience.”
According to a statement release by VividWireless, 4G wireless broadband customers will have access to average speeds of 4Mbps and peak speeds of 20Mbps. The company has yet to finalise its wholesale go-to-market strategy.
While the viability of WiMax has been hotly disputed, Unwired has distanced itself from the conversation, preferring to question the relevance of the widely adopted 3G wireless network. The ISP saw the limitations of 3G’s capacity provide many opportunities for players of other technologies to step in.
“There is scope for anyone to enter with a data-only solution and we don’t think the individual choice of technology particularly matters,” the spokesperson said. “It’s not a question of whether WiMax is a good or bad choice, the big issue is the 3G networks are being choked by their own success.”
Come socialise with us! Facebook | LinkedIn
- Bookmark this page
- Share this article
- Got more on this story? Email ARN
- Follow ARN on twitter
- In Search of the Long-Term Archiving Solution —Tape Continues to Be a Major Player
- Premier Media Group Fast Study
- Red Light In the Control Centre Saves Hours of Chaos
- Spectra Logic and Australian National University Success Story - March 2012
- Aberdeen Group: Building Business Resilience Through Active Archive
-
Telstra announces HTC One XL
-
Tech Watch: Who watches the datacentre?
-
Preview: HTC One S
-
Facebook scammers host Trojan horse extensions on the Chrome Web Store
-
Webroot: Growth in security
Get exclusive access to ARN's news, research and invitation only events. 
Comments
rob
4G
Can you tell me what are the advancements with 4G
Anonymous
Pulled straight off Wikipedia:
"A 4G system may upgrade existing communication networks and is expected to provide a comprehensive and secure IP based solution where facilities such as voice, data and streamed multimedia will be provided to users on an "Anytime, Anywhere" basis and at much higher data rates compared to previous generations."
Hope that answers your question.
Anonymous
WiMAX is 4G? Probably only to the Marketeers.....
So from the ITU (International Telecommunications Union) Website:
IMT-Advanced being studied by ITU as 4G will provide:
- at least 100 Mbit/s with high mobility
- up to 1GBit/s with low mobility (nomadic)
Does not look like the network mentioned above meets the spec
Troy
YAY
Its about time Perth got a win. I've been stuck on wireless 3g broadband for the last 2 years less than 1km from an adsl enabled exchange which is not much faster than dialup during peak periods (3G networks are being choked by their own success) due to telstras and the land developers short sightedness.
Mohamed
I Agree - 3G networks are too busy and congested
I've seen so many people in Sydney - unable to connect or getting a really bad service in the area they live for 3G wireless internet access .
I really think WiiWax would be better . but again, I don't know how much WiiWax would cost to setup and run , but at least unwired has separated itself from the Mobile 3G providers .
Anonymous
Well the traditional downside to a WiMax network has always been it's inferior performance in built-up areas like Sydney - it struggles to penetrate skycrapers and therefore office blocks.
3G might be slower, but it is able to reach more areas. So if you're having trouble with what you've got, it could be worse. Unless they fix that issue.
Walter Adamson @g2m
Good move - potentially
There will be a demand for a large amount more of high-speed wireless Internet access at the right price. This is a market waiting to be had, it doesn't matter "X"G as the customer doesn't care.
EMobile emobile.jp in Japan offers this plus a telephone system all over 3G and its upgrades. In fact it offers unlimited uncapped wireless broadband to its customers - something which operators would say here is commercially unviable - but that's just a state of mind from which we suffer.
Walter Adamson, @g2m
Post new comment