Johannesburg, 08 Apr 2009
Today Intel and Wireless Business Solutions (WBS) signed a commercial agreement to jointly roll out WiMax products. The aim of this agreement is to establish a strategic and exclusive partnership between WBS and Intel to deploy leading edge wireless broadband access for customers, both businesses and consumers, using WiMax enabled devices and to foster the adoption of WiMax products and services in South Africa.
In terms of the agreement, Intel will provide embedded WiMax devices that will act as a virtual service provider for WBS solutions and services provided through iBurst. WBS is the holder of a Commercial WiMax Spectrum Licence, and last year formed a strategic partnership with Intel.
“Research has shown that broadband access has a direct impact on economic growth,” says Lil Mohan, managing director of Intel's WiMax programme for EMEA, META and sub-Saharan Africa. “This alignment with WBS will drive the uptake of WiMax in sub-Saharan Africa and, in essence, it takes us one step closer to pervasive broadband,” he says.
This partnership has created the perfect opportunity for both businesses and consumers to benefit from the broadband boom as WiMax can be rolled-out quickly and allow those in the remote areas to benefit from broadband access. This partnership will also increase competition, which will ultimately give the end user more choice and better pricing.
“Today represents a milestone in the history of the Internet in South Africa and it's also a great achievement for WBS and iBurst to partner with a global technology leader like Intel. Hardware partnerships like these are the key to exponential Internet growth in Africa,” said Alan Knott-Craig, managing director of iBurst.
“WBS and iBurst are committed to increasing Internet penetration and improving Internet services in this country. We are confident that bundling hardware and access technologies such as WiMax is the way to get more South Africans online,” he added.
Although the agreement has been signed, the network and WiMax enabled laptops will only be available in early 2010. However, the initial testing phase has been completed, with very positive results. “Once these devices are available, the end-user will essentially have access to wireless ADSL as well as the added benefit of quality of service management,” says Mohan.
WiMax, the Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access, is described by the WiMax Forum as "a standards-based technology enabling the delivery of last mile wireless broadband access..." The WBS WiMax network already consists of 120 base stations deployed in Gauteng, Cape Town and KwaZulu-Natal, providing fixed broadband services, with plans to commission another 80 WiMax base stations in the near future.
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