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Motorola Inc. and Maxis Communications Berhad yesterday announced a successful call from the first mobile WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) site at Kuala Lumpur City Centre (KLCC). KLCC is among four Maxis live trial sites using Motorola’s WiMAX solution on 2.5GHz spectrum. This also marks Motorola’s first mobile WiMAX live trial in Southeast Asia, and the trials are slated to be complete by the second quarter of 2007.
“We are extremely delighted to be collaborating with Maxis, Malaysia’s leading mobile telecommunications provider, in this live trial. The mobile WiMAX will certainly give Maxis an edge in extending more innovative, prompt and value-added services to its subscriber,” said K.M Yee, Senior Director of Sales, Networks & Enterprise, Motorola Electronics Sdn Bhd.
“As a global leader in wireless communications, Motorola is well positioned to provide forward looking Malaysian telecommunication operators the assistance in making broadband connections available to more than 75 percent of households in Malaysia by 2010,” Yee added.
Touted by many as a competitor to 3G and HSDPA, mobile WiMAX is in fact a conformance of the worldwide IEEE 802.16e standard interface via OFDMA (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access) which is different from the technology behind 3G. 3G may provide the ability to transfer non-voice data, but the technology standards behind them were derived from voice services, while WiMAX is geared towards high data bandwidth, addressing the limitations of 3G and HSDPA in terms of providing true wireless broadband.
“Mobile WiMAX plays a critical role in our wireless broadband strategy. We see mobile WiMAX as an essential and complementary service to our ongoing HSDPA deployment due to its progressive capacity management capabilities for high broadband traffic. We are excited to work with Motorola on this trial as they are one of the first providers to offer the most advanced commercial 802.16e standard mobile WiMAX equipment on the market.” Said Dr Nikolai Dobberstein, Senior General Manager for Products & New Businesses, Maxis Communications Berhad.
Surfing via WiMAX...
WiMAX allows download speeds of up to 2.3Mbps.
WiMAX is thus not set replace 3G as a cellular communication system, but rather complement it by providing true mobile broadband without compromising the quality of voice data in which Maxis’ 3G network already provides to over 220,000 subscribers as of end last year. This is in line with the 3GPP Long Term Evolution which is an effort to move into 4G by means of integrating new standards and technologies to meet future requirements while minimising cost.
“The cost of copper has tripled over the years, while the cost of wireless deployment has gone cheaper. The potential for technologies such as WiMAX to provide a low cost wide area WiFi type solutions to areas in Malaysia that have limited connectivity is huge. Beyond this WiMAX in urban centres has the potential to revolutionise the provision of voice through VoIP in the same way SKYPE has revolutionised the provision of cheap PC-to-PC internet calls,” said Jay Andersen, Vice President for Sales and Operations Asia, Networks & Enterprise, Motorola Inc.
“When you compare WiMAX with GSM, the fundamentals are in place: a recognised worldwide standard in 802.16e, ubiquitous worldwide devices through integration of WiMAX in every PC, spectral efficiency, and significant technological improvements over 3G such as OFDMA, smart antennas, and a fully IP-based system,” Andersen said.
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