Dan Ilett | ZDNet UK | February 23, 2005, 18:05 BST
In a rare twist, a broadband technology may be launched out in the sticks before it reaches urbanites
BT may launch WiMax in rural areas ahead of cities following the success of its trials of the high-speed wireless technology.
The telco, which is on track to deliver 100 percent broadband coverage in Northern Ireland using ADSL and WiMax before the year is out, hinted on Wednesday that wireless broadband tests had gone so well that country dwellers across the UK could benefit from the technology before urban inhabitants.
"It's demand-driven, but we shall see," said Chet Patel, general manager for BT Retail Internet Access Products. "We've proved the technology in terms of what it can and cannot do and customer feedback has been very good."
BT's researchers took WiMax to four remote locations in the UK to test it in the most severe weather conditions over the most testing terrain. Seventy-three percent of wireless broadband users in rural areas expressed 'extreme satisfaction' with the service, although Patel said the results may not reflect the service accurately.
"That's to be expected though when you take broadband to them instead of their dial-up service," he said.
Patel added that BT's tests have not been without problems. "We've found out where you can deploy services," said Patel. "Just by lifting an antenna by two inches means it [the signal] can go further. Things like planning regulations and stuff that really seems trivial stops customers getting a service. It's those things that led us to roll out in Northern Ireland."
Around 5 percent of the UK population cannot currently get broadband, typically because they live in sparsely populated rural areas where it has not been economically viable for BT to upgrade their local exchange; a wireless technology such as WiMax is likely to be a more cost-effective option which could solve this problem.
+ Source: ZDnet UK here
+ Related:
WiMax will be key to BT's 21st Century Network project | Graeme Wearden | ZDNet UK | June 09, 2004, 17:25 BST here
BT eyes up a WiMax future | Graeme Wearden | ZDNet UK | February 20, 2004, 16:20 BST
WiMax is creating quite a stir in tech circles and BT is already using it to bring broadband to four rural locations. Could this be followed by a major rollout?
Four radio-broadband trials being conducted by BT in rural parts of the UK could be the prelude to a full-scale deployment of WiMax in Britain.
These trials involve broadband fixed access, with customers attaching a receiver to their houses, but the telco is very interested in the idea that more advanced versions of WiMax will support high-speed mobile broadband.
"If the potential benefits of WiMax, such as voice services and portability, are realised, then there might be a case for rolling out a WiMax service more widely," said Ian Robinson, head of emerging products at BT Retail, on Thursday.
As previously reported, BT's trials are taking place in Ballingry in Fife, Scotland, Pwllheli in Wales, Porthleven in Cornwall and Campsie in Northern Ireland.
Robinson, who was speaking at the IIR ISP Forum in London, said that BT hopes to launch its radio-broadband service in more rural areas -- although this will need subsidies from local government agencies.
But in the long-term, BT is eyeing up the possibility of offering WiMax services to more than just rural broadband-have-nots.
Its broadband fixed access trials use a version of WiMax known as 802.16d, but a more advanced version is also under development called 802.16e. It supports mobility and should allow laptops and PDAs to connect to a WiMax antenna from a distance of several kilometres, like a mobile phone talking to the nearest base station.
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