http://www.pcworld.com/news/article/0,aid,123062,00.asp
Taiwan Tests Island-Wide WiMax
Government teams with Intel to build largest testing ground for new
wireless technology.
Dan Nystedt, IDG News Service
Tuesday, October 18, 2005
TAIPEI -- Taiwanese government officials said on Monday they plan to
make Taiwan the world's largest testing ground for WiMax, and inked a
pact with Intel to work together on the wireless broadband technology.
The government will provide around $209 million in funding for the
initiative, in addition to spectrum allocation and other assistance,
while Intel is expected to pitch in its technical resources. Next
year, the government will provide an additional $32.8 million in
research funds specifically for WiMax, a separate budget from the
above figure, said Minister of State Lin Ferng-ching.
Notebooks Ready
WiMax, also known as 802.16, is intended to provide users with
wireless, high-speed Internet access at far greater distances than
the current mainstream wireless technology, Wi-Fi.
Taiwan hopes to become a leader in developing products for WiMax,
such as PC cards and notebook computers, as well as broadband
services, by making itself a leader in the technology, according to
Ho Mei-yueh, Taiwan's economics minister.
Taiwan chose to team up with Intel because the chip maker is among
the staunchest proponents of WiMax and already has WiMax chip
products available, she said.
"Taiwan notebooks plus Intel inside. I think this is really a win-win
project," said Ho. Taiwanese companies, including Quanta Computer,
manufacture a majority of the world's laptops.
Officials said they hope to have WiMax network coverage for all of
the island's 23 million people by 2007. The capital city of Taipei
has been working on providing Wi-Fi access free of charge throughout
the city in an ongoing project.
Working Out Details
More than 100 WiMax trials are already going on globally, said Sean
Maloney, executive vice president and general manager of Intel's
mobility group. In many areas of the world, the cost of laying out a
wireline network for Internet users is prohibitively expensive, he said.
Despite the strong statement of support from Taiwanese government
officials on Monday, the plan appears to be still in its infancy.
Officials don't yet have a blueprint for how a network will be
deployed, who will run it, or how much citizens will be required to
pay for access.
Still, by pledging to lead in field testing for WiMax, putting
government funds behind the plan and gathering its technology
companies for a push in research and development, Taiwan could become
a major player in WiMax hardware and services in the future.
"The chance that Taiwan has to lead in this space is now excellent,"
Maloney said.
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