Wifi Revolution

Kineto Wireless Inc., a supplier of Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) technology, has reportedly received $10 million in venture capital, including $5 million from InterDigital, a producer of wireless digital radio-telephone systems for voice and data communications. Kineto also secured funding from its established partner investors including Venrock Associates, 3i, Sutter Hill Ventures, Oak Investment Partners, Storm Ventures and SeaPoint Ventures.

William J. Merritt, CEO of InterDigital, said Kineto Wireless will use the funds for further deployments of, and enhancements to, its convergence solution to meet the growing demands of the consumers.

“Major operators around the world are looking to deploy innovative solutions to drive fixed-mobile convergence products to their customers,” Merritt said in a press release. “As the recognized leader in UMA, Kineto has demonstrated its ability to successfully deploy a convergence solution that meets the demands of many of the leading operators and manufacturers in the telecommunications industry.”

Rick Gilbert, president and CEO of Kineto Wireless, said he appreciates InterDigital’s financial assistance, which will help Kineto to enhance its services.

“We are pleased to have InterDigital join the team and help us continue to lead in the global deployment of UMA technology,” he said. “Operator rollouts of UMA are continuing to accelerate, and we are pleased to secure additional resources to help scale the company and meet this growing demand.”

Kineto Wireless recently made news in TMCnet when it announced that its UMA client software will be used in the HP iPAQ 510 Voice Messenger, an HP smartphone at the 3GSM (News - Alert) World Congress.

Kineto Wireless is a key innovator of UMA technology, the 3GPP standard for extending mobile IMS, data and voice service using fixed IP access networks. UMA delivers compelling fixed-mobile convergence including femtocells, dual-mode cellular/Wi-Fi handsets, and fixed VoIP services.

InterDigital is a pioneer in designing, development, and delivery of advanced wireless technology platforms. Its technology and systems are embedded in wireless communication devices, such as, PDAs, mobile phones, mobile computing devices, etc.

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Beverly Maniago is a contributing editor for TMCnet. To see more of her articles, please visit her columnist page.

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