Wifi Revolution

Huawei (News - Alert) Technologies today announced successful completion of two trials of its end-to-end Mobile WiMAX solution in Japan.

Testing the solution is Reinan Cable Network Co. (RCN), a dominant Japanese cable operator, and Beam Planning Corporation, a consultancy which helps municipal governments plan and design regional information networks.

The trials are a step toward fulfilling the goal of the u-JAPAN Plan, a Japanese government initiative which aims to bring seamless broadband coverage throughout the country by 2010. With its large coverage footprint and high capacity - plus the fact that WiMAX chipsets and equipment are so affordable – WiMAX (News - Alert) is the ideal technology for solving the broadband access problem which plague certain regions in Japan.

Huawei’s Mobile WiMAX solution uses leading technologies, such as MIMO (multiple-input multiple-output) and OFDMA (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access), to ensure higher flux and comprehensive coverage. The solution can help operators meet all kinds of requirements - ranging from stand-alone networking to convergence networking with existing networks, such as IMS/NGN.

The trials were carried out in cooperation with Fujikura, a manufacturer of power and communication cables.

“We are very satisfied with this trial. We believe that wireless broadband services are required for Japanese CATV operators, and we trust Huawei, the leader in the Mobile WiMAX field, will help us seize the opportunities in the market,” said Mr. Nishino, vice president of RCN, in a press release.

WiMAX has huge potential for cable operators because it enables them to deploy their services wirelessly without the need to do expensive cabling in homes and businesses. In addition, the technology can be used the deliver wireless broadband to remote or sparsely populated areas, where rolling out fiber or cable is not cost effective. Perhaps more importantly, adding WiMAX allows cable operators to roll out much-coveted “quad play” packages, which combine customers’ video, Internet, fixed line phone and mobile phone services together into a single package. This not only enables carriers to pass savings onto customers, it also simplifies billing and improves customer satisfaction. In addition, WiMAX can deliver super fast broadband speeds wirelessly – meaning that it can deliver next generation wireless services such as mobile VoIP, mobile TV and mobile gaming. Numerous other operators worldwide are now embarking on major WiMAX deployments – including Sprint (News - Alert)/Nextel, which is partnering with Intel, Nokia, Samsung and Motorola to build a huge WiMAX network in the U.S. starting with an initial investment of $3 billion. In addition, Sprint has teamed up with several major US cable operators seeking to deploy services via WiMAX.

As pointed out by Mr. Cai Liqun, president of Huawei’s WiMAX product line, “Huawei not only has advantages in wireless, IP, terminals and chipsets, but also shows its experience in WiMAX network planning, deployment and business consulting. We have confidence in the huge potential of WiMAX, and we expect to bring Japanese subscribers advanced broadband service through cooperation with CATV operators.”

Last July, Huawei was selected to deploy Japan’s first-ever All-IP based HSDPA network for eMobile.

In other news, Huawei today announced completion of its $882 million sale of its 49 percent stake in H3C to 3Com (News - Alert) Corp.

As per the transaction, 3Com, which provides secure, converged voice and data networking solutions, now owns 100-percent of China-based H3C, a global supplier of Internet protocol networking products and solutions.

To fund the transaction and related fees, 3Com said it used about $470 million of cash from its balance sheet and about $430 from a senior secured bank loan at its H3C segment.

Huawei made news yesterday when it announced that it has agreed to support PBB TE (Provider Backbone Bridge–Traffic Engineering) in its offering for BT’s 21CN project.

More specifically, the Huawei Multi Service Access Network and Metro Service Platform solutions used in the BT 21CN project will support PBB TE. Huawei will also participate in the standard progress of PBB TE in relevant standard organizations.

This is part of an ongoing project in IEEE (News - Alert) standard which provides enhancements to Ethernet known as PBT (Provider backbone transport), and support traffic engineering within Provider Backbone Bridge Networks (P802.1ah). PBB TE can bring control to data paths within a large carrier network, enabling QoS and the ability to set aside specific paths for specific traffic types. PBB TE takes advantage of 802.1ag as path protection switching and sharing the load.

Huawei is a preferred supplier in BT 21CN.

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Patrick Barnard is Assignment Editor for TMCnet and a columnist covering the telecom industry. To see more of his articles, please visit Patrick Barnard’s columnist page.

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