WiMAX could be the biggest thing to happen to online video since the mass adoption of broadband connectivity, and now is when you need to start paying attention. If you don't know WiMAX from WiFi, read this introduction.
WiMAX in Brief
WiMAX is a wireless technology based on a standard called IEEE 802.16, which allows for high-speed wireless access of the Internet on a large scale. Think of your home's WiFi network, but expanded to include your whole city.
WiMAX is also an open standard, and it's administered and promoted by the WiMAX Forum which formed way back in 2001. WiMAX is a 4G—or fourth generation—wireless communications technology, and promises better uploading and download speed than 3G networks. But while the two main 3G networks, CDMA and UMTS, are used for mobile phones, WiMAX aims to go way beyond the cell phone market.
WiMAX and Sprint
WiMAX is being testing in nearly 300 trials by various companies around the world. In the U.S., it's being advanced by Sprint, which has begun building a nationwide WiMAX network. Its WiMAX implementation is called Xohm, which doesn't have a specific meaning but is supposed to sound "Internet-centric and edgy," according to a Sprint representative. It's built using the mobile WiMAX standard IEEE 802.16e-2005
Sprint's network will run on largely unused spectrum that the company owns. When the network is in place, Sprint says consumers should be able to get 3-5Mbsp when downloading and 1Mbps when uploading.
A nationwide roll-out can't happen overnight, so Sprint is using Chicago and Washington D.C./Baltimore as test markets; both will have WiMAX in place by the end of 2007 for a soft launch. This will let Sprint optimize the experience and work out the bugs. Sprint will launch more markets in April of 2008, then throughout the rest of the year. In all, it plans to offer WiMAX coverage in 20 to 30 major metropolitan areas by the end of 2008, serving 100 million people.
While Sprint hasn't announced WiMAX pricing yet (that should come by the end of the year), the representative we spoke with suggested that variable rate plans might be an option, with customers paying more for a higher level of bandwidth. The company is planning a portal for WiMAX users which would offer video content from featured partners. Those partners will also get premium treatment, with guaranteed delivery speeds.
WiMAX and Video
Sprint is looking way beyond the cell phone and plans to implement WiMAX access in a variety of ways. The first consumer devices will be modems that will let home networks connect to the Internet with WiMAX like they now connect with cable or DSL.
Sprint is also planning laptop connection cards that will let computers connect to WiMAX networks directly. Those options should arrive by mid-2008, with WiMAX-capable phones following at the end of the year.
But what should mean a real change for WVU readers is what Sprint plans next. The company hopes to embed WiMAX chips in a variety of consumer devices, including cameras and video cameras. That would allow users to upload their video to a network immediately after shooting. Cameras with WiMAX should begin hitting the market in 2009, a rep suggested.
To access the WiMAX network, consumer devices could first be connected to a WiMAX-capable computer and given access to use a certain account. Or, devices could be given ad-hoc access, with a certain amount of data transfer purchased for each device. WiMAX-equipped devices might come with a certain amount of WiMAX credits as a feature.
So, for video professionals, WiMAX could mean easier, faster, and more flexible uploading, and a faster way to stream to viewers, as well. Check back for WiMAX updates and Sprint builds up its network and WiMAX devices hit the market.
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