Wimax mobile and landline phones will be launched in the country much earlier than expected. If things go on schedule, Mahanagar Telecom Nigam Ltd will roll out WIMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) land line-enabled phones by 2007 and Wimax mobile phones by 2008.
Wimax is an IP-based wireless data application that enables high-speed internet access on both landline and mobile phones.
The public sector company will be among the first to offer WIMAX service on landlines or mobile phones and will primarily target the enterprise segment and corporates.
It already has the spectrum to support WIMAX technology. However, other operators do not have the spectrum ideally suited for WIMAX.
MTNL plans to offer the service in two phases. It will offer the service to its land-line users by the end of the year or before the next financial year. In the second phase, it will offer the service to its mobile users before the end of 2008.
Many handset manufacturers including Motorola are set to offer handsets that support WIMAX technology. Though they are expected to cost much more than normal sets, the volume of subscribers will decide how soon the costs can be brought down.
In a bid to increase its landline subscriber base, MTNL is also launching IPTV, which will offer internet, voice and TV on a single line. At present, MTNL has 4 million landline subscribers and 3 lakh broadband subscribers and a waiting list of 18,000 in Mumbai and 8,000 in Delhi.
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