Clearwire said it is in no hurry to deploy the next generation of mobile WiMAX technology, known as 802.16m. The IEEE is expected to approve the next-generation of WiMAX, which is expected to double the speeds of today's WiMAX generation, in mid-2010.

Clearwire Chief Technology Officer John Saw told Unstrung that the operator is keeping an eye on the specifications but won't likely test the technology until 2011. The next generation of WiMAX is designed to enable peak data rates of 120 Mbps on the downlink and 60 Mbps on the uplink in an urban deployment using 4 x 2 MIMO antennas in a 20-megahertz swathe of spectrum.  

Saw said he believes that 2012 is a more reasonable timeframe for commercial deployment of 802.16m and would benefit the company by offering more "spectrally efficient" 20-megahertz channels.

For more:
- see this Unstrung article

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After more than two years and $20 million, the Minneapolis WiFi network has been declared complete. US Internet, which is operating the network, counts some 16,500 subscribers with hopes of reaching 30,000 in three years.

The network initially suffered from technical and political delays, including line-of-sight problems, a shortage of city light poles suitable for WiFi equipment and jurisdictional problems between the city and the Minneapolis Park Board.

Lynn Willenbring, the city's chief information officer, told the Star Tribune that the network meets the city's requirement that US Internet cover 95 percent of the city's 59.5 square miles. The Minneapolis network has been heralded as a muni-WiFi network model that works because the city government is an anchor tenant, paying US Internet $1.25 million per year for 10 years for use of the network. The city is also adding police and fire departments to the network.

For more:
- see this Star Tribune article

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Sprint is expected to announce a WiMAX/EV-DO pocket-sized router called the Overdrive from Sierra Wireless.

The device, expected to become available early this year, turns 3G and WiMAX signals into a local wireless network like the MiFi from Novatel. The router will also work with a connection to a phone that will support up to five devices with up to 6 Mbps Internet access. The device is expected to have an SD card slot for storage and a range of up to 100 feet.

Sprint Nextel appears to be prepping a news blitz in conjunction with the Consumer Electronics Show held this week in Las Vegas. The company issued an invitation for media only for a "4G event" Wednesday that will feature Sprint CEO Dan Hesse alongside Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and Best Buy CEO Brian Dunn. Although the invitation was relatively short on specifics, it promises an event "showcasing Sprint's 4G leadership."

For more:
- see this article from goingWiMAX.com 

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Although details are sketchy, Spain's Telefonica has awarded a contract to ZTE to build a WiMAX network. The contract value, while not disclosed, is said to be the largest won by ZTE from a European operator.

Telefonica's Iberbanda will operate the network and comes after the Spanish operator had selected Israel's Alvarion in May to expand its WiMAX network in Catalonia. This latest award to ZTE does not make clear when or where the deployment will take place, or if it involves cooperation with Alvarion. 

ZTE is also one of the equipment vendors selected by Telefonica for its LTE trials in six European countries.

In October, Clearwire announced plans to offer mobile WiMAX services in the Spanish cities of Malaga and Seville starting next year. The company said it would be using WiMAX 802.16e infrastructure equipment from Alvarion and ZTE in the 3.5GHz band to offer high-speed mobile broadband services under the Clear brand.

For more:
- see this Telegeography article

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Sprint Nextel named Matt Carter, currently president of its Boost Mobile prepaid unit, as the new chief of its 4G effort, where he will manage the carrier's mobile WiMAX business. Todd Rowley, currently vice president of Sprint 4G, will report to Carter, Sprint spokesman James Fisher told FierceWireless. The change will be effective Jan. 11. Article

Clearwire's mobile WiMAX service went dark on Tuesday for approximately five hours in Texas, Oregon, Las Vegas and Boise, Idaho. Sporadic outages also occurred in Chicago and Seattle.

"During network maintenance we encountered a software glitch that impacted service for Clear and MSO customers alike in certain markets," Clearwire said in a statement to Multichannel News. "The issue has since been resolved and service has been restored. This was a network issue and customer equipment was not affected."

Comcast launched its High-Speed 2go offering in Seattle and Chicago while Time Warner introduced services in Dallas. The two MSOs have equity stakes in Clearwire and are reselling Clearwire's service.

According to Clearwire, the problems in Texas, Oregon, Las Vegas and Boise were related to a software upgrade Clearwire was conducting on certain Motorola infrastructure. In Seattle and Chicago, the outages occurred in single cell sites and weren't related to the Motorola software upgrade issues, Clearwire said.

For more:
- see this Multichannel News article

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Clearwire's mobile WiMAX service went dark on Tuesday for approximately five hours in Texas, Oregon, Las Vegas and Boise, Idaho. Sporadic outages also occurred in Chicago and Seattle.

"During network maintenance we encountered a software glitch that impacted service for Clear and MSO customers alike in certain markets," Clearwire said in a statement to Multichannel News. "The issue has since been resolved and service has been restored. This was a network issue and customer equipment was not affected."

Comcast launched its High-Speed 2go offering in Seattle and Chicago while Time Warner introduced services in Dallas. The two MSOs have equity stakes in Clearwire and are reselling Clearwire's service.

According to Clearwire, the problems in Texas, Oregon, Las Vegas and Boise were related to a software upgrade Clearwire was conducting on certain Motorola infrastructure. In Seattle and Chicago, the outages occurred in single cell sites and weren't related to the Motorola software upgrade issues, Clearwire said.

For more:
- see this Multichannel News article

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Infonetics Research reported that the worldwide WiMAX equipment and­ device market reached more than $290 million in the third quarter, up 11 percent on a sequential basis.

Richard Webb, Infonetics' directing analyst for WiMAX, said the firm expects steady growth in the WiMAX market over the next four quarters as the ecosystem begins to take shape and more devices come to market.

"Operators such as Yota in Russia and P1 in Malaysia are producing notable successes, and Clearwire posted encouraging results recently, so WiMAX has solid operator proof-points to demonstrate its viability," Webb said.

The firm forecasts the global WiMAX equipment and device market will reach $4.97 billion by 2013.

For more:
- see this cellular-news article

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During a conference call on Friday discussing Comcast's intent to purchase 51 percent of NBC Universal, Comcast Chairman and CEO Brian Roberts called the company's investment in Clearwire "a big strategy investment" and voiced his confidence that Clearwire will roll out mobile WiMAX service in all 39 states where Comcast operates now that Clearwire raised close to $3 billion in equity and debt.

Comcast's investment of $196 million in this recent round keeps Comcast's total investment in Clearwire at about 7 percent. It also put up $1.05 billion of the $3.2 billion in 2008. Clearwire said the funding will allow it to expand coverage faster, beyond its stated 120 million people by 2010. Comcast is reselling Clearwire's services in several markets, including Portland, Chicago and Philadelphia.

For more:
- see this moconews.net article

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D2 Technologies, Beceem Communications and ECS have teamed to develop the Android operating system on WiMAX smartphones delivering voice over WiMAX and other IP-based services. D2 is providing its mCUE converged communications client paired with Beceem's BCSM250 WiMAX modem and deployed on WiMAX-enabled smartphones and MIDs such as the ECS T371. In early November, D2 and Beceem completed what they claim to be the world's first mobile VoIP calls over WiMAX on Android. Article