2007
04.24
The Italian Province of Brescia will soon become a Wi-Fi zone, thanks to a network being developed by Cisco Systems. The mesh extends over 4,800 square kilometers and covers over 200 rural towns.
Cisco put about 600 access points on light poles, and plans to deploy 200 more to complete the project. It also installed switches in town halls and a management system for the network. Aside from Internet connection, the Cisco-built network will offer VoIP and videoconferencing to city agencies and local businesses.
Building municipal and city-wide wireless networks has become a global trend. In the U.S., over 300 municipalities are looking at rolling out WiFi networks. A similar phenomenon is seen in Mexico, China, and Taiwan.
Via [informationweek.com]
2007
04.24
Uganda will see its first WiMax service by the fourth quarter of 2007. Wateen Telecom is nearly done with a similar network in Pakistan, where coverage will extend over 22 cities. Its sister company, Warid Telecom, will start offering GSM service at the same time as the WiMax implementation as “the licence in Uganda covers both GSM and Wimax deployments,” according to Wateen Telecom CTO Shohidul Islam Miah. He expects the project to begin in the next two months.
Miah said Motorola is providing the infrastructure for Wateen Telecom’s Pakistan Wimax network. The company, he added, plans to expand the coverage beyond 22 cities. “We see Wimax as one of the many access technologies that can be used in Pakistan. In rural sectors, in particular, we will provide connectivity using a combination of Wimax and satellite technology,” Miah remarked.
Via [itp.net]