Primus Canada and Mipps expand mobile WiMAX trial to Toronto

Primus Telecommunications Canada Inc. and its subsidiary Mipps Inc. are expanding trials of mobile WiMAX technology to Canada's largest and most lucrative market. The two companies announced last week that they have inked an agreement to work with Motorola Inc. to deploy a test mobile WiMAX system in Toronto. Much like the Hamilton trial with Alcatel-Lucent, the Toronto tests will try to measure and evaluate mobile WiMAX in a real-world setting, testing such things as in-building penetration and actual data throughput speeds. The Toronto trial will also test large cell sites, explains Ted Chislett, president and COO of Primus Canada. Whereas the Hamilton trial had cell sites of about one-half kilometre in radius and was more suited to the residential market, the trial in the Markham and Richmond Hill areas will have cell sites with radii of about 4 kilometres, which will allow Primus to consider service for the small business market. The larger cell site sizes require higher power equipment and outdoor customer premise equipment, necessitating truck rolls to each location. While Chislett says residential consumers could test the service, the Toronto trial is not for the average residential user. Dual vendor approachChislett says we shouldn't read anything into the company's decision to partner with Motorola for the Toronto trial, noting that Alcatel-Lucent had its equipment ready first for the Hamilton trial. "Our strategy all along has been to have a dual vendor approach," he says. Besides, as the mobile WiMAX standard is solidified through vendor product availability and certification, Motorola's products will inter-operate with Alcatel-Lucent's and vice versa. Commercial deployments coming next yearWith solid results coming in from a mobile WiMAX trial in Hamilton and early encouraging results from a newly announced trial of the nascent technology in Toronto, Primus Canada and its subsidiary Mipps could be rolling out mobile WiMAX services by the end of next March. "The trials are ongoing and we do expect to have them completed by the end of the year, and at this stage we're looking to commence doing some commercial rollouts by the end of Q1 next year," Chislett tells Report on Wireless. It's unclear at this point where mobile WiMAX service would first be rolled out, but given the Hamilton and Toronto trials and the fact that Mipps holds a significant amount of spectrum covering the Golden Horseshoe region, southern Ontario is likely at the top the list. Mipps also has spectrum licences for other major centres including Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Quebec City and Halifax. Chislett is confident that the two trials will provide Primus and Mipps with enough information to proceed with a broad rollout of the technology. "I think it will give an excellent ," he says. "There may be some surprises, but I don't think so."

Primus Canada and Mipps expand mobile WiMAX trial to Toronto

News | October 4, 2007

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