Business Week says rumors that computer chip maker Intel was planning to dump its WiMax business were just dashed as the company yesterday announced a $600 million investment into WiMax
provider Clearwire. The business journal says the deal means Intel is serious about enhancing wireless technology, and says its ultimate goal is to build a nationwide service that equips notebook PCs
with fast Web access and voice-over-Internet calling service. WiMax is a technology that outfits large areas with wireless broadband. "The U.S. is now going to get a high-speed wireless broadband
network sooner than it would have," Intel Executive Vice President Sean Maloney told
Business Week. More than $900 million in private capital has been pumped into Clearwire, which has been
losing money since it was founded in 1998. Clearwire is looking to offer up a comprehensive broadband network before its rivals, which would need to drop billions on acquiring the rights to metro-area
airwaves in order to deliver a complete service. Analysts at UBS say Clearwire is still far from reaching its goal: about $3 billion away. Yesterday, the company scrapped plans for a $400 million IPO,
although federal filings show an accumulated loss of $174 million and a debt of $210 million. Last year alone, the company lost $140 million. It currently makes most of its revenue selling equipment.
WiMax is an exciting technology because it promises to offer broad-reaching high-speed access at a lower cost than the broadband networks of cable and telephone companies. Intel execs have called
WiMax one of the most potentially disruptive technologies in the world; Intel is banking on its potential after successfully bundling its Centrino wireless chip with many notebooks and PCs.
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