WiMAX equipment cost reduce efforts

Efforts to reduce the cost of WiMAX equipment
Delivering the keynote address, Intel Corporation's Chief of Sales and Marketing, Sean Maloney, said Intel would work on making WiMAX a global standard besides attempting to reduce cost of usage.
There is a big opportunity in low cost WiMAX equipment too, Mr. Maloney said while predicting a drop in the prices of Customer Premise Equipment from the current $100 to $40. During 2006, he said, over 250 WiMAX deployments and trials took place worldwide. Intel is actively involved in clearing the fog surrounding spectrum standardisation for WiMAX. It launched a Wi-Fi and WiMAX chip late in 2006 — the Connection 2250. This chip can take on any spectrum that is finalised.
Mr. Maloney said the emergence of a new class of devices, such as ultra mobile PC, small PCs, low cost PCs, health devices and entertainment or education specific devices, would drive mobile Internet.
The conversion to notebooks over the past three years would replicate in India too, he said adding that by 2008, WiMAX enabled laptops could be seen. The market for fixed WiMAX (802.16d, which will connect home/office to the WiMAX network) would be significant and larger than that of mobile WiMAX (802.16e), said Mr. Maloney.