Wipro to be India's 1st Wi-Fi certifying company

New Delhi, May19: Wipro Technologies is said to be India's first Wi-Fi certifying company by joining the club of seven global players that decides the fate of all Wi-Fi products developed all over the world. Despite, it will also be the only player in the world to do both pre-certification and complete certification of Wi-Fi products.

The Global body Wi-Fi Alliance sets standards for wireless local area networking, will soon authorise Wipro Technologies to certify all Wi-Fi products, Alliance MD Frank Hanzlik told ET. With the Alliance's authorisation within the next 2-3 months, Wipro's certification labs would decide if a Wi-Fi product meets global standards and is compatible with all such networks across the world.

Among seven global certifiers, including Taiwan's ADT Corporation, Germany's Cetecom and China's Telecommunication Metrology Station, have 11 certification labs across the world.

Previous year, Wipro Technologies was selected by the Wi-Fi Alliance to become an authorised pre-certification test lab. The Alliance has three such labs in the world - the US, Taiwan and Bangalore, which decide the likelihood of a product meeting certification standards.

"Product developers and manufacturers in India and neighbouring countries will soon be able to get their products certified in Bangalore, rather than taking it to countries such as US, China or Taiwan," said Mr Hanzlik.

The Alliance has over 300 member companies that promote the growth of wireless local area networks. Wi-Fi, or wireless fidelity, allows users to connect devices such as laptops, mobile phones, gaming devices and digital cameras wirelessly to the internet. A Wi-Fi enabled area, also called a hot spot, typically has a radius of 300 feet.

Mr Hanzlik said a certification lab in India would lead to greater Wi-Fi proliferation in the region. "This is the beginning of an eco-system. Once you have a test certification centre in place, manufacturers are more likely to set up manufacturing base in the country. It is a long-term investment, which will help Wi-Fi take off in a big way in the country," he said.

Currently India has about 1,000 Wi-Fi hot spots against 10,000 plus in China. "There aren't enough volumes in laptops and other Wi-Fi products and this hampers hot spot growth in the country. However, this is beginning to change now," said Mr Hanzlik.

The Wi-Fi Alliance has recently started an adapter membership programme which assists non-member hardware and software companies to develop Wi-Fi products. "Many Indian companies have shown interest in the programme, which is a good sign for Wi-Fi growth in the country," said the MD.

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