VSNL to rollout pilot WiMAX in Bangalore

Bangalore, Jan 11: Telecom major VSNL is all set to roll out WiMAX across Bangalore in a month's time, with its pilot project ready for launch.

Suffering from technology blocks to spread out its broadband services due to non-availability of last mile solution, VSNL would extensively use WiMAX to ensure high speed wireless internet connectivity.

VSNL Vice-President for Corporate Strategy Srinivasa Addepalli told newspersons here today that the necessary infrastructure was in place in the city for providing the services. It would be scaled up across the country later, he added.

Bangalore is interestingly poised for wireless internet as BSNL had also taken up a similar exercise, besides the Karnataka government, which was in an advanced stage of implementing an unwired Bangalore project by providing WiMAX covering a radius of 50 km through public-private-partnership. Five companies have been shortlised by the Department of Information Technology and Biotechnology for the purpose of receipt of Request for Proposal.

Mr Addepalli said the last mile connectivity was a problem for internet service providers to use broadband as the cost was prohibitively high at around Rs 20,000 per line, besides a host of regulatory issues. Infact even for WiMAX, the initial cost would be prohibitive as the connecting point would be around Rs 25,000 per connection. However, this cost was expected to come down considerably over the next couple of years, making it affordable.

Chip maker INTEL was already planning to come out with a solution by providing WiMAX connectivity to personal computers, he added.

VSNL, completing five years in TATA Group hold in February, had become a global leader for whole voice business and wholesale enterprise and data services. Out of the total turnover of around 1.8 billion dollars, nearly one billion dollars came from voice business alone with over 200 nations linked internationally, he added.

UNI