Largest 4G WiMAX “sandbox” for developers to cover more than 20 square miles in Santa Clara, Mountain View and Palo Alto, California
KIRKLAND, Wash.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Sep. 15, 2009– Clearwire Communications, LLC, an operating subsidiary of Clearwire Corporation (NASDAQ: CLWR), today officially introduced the software development community in Silicon Valley to the largest 4G WiMAX application test environment with the launch of the company’s CLEAR 4G WiMAX Innovation Network. The developer network, which is a precursor to commercial service planned for the San Francisco Bay Area in 2010, will cover more than 20 square miles in Santa Clara, Mountain View and parts of downtown Palo Alto, California.
“We see tremendous potential for true, mobile broadband to act as the catalyst for new and compelling Internet applications that leverage our 4G bandwidth, free of the confines associated with wired connections,” said John Saw, chief technology officer of Clearwire. “Our goal is to harness the concentration of developer talent in Silicon Valley and accelerate the pace at which these disruptive services are being developed.”
The current coverage footprint includes the local campuses of Intel and Google, two founding Innovation Network supporters who have also commenced their own internal 4G application development programs. Cisco’s campus will receive coverage in the coming months as the network expands.
“Our long history of innovation with WiMAX, including our development efforts in Portland, OR, allowed Intel to be among the first in the U.S. to have access to this exciting, next-generation 4G environment,” said Sriram Viswanathan, vice president of Intel Capital and general manager of WiMAX Program Office at Intel. “Along with the WiMAX ecosystem, we look forward to expanding these mobile broadband resources and efforts in an area home to the one of most technology-savvy groups of individuals in the world.”
“Mobile broadband is fundamentally changing the way people use the Internet, and 4G networks like Clearwire’s have incredible potential,” said Larry Alder, mobile product manager at Google. “We’re excited to see how developers will take advantage of this unique asset as Internet users increasingly expect connectivity regardless of their device or location.”
“Cisco’s Internet Protocol Next-Generation Network infrastructure is playing a key role in the Silicon Valley Innovation Network,” said David Goeckeler, general manager of Services and Mobility business unit, Cisco. “An IP network is the right platform to deliver on the promise of mobility and put 4G services in the hands of some of the most talented and creative developers in the world.”
Leading Communications Companies Join Innovation Network
Bright House, Comcast, Sprint, and Time Warner Cable also will join Clearwire, Cisco, Intel, and Google as partners in the Innovation Network with plans to participate in promoting the program and deploying 4G development resources into the network.
“At Bright House, we’re always searching for new and innovative capabilities to bring to our customers,” said Leo Cloutier senior vice president, strategy & business development, Bright House Networks. “We’re strongly supportive of this initiative and its ability to leverage the creative talent of developers in the region for the creation of new mobile broadband applications.”
“Combining the speeds of broadband with the mobility of wireless communications gives the development community in Silicon Valley a unique opportunity to create differentiated applications,” said Tom Nagel, Comcast’s senior vice president and general manager for Wireless. “Comcast is pleased to support this development program to spur further innovation with 4G capabilities. The initiative is consistent with our own commitment and efforts to encourage developers to leverage open standards such as Tru2way.”
“Sprint continues to demonstrate its leadership in the growth and deployment of 4G networks and technology and in the developer community,” said Len Barlik, vice president of wireless and wireline services for Sprint. “Sprint is the first carrier to offer an open community that gives developers the platforms and network to create innovative applications and the ability to introduce new services to the market. The availability of 4G in the Silicon Valley is a great opportunity for developers to immediately begin the development of the next generation of wireless applications.”
“Time Warner Cable looks to provide services that are simple, easy to use and give customers more control and convenience,” said Michael Roudi, group vice president of wireless services for Time Warner Cable. “We are proud to support the efforts of developers in the Silicon Valley to experiment and create new applications which will take advantage of the mobile broadband network and enhance our customer’s wireless experience.”
Additionally, Clearwire announced today that it will participate as a platinum sponsor of the Sprint Open Developer Conference scheduled for October 26-28 in Santa Clara, California. Developers can register to attend the conference at http://developer.sprint.com/devcon2009.
Developers interested in working in the CLEAR 4G WiMAX environment are encouraged to attend the conference to learn about the Innovation Network from Clearwire executives first hand.
A CLEAR Difference for Developers
Developers can expect to see peak download speeds of up to 10 Mbps, with average download speeds of 3 to 6 Mbps. In contrast, some of today’s 3G wireless networks typically deliver download speeds of between 600 kbps – 1.4 Mbps.
The experience is similar to that provided by Wi-Fi, but without the short-range limitations of a traditional hot spot. CLEAR uses a 4G technology that differs from Wi-Fi called WiMAX, which provides service areas measured in miles, not feet. In addition, WiMAX technology is truly mobile and enables seamless handovers from tower to tower, similar to cellular.
Service will be provided free to a limited number of qualified developers leading up to the commercial service launch in this area.
To access the network, developers can purchase a Clearwire WiMAX USB modem for $49.99. Developer-owned, CLEAR network-ready WiMAX devices, such as the Samsung Mondi and WiMAX-embedded Intel-based PC’s, are also eligible for the program. To qualify, developers must register for Clearwire’s developer program and describe the WiMAX development ideas they wish to pursue. Interested developers can sign-up at http://developer.clear.com/innovation. The developers’ website will also include coverage maps and suggested drive routes for mobile application testing.
