DigitalBridge Communications (DBC) announced the first commercial launch of VoIP service over a WiMAX network at the WiMAX World conference in Chicago. The new voice product will be available in 15 DBC markets in Idaho, Indiana, Montana, South Dakota, Virginia, and Wyoming. “DBC is proud to be leading the way again with our launch of WiMAX voice Internet service in the U.S.,” said Kelley Dunne, CEO of DBC in a company statement. DBC will market the voice service for $29.99 under their existing BridgeMAXX brand. DBC uses Alvarion WiMAX equipment and the Alianza hosted voice platform for the voice portion.The deployment illustrates the potential competitive impact posed by WiMAX service providers. The ability for these new entrants to offer a competitive double play bundle of voice and broadband alone may make some waves in the markets they serve. But when you add the additional value of 4G mobile broadband to the equation, WiMAX may indeed prove to be a formidable contender. DBC is providing early insight into these possible implications.