Starry, Inc., and Marvell are teaming together to develop new fixed wireless technologies that the companies expect to be the basis for future connectivity of wireless broadband access. The Starry, Marvell deal will bring together the Starry millimeter wave integrated circuit and smart-antenna and cloud management software with Marvell’s expertise in 802.11ax chipsets.
Making this technology available more broadly in domestic and international markets will help fixed wireless providers improve scalability and deployment of their network, Starry said in its press release. It also potentially expands Starry’s role from just a wireless ISP to a wireless technology provider for other ISPs.
We had reported that upon its launch, Starry officials were looking to use millimeter wave technology to deliver gigabit wireless services to the home at dramatically lower cost in comparison with fiber and cable-based services.
Starry, Marvell Deal
Starry and Marvell will also collaborate on a cloud-based internet and WiFi network monitoring platform. Users will be able to manage every node of the network and see network performance in real time, from base stations and receivers, to in-home WiFi hubs for end users subscribed to the service.
This suite of technologies will be available to those companies using Starry’s transceiver technology to build or expand their networks, and to existing internet service providers or other types of broadband providers seeking software technology to manage their networks and subscribers, while also providing high-quality customer care and service. Together these two technology offerings represent a significant leap forward in making pre-standard 5G technology more broadly available.
Though the actual use cases for post-standard 5G are still in development and the technical standard is still a ways off, the market has already recognized that the immediate-term and practical application of 5G technology is the deployment of low-latency, high-capacity, fixed wireless broadband, Starry announced in the release.
Today, nearly 70% of the world’s mobile internet traffic is served via WiFi from fixed networks, making the deployment of new technologies that enable high-capacity fixed broadband networks even more critical.
The announcement continues Starry’s expansion. Last week, we reported that Starry was expanding beyond its initial Boston footprint to as many as 16 other markets.
