14 DAY TRIAL // Motorola announced recently a strategic initiative to develop mobile WiMAX chipsets for use in Motorola's next-generation WiMAX devices. This investment in chipset design seems to demonstrate Motorola's on-going commitment to WiMAX and expands the company's role as a leader in end-to-end WiMAX solutions beyond infrastructure and handsets to the core implementation of WiMAX in chipsets.
"It should come as no surprise to anyone that Motorola is, and intends to remain, a leader in WiMAX - including the design of silicon chipsets for mobile devices. For some time now Motorola has been investing in the development and deployment of WiMAX - from infrastructure to advanced silicon," said Ron Garriques, president of Motorola's Mobile Devices Business.
Motorola's initial chipset will focus on core 802.16e mobile WiMAX functionality supporting voice, video, and data for low power mobile applications in handsets and modules. These first chipsets are scheduled to support commercial Motorola WiMAX devices in 2008 for carriers in North America, Japan and around the world including Sprint and others. Motorola is working with its silicon vendors on the overall fabrication of the new chipsets.
"Sprint Nextel's ability to offer customers a nationwide mobile data network depends in part on broad availability of mobile WiMAX-enabled chipsets for advanced wireless broadband services," said Atish Gude, senior vice president, Corporate Strategy, Sprint Nextel.