Intel continues WiMax push

By Suzanne Deffree, Managing Editor, News -- 9/3/2008

Intel Corp continues to show its interest in WiMax, this week investing in a 3G and 4G global data roaming start-up.

While San Jose-based Aicent Inc did not detail the Intel Capital investment, reports peg the amount at $3 million. The company’s Web site lists Intel, as well as Qualcomm, as repeat investors.

For more on WiMax, see "Laying seamless WiMax fabric."

Intel, which called 2008 the “year of WiMax” at its September 2007 Intel Developer Forum,  formed a WiMax patent pool with Samsung, Clearwire, and several other key industry players in June. Also in May, Intel announced an investment in Malaysia's Green Packet to advance WiMax. Intel was also part of the May large-scale investment in combined the Sprint, Clearwire mobile broadband company. Further, Intel in April announced a $500 million investment in Taiwan’s technology efforts, including those for WiMax.

“Momentum for WiMax is strong, with more than 300 fixed and mobile WiMax trials and commercial deployments in over 100 countries,” said Ranjeet Alexis, senior director at Intel Capital, in a statement. “With Aicent’s experience in the wireless market segment, Aicent is poised to play a key role in worldwide adoption of WiMax.”

Aicent serves more than 100 GSM and CDMA mobile operators worldwide. The company built and operates one of the world’s first and largest multimedia messaging exchanges.

Lynn Liu, president and CEO of Aicent, said the investment from Intel will allow the company to expand and accelerate its research and development of new interoperability technologies that support the broad adoption of WiMax.

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