WiMAX in Europe Facing a Brighter Future Where Technology-Neutral Spectrum Is Available

The European Commission and several national regulators, including Norway, Sweden, and the UK, want the situation to change, as does the WiMAX Forum. The ITU has now also agreed that OFDM-based technologies should be included in the IMT2000 standard. This will place mobile WiMAX on the same footing as 3G mobile when it comes to using the 3G extension bands and, potentially, existing 3G bands.

"This is a good sign for technology neutrality becoming the accepted approach for spectrum auctions in the future," says ABI Research analyst Ian Cox. "Mobile WiMAX products will start to appear in 2007 and can be used in unpaired spectrum, giving them an opportunity not available to UMTS."