Millshare:
This was found on ZDNET. Makes good mention of Waverider towards the bottom.
zdnet.com
ZDNET...
One characteristic that broadband wireless technologies share is strong security. The spread-spectrum technology that wireless services use to pass signals scrambles the transmission so that anyone trying to intercept data retrieves nothing more than unintelligible blips. Experts caution, however, that because it's "always on," wireless broadband does require firewall protection to discourage denial of service attacks.
While the strong security of the technology is reassuring, many companies turning toward wireless broadband for Internet access are doing so for another reason: speed. Wireless gives them access to broadband Internet access quickly.
That's what sold Gary Muth on wireless broadband. Muth is vice president of international business development at IcebergMedia.com Inc., which hosts Webcasts of live events—typically rock concerts. "Up until now, we've used ISDN lines, which takes [about] 10 days to have one installed," said Muth, in Toronto. Now, the company uses Wave Rider Communications Inc.'s LMS, or Last Mile Solution, to stream concert video and audio over the Internet. The LMS service uses license-free radio bands.
"For outdoor shows it is wonderful [since] the alternative is to string cable, and that is not practical when you have a large audience," Muth said. Recently, for example, IcebergMedia organized a Webcast of a Red Hot Chili Peppers show from downtown Toronto. To string cable would have been time-consuming and dangerous with so many people walking around, he said.
So Muth rigged up the Internet connection for his Webcast event by positioning the wireless bridges used by the WaveRider LMS product. It is a line-of-sight solution, which means the devices have to have a clear path to communicate. But, Muth said, it takes a minute to set up and works in good weather or bad.
Like Leyva, Muth stumbled across the wireless networking option when his firm was moving to a new building and discovered it could not get other types of broadband Internet access in the new digs for at least three months. To solve that dilemma, the company connected to its previous location through LMS. It was a roundabout way to get speedy access to the Net, but it worked. As a result of his experience, Muth is constantly thinking about how he can use wireless technology to expand his business.
For Muth's vision to come true, broadband wireless-based services will have to become more widely available. But that's beginning to happen as carriers start building out their networks and wireless ISPs (Internet service providers) jump on board. One such wireless ISP, North Rock Communications Ltd., in Hamilton, Bermuda, began offering customers Internet access using the WaveRider LMS equipment out of necessity.
"We live in an area where there is an incumbent monopolistic telco," said Tom Coelho, general manager of North Rock. "And getting service orders through them is problematic. If a customer wants an upgrade from a 128K to a 265K circuit, it could take a month, and that is not suitable for a fast-paced Internet company."
Using the wireless solution, it takes North Rock about two days to get a customer the broadband service it needs. The connection is deployed quickly, and it is fast. ISDN is a 128K-bps connection, and T-1 is a 1.54M-bps connection. The WaveRider equipment enables a sustained throughput of 6M bps.
Not only is wireless quicker to set up and faster than many traditional broadband alternatives, experts say it is often more reliable because it's easier for carriers to manage. |
