Will Europe soon have this Wireless CDMA internet, or will they be running on 20KBps GPRS for the next three years?
JohnG
"The trials are scheduled for completion this year with full operational deployment beginning in early 2002."
Thursday February 8, 6:57 pm Eastern Time
Press Release
SOURCE: COM DEV International Ltd.
COM DEV and Alpine PCS Partner to Conduct M/ERGY High Speed Wireless Internet Trials
CAMBRIDGE, ON, Feb. 8 /PRNewswire/ - COM DEV International Ltd. (TSE: CDV - news) today announced
that its wholly owned subsidiary, COM DEV Wireless and Alpine PCS of Santa Barbara, California, will partner
to conduct initial trials of COM DEV's new M/ERGY(TM) high speed wireless Internet system in the 1900 MHz
PCS spectrum beginning in the second quarter of 2001. The two companies will carry out Alpha and Beta trials of
the packet-based system in San Luis Obispo County on California's Central Coast -- also the site of COM DEV's
Digital and Software Systems Development Center. The trials are scheduled for completion this year with full
operational deployment beginning in early 2002. COM DEV Wireless designs and manufactures advanced
wireless systems and subsystems for major global wireless, cellular telephone and PCS system vendors
worldwide. Alpine PCS, a leading-edge wireless service provider, holds licenses for 30 MHz and 10MHz blocks
of spectrum in the 1900 MHz band, in over 40 counties throughout California, Michigan and Massachusetts and
currently provides service in California and Michigan.
``This agreement is the first of several such partnerships currently under development. This partnership with
Alpine PCS is an important step in COM DEV's M/ERGY development plan. As well as providing a local
platform for technical assessment of the new product, it is also a valuable opportunity to demonstrate M/ERGY's
ability to give regional service providers, like Alpine PCS, a new medium with which to rapidly expand their
revenues in wireless markets that are already crowded with other players all providing essentially the same PCS
services,'' said COM DEV Wireless President Roger Boivin. ``We believe M/ERGY's ability to wirelessly
provide high-speed Internet access at a comparable price and significantly better performance than current DSL
and cable modems, will give visionary, early adopters like Alpine PCS a significant competitive advantage with
only a modest investment in additional infrastructure.''
``Alpine PCS is very excited about this new partnership,'' stated Robert Broz, President of Alpine PCS. ``COM
DEV has an outstanding reputation and proven track record in engineering and manufacturing quality
communication systems. As an innovator in wireless communications, Alpine PCS can provide the necessary
resources to successfully launch this revolutionary product. Together, we look forward to delivering this truly
advanced wireless technology to consumers.''
``The ability to deploy M/ERGY with Alpine PCS makes this an ideal partnership,'' explained Josh Lober, Vice
President of Digital and Software Systems at COM DEV Wireless. ``This trial represents both COM DEV's 'first
to market' commitment to deliver 1xEVDO standard technology to the commercial marketplace, and Alpine PCS'
vision of ubiquitous broadband wireless coverage that is truly 'Beyond 3G'. The fact that Alpine has 1900 MHz
PCS licenses, equipment and facilities already in place allows us to rapidly begin field trials,'' noted Lober.
``Most importantly, the company's willingness to embrace cutting-edge technology makes this a win-win
opportunity for both organizations.''
COM DEV's M/ERGY system provides full high-speed wireless modem support to laptop and desktop computers.
It also significantly outperforms Internet service offered by next generation 3G cellular telephones.
QUALCOMM's HDR technology is the basis for the CDMA2000 and 1xEVDO standards, and the technology that
defines M/ERGY as ``Beyond 3G''. These standards together enable M/ERGY to provide data service at burst
speeds up to 2.45 MB/Sec. The first M/ERGY modem devices will be approximately the size of current Personal
Digital Assistants and interface with computers through a USB connection. A PCMCIA card version will be
introduced at the same time. By supporting both nomadic and mobile behaviors, M/ERGY will enable users to get
full access to the Internet from almost anywhere as well as in transit at speeds up to 120 mph. The new product
will be shown to the public for the first time at the CTIA Show in Las Vegas 20-22 March.
Once the trials are successfully completed, Alpine PCS plans to purchase the system from COM DEV. ``This
would make Alpine the first company in the United States to offer this innovative, high-speed wireless Internet
solution for mobile, nomadic, home and small business customers,'' added Boivin.
About COM DEV
COM DEV International Ltd. (www.comdev.cc) based in Cambridge, Ontario, is a leading producer of wireless
infrastructure, as well as a designer and manufacturer of space hardware subsystems. The company has two
divisions: COM DEV Wireless and COM DEV Space that operate facilities in Canada, the United States, United
Kingdom and China.
COM DEV Wireless designs and manufactures leading-edge wireless systems and subsystems that enjoy broad
acceptance among global wireless system vendors. System products include soft radios, broadband wireless
Internet products and TDMA Base Stations. Subsystem products integrate signal filtering, signal amplification and
alarm monitoring in a single compact electronics package.
COM DEV Space manufactures advanced products that are sold to the major satellite prime contractors for use in
commercial communications and earth science satellites.
About Alpine PCS
Alpine PCS of Santa Barbara, California, is an innovative wireless service provider dedicated to playing a
leading role in transforming wireless communications into a mass market product as commonplace as TV and
conventional home phones. Alpine plans to accelerate demand for wireless services including high-speed data by
delivering value through innovative products that meet our local communities' diverse needs. The company
currently holds 1900 MHz spectrum licenses in over 40 counties throughout California, Michigan and
Massachusetts including 30 MHz blocks of spectrum in the Fresno, Madera, San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara
counties of California.
This news release may contain certain forward-looking statements that
involve risks and uncertainties. Actual results may differ materially
from results indicated in any forward-looking statements. The company
cautions that, among other things, in view of the rapid changes in
the wireless communications markets and technologies, and other risks
including the cost and market acceptance of the company's new products,
the level of individual customer procurements and competitive product
offerings and pricing, and general economic circumstances, the company's
business prospects may be materially different from forward-looking
statements made by the company. |
