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Nortel Achieves Industrys First Multi-Vendor Live MIMO-Powered WiMAX Call
Collaboration with KYOCERA Wireless and Runcom to Unleash New, Mobile Multimedia Services
Ottawa, Canada and San Diego, CA -- (February 12, 2007) -- Nortel [NYSE/TSX: NT], Kyocera Wireless and Runcom have achieved what is believed to be the industry’s first multi-vendor, live MIMO call using innovative WiMAX antenna technology. This technology is expected to deliver mobile services three to five times faster and at a much lower cost than today’s 3G networks. The groundbreaking call, which included both voice and streaming video, demonstrated the commercial viability of MIMO-powered WiMAX for networks and end-user devices.
"MIMO-powered WiMAX gives us the rare ability to further the paradigm shift in the way carriers and service providers deliver unbridled access to content, creating a whole new mindset about what the mobile user experience should be," said Dave Carey, vice president of strategic planning, Kyocera Wireless Corp. "By extending the bounds of technology, Kyocera Wireless' leadership is enabling a bridge between Runcom and globally-recognized infrastructure providers to make that long-awaited freedom a reality."
“This solidifies Nortel’s position as a leader in OFDM-MIMO which is the underlying technology of WiMAX and the basis for all 4G solutions,” said Peter MacKinnon, GM of WiMAX, Nortel. “To ensure an ecosystem of MIMO-powered WiMAX, Nortel has brought together its leadership in 4G Mobile Broadband technologies with Kyocera Wireless’ expertise in consumer devices and Runcom’s pioneering developments in chipset technologies.”
“In order to be successful in the market, mobile video must be affordable for consumers,” said Monica Paolini, Senza Fili Consulting. “WiMAX, with its infrastructure, high capacity, and the proven ability to support mobility, is an excellent technology choice for operators looking to drive the costs out of mobile services while still offering the most competitive broadband speed performance.”
“As the world’s first handset manufacturer to demonstrate a MIMO-powered WiMAX device, Kyocera Wireless is in a leadership position to enable future products with the bandwidth-intensive features – like television and broadband Internet – that many consumers will demand,” said Dave Carey, vice president of strategic planning, Kyocera Wireless Corp. “Kyocera Wireless has a long track record of innovation in the wireless industry and we’re gratified to be working with Nortel and Runcom on yet another step forward in wireless technology.”
“Leading edge WiMAX technology will allow mobile customers to enjoy enhanced communication services without sacrificing the flexibility and dependability that they have come to expect from their devices and networks,” said Dr Zion Hadad, CEO, Runcom. “We expect this collaboration will provide the end to end MIMO solutions that can transform the wireless industry.”
The call took place at Nortel’s Advanced Technology Lab in Ottawa over live air using 2.5 Ghz commercial spectrums. The technology used was a prototype PCMCIA card from Kyocera Wireless powered by Runcom’s MIMO chipset, and Nortel’s WiMAX Base Station 5020. This is believed to be the industry’s first multi-vendor, end-to-end WiMAX MIMO wireless broadband solution where all components are MIMO based. Nortel signed a working agreement with Kyocera Wireless in December to bring to market MIMO-based PCMCIA cards and other devices. Based on market demand, commercial products could be available later this year. In addition, Nortel will demonstrate the MIMO-powered WiMAX solution at its booth (#145 in Hall 8) at 3GSM World Congress taking place Feb. 12-15 in Barcelona.
Nortel’s Mobile WiMAX solution is built on a foundation of MIMO, a combination of innovative transmission and antenna technologies that maximizes spectrum to deliver the lightning-fast speeds and high bandwidth essential to high-quality mobile video and TV. The power and performance of Nortel’s solution provides substantial savings to operators because WiMAX delivers high-speed, broadband fixed and mobile services wirelessly to large areas with minimal infrastructure.
About Nortel
Nortel is a recognized leader in delivering communications capabilities that make the promise of Business Made Simple a reality for our customers. Our next-generation technologies, for both service provider and enterprise networks, support multimedia and business-critical applications. Nortel’s technologies are designed to help eliminate today's barriers to efficiency, speed and performance by simplifying networks and connecting people to the information they need, when they need it. Nortel does business in more than 150 countries around the world. For more information, visit Nortel on the Web at www.nortel.com.
About Kyocera Wireless Corp.
Kyocera Wireless Corp. is a leading supplier of innovative, feature-rich CDMA wireless devices and accessories for customers worldwide. Kyocera Wireless maintains an operating belief in the genius of simplicity and strives to make the wireless experience as simple and intuitive as humanly possible. The company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Kyocera International Inc., which acquired QUALCOMM Incorporated's CDMA consumer wireless phone business in February 2000. Based in San Diego, the company is ISO-14001 and ISO-9001 certified and has won city, state and federal awards for its environmentally friendly manufacturing and recycling practices. For more information, please visit www.kyocera-wireless.com.
Kyocera Corporation (NYSE: KYO), the parent and global headquarters of the Kyocera Group, was founded in 1959 as a producer of advanced ceramics. By combining these engineered materials with metals and plastics, and integrating them with other technologies, Kyocera has become a leading supplier of telecommunications equipment, semiconductor packages, electronic components, cameras, laser printers, copiers, solar energy systems and industrial ceramics. During the year ended March 31, 2006, Kyocera Corporation's consolidated net sales totaled approximately 10 billion US dollars (1,181,489 million yen) with net income of approximately 596 million US dollars (69,696 million yen).
About Runcom Technologies
Runcom is a technology company pioneering OFDMA based silicon solutions for User Terminals and Base Stations that comply with the IEEE802.16e-2005 standard for WiBro and Mobile WiMAX applications, Runcom Products include the PHY and MAC communication layers. Runcom RNA200 ASIC was the first Mobile WiMAX compliant ASIC in the Market. For more information, visit Runcom on the Internet: www.runcom.com
© 2007 Kyocera Wireless Corp. All rights reserved. Kyocera is a registered trademark of Kyocera Corporation. Nortel, the Nortel logo and the Globemark are trademarks of Nortel Networks. All other marks are properties of their respective owners.
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