NEXTNET WIRELESS AND EVERTEK, INC. RECEIVE WCA INDUSTRY AWARD FOR NEXT GENERATION NLOS BROADBAND WIRELESS ACCESS DEPLOYMENT
Minneapolis, MN – January 31, 2002 — NextNet Wireless, developer
of the industry’s first commercially deployed non line-of-sight (NLOS)
broadband wireless access system, and Evertek, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary
of United Farmers Telephone Company, announced today that the Wireless
Communications Association (WCA) has honored the companies with a 2002
Wemmie award in the category of Advanced Next Generation NLOS Broadband
Wireless Access Deployments. NextNet is a two-time Wemmie award winner.
The Company’s Expedience™ system was commercially deployed by
Evertek in December 2001, making Evertek the first U.S. carrier to provide
next generation NLOS broadband wireless access over MMDS frequencies.
WCA presented the Wemmie awards as part of its 8th Annual Technical Symposium
held in San Jose, CA earlier this month.
According to WCA President Andrew Kreig, “NextNet’s Expedience™
NLOS broadband wireless access system was selected for the NLOS award
by a jury panel of leading carrier and consulting engineer executives.
The panel chose the Expedience system as next generation technology that
has enabled a service provider to consistently, reliably and inexpensively
deliver commercial two-way, always on, fast Internet service to customer
sites obscured by tree canopy and or buildings.”
We are extremely pleased to have been selected for the NLOS award,”
stated Guy Kelnhofer, NextNet President and CEO. “It is especially
meaningful to have our Expedience NLOS platform recognized as industry-leading
technology, by a jury panel representing over 500 leading carriers, vendors
and consultants,” Kelnhofer concluded.
Roxanne Madson, Evertek General Manager stated, “We are honored to
be recognized by the Industry, and look forward to expanding the Expedience
system into new markets. Our customers are delighted with an always on,
reliable, high-speed connection, and the simplicity of installation is
allowing us to accelerate our expansion plans,” Madson added.
The Expedience platform offers wireless service providers a means to deliver
consistent LAN-like access speeds to residential and business subscribers,
across the industry’s greatest NLOS coverage area. The system’s
patented OFDM-based architecture can be deployed at one-third the cost
of DSL or cable, making it the most profitable platform for mass-market
delivery of portable broadband access services today. The Expedience system
features indoor, plug-and-play subscriber units for NLOS cell radius’
up to five miles, and convenient outdoor (bracket-mount) subscriber units
for businesses and extended range NLOS cell radius’ up to 20 miles.
NextNet Expedience is currently available for the MMDS (2.5 to 2.686 GHz)
band, and is being leveraged to address other frequency bands and wireless
applications under 6 GHz.
About WCA
The Wireless Communications Association International (WCA) is a major
non-profit trade organization for the fixed wireless broadband industry,
with nearly 500 member companies on six continents that represent the
vast bulk of the world’s leading carriers, vendors and consultants.
WCA’s annual Technical Symposium annually gathers operators who are
using group action to provide guidance to vendors, standards bodies and
regulators on technical issues that will be vital for successful BWA deployments.
Sprint’s Sheldon Fisher chaired this year’s Symposium. For more
information, contact: george@wcai.com
or visit http://www.wcai.com
About Evertek, Inc.
Evertek, Inc., founded in 1989, is wholly owned subsidiary of United Farmer’s
Telephone Company, founded in 1914. Evertek holds the MMDS BTAs for Mason
City, Sioux City, and Fort Dodge, Iowa with towers that extend coverage
into Eastern Nebraska and South Dakota. Evertek is the industry’s
first service provider to successfully deploy next-generation (NLOS) broadband
wireless access services. The company is headquartered in Everly, Iowa.
For more information, contact marketing@evertek.net
or visit http://www.evertek.net.
About NextNet Wireless
NextNet Wireless is a privately held company that develops non-line-of-sight
broadband wireless access platforms that provide telecommunications carriers
with solutions for rapid deployment of high-speed, two-way voice and data
services over the “last mile” of the communications network.
NextNet’s primary investors include Cabletron Systems, Inc. (NYSE:
CS), DCM-Doll Capital Management, Globespan Capital Partners, Star Ventures, ZAMBA
Corporation (NASDAQ: ZMBA), and others.
