NEOTEC Qualifies NextNet as Preferred Supplier of NLOS Broadband Wireless Technology for Brazil
Minneapolis, MN USA and Belo Horizonte, Brazil - July 7, 2003 -- NextNet Wireless, the industry's most widely deployed provider of non line-of-sight (NLOS) broadband wireless access systems, and NEOTEC, an association of Brazil's largest MMDS (2.5 - 2.686 GHz) license holders, announced today, that NextNet has been qualified as NEOTEC's preferred supplier, following a recent broadband wireless technology trial in Brazil. NextNet's Expedience™ OFDM-based solution was selected by NEOTEC after an intensive three-month, multi-sector, multi-cell deployment trial in metropolitan Belo Horizonte, Brazil's third largest city. NEOTEC examined multiple vendors and technology platforms and qualified NextNet as its preferred supplier, based on its stable, reliable system performance, simplicity of product and network design, ease of installation, consistent throughput across the cell, and the outstanding technical support provided by the NextNet team. NEOTEC and NextNet are currently in discussions for commercial deployment in Brazil. NEOTEC's affiliate members hold 200 MHz of licensed MMDS spectrum in 41 of Brazil's top 50 cities, covering 15 million households.
"The goal of the trial was to find a solid technological and business partner for delivering profitable broadband wireless service to the Brazilian market, and we are excited to find both solutions in NextNet," stated NEOTEC President Carlos André Albuquerque.
"It is a great honor to win the confidence of the members of NEOTEC, and to have our Expedience solution selected as NEOTEC's preferred technology and the preferred standard for MMDS deployments in Brazil," stated Guy Kelnhofer, NextNet President and CEO. "We look forward to the new opportunities that our partnership with NEOTEC will create for economic growth and prosperity in Brazil," Kelnhofer added.
NextNet's Expedience™ NLOS broadband wireless system is an IP-based network that supports mobile delivery of broadband applications. Today, this broadband mobility is being employed at actual speeds of over 120 kilometers per hour in Mexico City, and simulated at speeds of up to 175 kilometers per hour, with absolutely no performance degradation.
The Expedience system is currently deployed in cities throughout Asia, Africa, North America, Latin America, Mexico and the Caribbean. NextNet provides wireless carriers with proven superiority in the critical areas of coverage, capacity and capital cost, allowing for rapid penetration into the untapped business and residential markets. The company's flexible OFDM-based platform delivers consistent broadband speeds across NLOS cell radiuses of up to 30 km, using indoor, plug-and-play (self-installable) subscriber units, as well as convenient outdoor (bracket-mount) NLOS subscriber units. The flexible Expedience™ base station weighs just 16 kg, and mounts easily to a pole, tower, building rooftop or standard indoor rack.
For more information on NextNet commercial installations in urban, suburban and rural locations, please contact sales@nextnetwireless.com
About NEOTEC
NEOTEC is an association of MMDS (2.5 - 2.686 GHz) license holders formed in 2001 for the purpose of unifying the MMDS Brazilian operators, establishing technology and service standards, creating critical mass for service and equipment providers, conducting research and development for the 2.5GHz spectrum, and becoming a forum for the Brazilian operators to incentive debate and create synergy for a constant improvement of the broadband wireless business. The members of NEOTEC collectively have operations in 41 of the top 50 cities in Brazil, covering 15 million households with approximately 200MHz of licensed spectrum. Today these licenses are used primarily for delivery of Pay TV services, while some initial LOS broadband data services have been explored on a small scale.
Contact:
José Luiz N. Frauendorf - NEOTEC's General Director;
jlfrau@uol.com.br;
Tel: (55-11) 3167-6252.
About NextNet® Wireless, Inc.
NextNet Wireless is the industry's most widely deployed provider of non-line-of-sight (NLOS) plug-and-play broadband wireless access systems. NextNet's OFDM-based Expedience™ system provides telecommunications carriers with turnkey solutions for rapid, low-cost deployment of high-speed, two-way voice and data services over the "last mile" of the communications network. The Expedience system is deployed in over 20 markets globally, including the world's largest NLOS plug-and-play deployment in Mexico, covering 70 million potential business and residential subscribers nationwide.
NextNet is the recipient of seven industry technical awards for delivering NLOS service to under-served urban, suburban and rural markets. NextNet's primary investors include DCM-Doll Capital Management, Enterasys (NYSE: ETS) (formerly Cabletron Systems), Globespan Capital Partners, Star Ventures and others.
