Recently, Tom Keating blogged about the Verizon Wireless Smallville sweepstakes where you can receive Lex Luthor's e-mails directly to your Verizon Wireless phone - and better - enter to win a chance for walk-on role in Smallville's season 5 premier.
I can't tell you how excited I am about this, being a very, very big Smallville fan.
Since I'll be at IT Expo next week, I'll be missing this blessed event, but for the rest of you Smallville fans who are also Verizon Wireless customers like me, be sure to enter. I know I'm telling those closest to me - and if they win, I expect an invite to the walk-on!
In-Stat reported today that WiMAX has the potential to transmorgrify telecom as we know it. Looks like WiMAX is prepping to take over the communications space, beefing itself up to tackle DSL and cable-modems full force.
Here is the release:
WiMAX, a wireless broadband technology, has the ability to compete with DSL and cable-modem services without the need for heavy regulation, and that could have a significant impact on the telecom industry, according to In-Stat (http://www.in-stat.com). WiMAX supports point to multi-point (PMP) broadband wireless access rates up to 2+ Mbps, over a minimum coverage area of 3-5 miles. Low network investment costs, and non-line-of-sight (NLOS) operation over licensed or non-licensed radio spectrum makes WiMAX an attractive technology.
"Yet, the market success of WiMAX is far from certain," says Keith Nissen, an analyst with the high-tech market research firm. "Consumer broadband markets cannot support an unlimited number of Broadband Wireless Access (BWA) service providers. Increased broadband competition, price compression and high subscriber acquisition costs threaten to drive margins ever lower."
In-Stat has also found that:
-- By 2009, In-Stat forecasts that approximately 3% of total broadband subscribers, or 8.5 million subscribers worldwide, will be using WiMAX-based broadband wireless access services. Nearly 4.5 million of these wireless broadband subscribers will also subscribe to Voice over WiMAX (VoWiMAX) services.
-- A maximum 15% market share is likely available to BWA operators in metropolitan areas.
-- Emerging country markets typically have antiquated technology, poor quality outside plant, and limited public network capacity. WiMAX is especially well suited to these applications.
It's Valentine's Day. Most people I know are walking around treating today as if it were a communicable disease - fleeing as fast as they can - preferably to the place furthest from couples, cafes and chocolates. It's just another day. No need to take out the haz-mat suit. Interestingly enough, Sprint launched SMS.ac - a mobile community offering dating services similar to that of online dating services - where mobile users can create profiles and communicate one-on-one via text message and possibly - find a date.
But flirting is going to cost ya! You can search profiles to find your date for a mere $.25 per text message. Interested in clubbing? Hop online and participate in mobile communities ("clubs") - basically, a user starts a conversation with other club members by sending the club a message. Then members of the club can reply with messages about their thoughts and comments. A user can send a message for free and pays $0.25 per message received. Users can choose how many messages they want to receive per day.
At a bar, a restaurant, a cafe.....or, if your lucky.... the bread aisle of your local grocery store.
The news hit the wires on January 31 that Sprint PCS was added to the WiMAX forum as a Principal member.
While perusing some other related WiMAX news, I read an interesting interview in regards to the Sprint/WiMAX venture and I have to say, that Sprint has certainly made a wise choice as far as upping the ante in the wireless industry. Having the capabilities to offer WiMAX solutions gives Sprint the edge it needs to leap ahead of the competition. WiMAX delivers speeds that surpass WiFi, and having city-wide mobile networks offers customers more options than say, net-surfing in Starbucks. In three years time, Sprint will put on the horns, ready to take broadband and cable providers head-on.
Sprint is expected to offer WiMAX by 2008. Says Oliver Valente, vice president - Technology Development, Sprint, "With that kind of bandwidth it would allow us to offer a whole new range of capabilities to our customers."
True that, Sprint.
Just yesterday, ADAPTIX, Inc. announced an agreement with Beijing Airway Communications Co. Ltd., Beijing University of Post & Telecom, and Beijing ShiJinShan District Government to build the next generation broadband wireless demonstration network.
This is good news in China - this is the first pre-WiMAX standards deployment to date.
Using FastSwitching/OFDMA-based equipment, full coverage will be provided for the ShiJinShan vicinity. According to the release, the network will provide key infrastructure for the new Beijing Digital Entertainment Demo Center in ShiJinShan district, established jointly by the Beijing Science & Technology Committee and the ShiJinShan District Government.
The purpose of this deployment is to enhance communications capabilities for business operations, even e-government.
"This agreement signifies the growing realization and demand for wireless broadband support in metropolitan areas as well as rural communities," explained Vern Fotheringham, ADAPTIX' CEO. We are honored to partner with Beijing Airway Communications to deploy this ground-breaking network in China."