iBurst considers WiMax options
Thami Mtshali, iBurst CEO, said that they have adequate iBurst spectrum, but that the advantages of WiMax over the iBurst technology for the purpose of connecting end users is not particularly clear.
Mtshali said that they are trialing WiMax and that the trial results look promising, but that there is no major advantage of WiMax over iBurst for to point-to-multipoint usage.
Mtshali did however point out that WiMax performed particularly well for point-to-point connectivity, something that can be of great value for backhaul bandwidth.
Rumours regarding Vodacom’s interest in iBurst are partly centered around iBurst’s WiMax spectrum, especially since WiMax is an attractive backhaul technology.
It is unlikely that ICASA will provide the mobile providers with WiMax spectrum making iBurst a company which cellular operators like Vodacom may look at if they want to expand their current product offerings.
3.5 GHz WiMax spectrum has also been allocated to Telkom, Sentech and Neotel.