Canada's "Pre-WiMax" Solution - Page 2

So why NextNet?

McKenzie says the partners are relying on the strong endorsement of Kauser. After analyzing all the wireless technologies available, his team concluded that NextNet's was the best. It's not just on Kauser's say so, though.

NextNet uses licensed spectrum. "That's a very important part of the value proposition from a security and reliability point of view, McKenzie says. "We want to deliver a telco-grade service, and to do that we have to do it over licensed spectrum."

NextNet's is a true non-line of sight technology. Subscribers don't need any additional software or antennas. The hardware -- a paperback book size device that plugs into a computer's Ethernet port -- has encryption technology and a smart antenna built in. It automatically connects to the network and sets up the service.

"That creates an out-of-box experience for subscribers that is plug and play, and that's very important," McKenzie says. It also means no truck rolls for Allstream and Microcell, another important plus.

The NextNet technology offers long reach. A single base station can cover a radius of up to 20 miles. The joint venture can create broad corridors of coverage within which subscribers will be able to use the service anywhere. Given the size of the NextNet interface device, this service is in effect portable, even mobile.

"That portability is a very welcome feature, especially for small businesses," McKenzie says. "Why should they pay for a service at work and also one at home when they can get this?"

It also opens up the possibility not just of roaming within a local coverage area, but roaming to other Allstream markets. The company at this point has no plan to charge subscribers a roaming fee to move between markets, McKenzie says.

Negotiating roaming agreements with other NextNet-based service providers is also a possibility. "We see that as a potentially significant value for customers in the future, but there are no immediate discussions [with roaming partners] underway," he says.

NextNet's proprietary technology is not the anti-WiMAX, McKenzie points out. NextNet now sits on the WiMAX forum and its technology adheres to the basic principles of the evolving standard in as much as it uses OFDM [Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing] and non-line of sight technologies.

We're not sure if NextNet exactly adheres to the spirit or intent of WiMAX, but the fact is, it's here now and WiMAX isn't -- and, as McKenzie notes, it seems to work.

He won't say how many customers the company is signing up, or the growth rate: "What I am willing to say is that the two service areas announced in March are both way ahead of their schedules [for signing up customers.]"

NextNet WISPs seem to be sprouting all over the map. The company has deployments in 20 markets around the world now, including in the U.S. (Evertek, Plateau Telecommunications, Grand Forks Wireless), Canada, Latin America, Asia, and Africa.

Wireless companies should note this well. NextNet threatens not just the potential future market for WiMAX products, but also the market for Wi-Fi hotspot and hotzone services. In theory, subscribers to NextNet-based services don't need hotspots.