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Australia's First Commercial Fixed Wireless Network

Posted by ryuzaki0 on from the is-this-really-the-first dept.

randomErr writes: " Australia.Internet.com reports here that 'Of the $130 million Unwired Australia raised from the likes of Credit Suisse First Boston, Bruckman Rosser Sherrill and The Invus Group, $110 million was spent on licensing space on the 3.4Ghz spectrum. Yesterday it launched its first trial of the technology at no cost to the people of Paddington, a cosmopolitan suburb in Sydney's inner east.'" Of course, wireless broadband with cast-off satellite dishes sounds more fun ...

5 of 88 comments (clear)

  1. Seems bizarre by jukal · · Score: 3, Insightful

    Why would someone transfer data at 3.4 Ghz - and pay this company renting the bit-pipe, as there is the free 2.4 Ghz alternative and both use similar technology and products can easily support both bands?

    Regulating WLAN spectrum might be good for everyone - but this is not really what I was thinking about - to me it seems that this company is pissing in the wind. I would quess that what people will do, is to set their machines use 2.4 when it provides reliable enough bandwidth at good enough speed, and only use 3.4 during extreme peek hours. If this is how it goes, getting the $130 million investment on spectrum license (and millions put in other purposes) back might take so long, that we have already warped into next generation of spectrums.

    1. Re:Seems bizarre by Wohali · · Score: 3, Insightful

      Easy. 2.4GHz is getting VERY VERY busy. Plus, at least in the US, you're limited on the amount of power you can pump out. Perhaps on the higher band in Australia, you don't have that restriction, meaning you can push the bits farther in space...

      --
      "But always she's the spectre of uncertainty I first endured, then faded, then embraced..."
  2. Re:How long? by DHR · · Score: 2, Insightful

    too bad the lights are /2.4ghz/, and the story is about using 3.4ghz

  3. not only rural areas are out of reach... by netsrek · · Score: 3, Insightful

    You do realise that there are lots of areas in sydney where you can't get either ADSL or Optus cable? And some places where you can't get any broadband connections?

    Telstra cable is admittedly more attractive since Optus brought in their own cap, but I wouldn't be surprised if large areas of Paddington aren't serviced.

    oh yeah, and I currently work in Paddington, and used to live there. It's not all rich yuppies, just big slabs of it... you can still find pockets of student shared terraces around the place...

    --

    i don't read slashdot anymore.
  4. Re:Pringles? by FrostedWheat · · Score: 4, Insightful

    first they outlawed handguns

    And this is bad how?