interWAVE Communications, Ltd announced Tuesday its 802.WAVE system that it said bridges the bandwidth gap between 802.11 networks and GSM GPRS/3G networks. This would give GSM operators the ability to transparently attach 802.11 WLANs to their GSM networks, giving end-users high-speed services in places like airports, hotels, business parks, and office buildings.
The 802.WAVE solution ensures interoperability between the IP and GSM standards while delivering network security, authentication and encryption.
“In today’s market, our 802.WAVE solution is the right bandwidth accelerator for operators delivering high-speed GPRS/3G services,” said Dr. Priscilla Lu, chairman and CEO of interWAVE. “As the most cost-effective, high-bandwidth solution in the market, we provide GSM operators with 802.11 networking speed for high bandwidth-intensive applications such as video streaming and audio streaming, and for downloading large files and attachments.
From a market standpoint, there is an established and rapidly expanding user-base of 802.11 networks, making the bandwidth bridge particularly suitable as an addition to GSM networks. Operators can offer high-bandwidth services that are user-transparent as an additional option. Offering streaming audio and video will be more realistic than the claims made for pure 3G networks.
interWAVE’s solution will be available for trial in the second quarter of this year. Additional information about the 802.WAVE solution can be found at the interWAVE Web site.
Matthew Peretz is Managing Editor of 802.11-Planet.com