Building on the momentum of its initial two-city launch last year, Verizon Wireless said it will spend $1 billion to launch its CDMA2000 1x EV-DO service in major cities in the United States. The service, known as BroadbandAccess, will be available in the summer, according to the carrier.
Unlike earlier launches that almost exclusively targeted the enterprise space, this service is for both business users and consumers. The service, which should provide data speeds of 300 to 500 kilobits per second, will give users rich graphic content, music and video downloads, and a variety of services known as dynamic media.
“In announcing the national expansion of this exciting new service, we pledge to remain relentless in our pursuit of providing the highest quality voice and data services,” said Denny Strigl, president and chief executive officer of Verizon Wireless.
The service was first launched last October in Washington, D.C, using Lucent Technologies Inc. equipment and in San Diego with Nortel Networks Ltd. gear.
During the launch last year, the service was available for only laptops, but the carrier said customers in major markets will be able to use new EV-DO handsets and laptops equipped with PC cards. The company said it is offering its PC 5220 card, which provides access to the NationalAccess national data network. The carrier promises to provide more devices including more PC cards, modem solutions for the office and a wide range of handheld mobile devices customized for the various applications.
“The fast, simple access that BroadbandAccess provides is changing the way the corporate world views wireless data,” noted Andrew Seybold of the Andrew Seybold Group. “American consumers, who are already embracing new camera phones, will be blown away by the ways EV-DO enriches their wireless experiences.”
Enterprise customers can access information outside the office, including at customer locations, at job sites, in taxis or on trains. Users can take advantage of transmission bursts above 2 megabits per second to download e-mail attachments and receive three digital pictures in less than 30 seconds, said Verizon.
BroadbandAccess also benefits from virtual private network connection with the security of data protection and authentication within firewalls.
“BroadbandAccess uses CDMA EV-DO technology that has its own data protection and authentication and is designed to work with a business’ existing infrastructure and security solutions,” said the company.
