While most larger carriers are still feeling their way through the abundance of third-generation hype, a small carrier in Oklahoma is getting ready to deploy a GPRS network using AirNet Communications Corp.’s software-defined platform.
MBO Wireless Inc. announced it will use AirNet’s AdaptaCell and AirSite Backhaul Free base stations to continue its coverage expansion. The agreement is an extension of a 1998 contract that created MBO’s initial wireless network.
Because the platform is software-based, upgrades to the network can be performed remotely from a network control center, and operators can simultaneously provide GSM and GPRS services, AirNet said.
GPRS technology is set to explode in Europe where GSM is the only standard in use. Europe’s wireless uniformity sidesteps much of the squabbling found in the United States over standards, and allows carriers there to deploy new technologies faster.
In the United States, where three standards now operate, 3G migration is not advancing as rapidly. VoiceStream Wireless Corp. has rolled out GPRS in its GSM network, but others still are waiting. AT&T Wireless Services Inc. also said it will offer GPRS services.
“We will be the only provider in the area with 170 kilobits per second capability and we will be able to offer faster data and other services even before our larger competitors,” said V. David Miller, president of MBO Wireless.
AirNet also noted this agreement demonstrates that smaller operators will not be left out as the wireless industry moves toward 3G. Miller said incorporating a software-based solution is key to its time and cost efficiency.
“Without question, we would not be able to provide our customers with the wireless Internet and other services if we had to go with a traditional, hardware-based solution,” he said.
MBO Wireless Inc. operates in and around Stillwater, Okla. It is a subsidiary of MBO Corp., a privately held firm that operates seven telephone, cable television, video and wireless communication companies.
