Sprint has landed its first international WiMAX roaming agreements with Digicel in Jamaica and Global Mobile in Taiwan, the company announced today.
Roaming will be available on select devices that use Sprint's SmartView Connection Manager, including the 250U and U600 USB modems.
"With these agreements, Sprint is kicking down the door to 4G international roaming and taking a first step toward allowing people to enjoy 4G service wherever they are around the globe," said Sprint's 4G chief Matt Carter in a statement.
Sprint plans to offer its WiMAX roaming service through unlimited day passes. The company hasn't said when the service will launch or how much it will cost.
Sprint currently offers WiMAX service in the U.S. through Clearwire, which also has been active in working on global roaming. In September 2009, Clearwire began working with WiMAX operators UQ in Japan and Yota in Russia on international roaming capabilities.
Clearwire is also working with YTL Communications in Malaysia, wi-tribe in Pakistan and two operators in Taiwan, Global Mobile and Vee Telecom. The company launched 4G roaming services with UQ in September of this year for customers using Intel's WiMAX-embedded laptops.