The Phoenix area soon will become the nation's first and only test site for the fastest wireless technology entering the marketplace, a leap in cellular and Internet service that could drive down prices for consumers.
The technology includes seamless movie streaming on mobile devices, multiple-player gaming on phones and crystal-clear videoconferencing.
Wireless Internet-service provider Clearwire will start the tests this fall and hopes to offer the service throughout the Phoenix area next year.
The tests are part of intense competition between Clearwire and its competitors. The technology is expected to provide download and upload speeds equal to cable Internet and exponentially faster than the technology now used by cellular service providers.
Clearwire, based in Kirkland, Wash., has been getting permits from area cities for months to put up transmission poles.
As with any new product that rivals its competition, consumer prices should come down, experts say.
"This could change a lot of things for people," said Retha Hill, director of the New Media Innovation Lab at Arizona State University.
She said consumers may scrap their cable, phone and Internet service and switch to wireless if the costs are significantly lower. "When you're paying $135 to $156 a month for bundled cable, phone and Internet service and could switch for $30 or $50 — where can I sign up?" Hill said.
Arizona currently doesn't have access to the fourth-generation technology, also known as 4G, which exists under two competing technology standards: WiMax, and the faster LTE. Clearwire launched the first 4G service in the United States last year using the WiMax standard, and its service is now in 20 states.
Every major U.S. cell phone carrier is now gearing up to offer 4G. Most will be using LTE.
Officials from Clearwire and several cell phone companies would not disclose fees for their planned 4G LTE services, but some conceded that the competition and large-scale usage could bring down prices.
Clearwire is the eighth-largest data provider in the nation. It markets wireless Internet outside of Arizona under its own brand, Clear, and through wholesale relationships with cell phone and cable-TV companies. Sprint, which is part owner of Clearwire, and Comcast deliver the WiMax wireless Internet service in a partnership with Clearwire.
Clearwire spokeswoman Debra Havins said the company will not reveal details about its tests or which cell phone carriers might offer the service but confirmed that the Phoenix area is the only location where the company is trying out its new wireless network.
Jonathan Wells, a wireless-technology expert based in Pleasanton, Calif., said that LTE will soon be the dominant network technology and that Clearwire is building a nationwide presence.
The Phoenix test "is an experiment, but a very significant one, because of what we call the iPhone effect," Wells said. "People are downloading massive amounts of data on their handheld devices, and many are using it as their primary connection to the Internet."
He said the speeds promised by Clearwire are "remarkable" and could pave the way for high-speed multiplayer gaming and two-way videoconferencing for businesses.
Chris Conrey, vice president of Integrum, a Chandler software company that develops Web and mobile applications, said he is not convinced Clearwire can deliver the promised speeds. "4G is going to be great, but Clearwire's numbers sound too good to be true," he said.
AT&T is getting ready to launch its 4G LTE system next year and is working on an aggressive plan to build more wireless-transmission poles to improve coverage, spokesman Erika Ulring said.
Verizon, the nation's largest wireless carrier, will roll out its LTE service before the end of this year in 25 to 30 market areas and will have nationwide LTE coverage by 2013 spokeswoman Jenny Weaver said.
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Information from: The Arizona Republic, http://www.azcentral.com