Cell Phone Guru

Sprint Nextel today announced plans to spend as much as $5 billion by the end of 2010 on a new network based on the emerging high-speed wireless technology known as WiMAX.

WiMAX is a wireless technology that Sprint wants to use to blanket entire cities, enabling wireless Internet access on everything from cell phones and laptops to video game players and cameras. The technology is expected to support Internet access at speeds up to five times faster than typical wireless networks, though it is still slower than wired broadband such as DSL.

To be marketed under the XOHM brand (pronounced ZOAM), a soft launch of the WiMAX network is expected by the end of 2007 in the Chicago and Baltimore/Washington markets. XOHM commercial services are expected to be available beginning in the first half of 2008.

“We’ve executed the technology plan we laid out when we merged two years ago, and, in doing so, we have advanced our vision of becoming the mobility services leader,” said Gary Forsee, Sprint Chairman and CEO. “Our unique set of assets allows consumers to live the mobile lifestyle and businesses to increase productivity by making any place a workplace. Sprint is best positioned in the marketplace to offer these capabilities.”

Under its planned network sharing agreement with Clearwire, Sprint Nextel expects to reach 100 million people by the end of 2008 with Sprint providing coverage to 70 million and Clearwire to 30 million people. Sprint’s coverage is expected to grow to approximately 125 million people by the end of 2010. At that level of buildout, the potential market would include an estimated 48 million U.S. households, nearly 5 million small office/home office subscribers, and more than 130 million consumer electronics devices.