SAN DIEGO-Pacific Bell Mobile Services Inc. is in the final stages of testing its ability to transmit data over the Global System for Mobile communications network.
Pac Bell Mobile is scheduled to launch full commercial GSM service in Las Vegas and Orange County to business customers in mid-February. Full service to retail customers should be available by the end of February, the company said.
Full service will include voice telephony, data and messaging.
With these launches, data will become available in San Diego as well, where voice and messaging service was launched last year.
“With this, we are bringing landline reliability,” said Roy Gunter, executive director of business development for Pac Bell Mobile.
Pac Bell Mobile’s network operates at 1900 MHz. Initially, data will travel on the circuit-switched system at 9,600 kilobits per second, with future improvements of possibly 14,400 kbps, up to 64,000 kbps.
“These were user-related trials, rather than technology trials. GSM was created from day one to combine these three-voice, data and messaging,” he said.
Gunter said the industry has solved previous barriers to wireless data, which were cost, ease of use (equipment changes) and reliability. Service is expected to be popular, although voice service continues to be the strongest U.S. sales driver, he said.
IBM Corp. has an agreement to sell the data solution to large corporations, Gunter said. “If you are accessing any information now over the telephone, you can make it wireless with no new hardware and no new software,” he said.
Modems will be available for the February launches, and available in retail stores beginning March 1.
Pac Bell Mobile hopes to have its network built by the end of the year to cover most of California and Nevada.
