NEW YORK-WinStar Communications Inc., New York, is beta testing in Washington, D.C., a point-to-multipoint system with Optical Carrier level-3 (OC-3) radio capacity, said Randy Domolky, the company’s general manager for carrier sales. A commercial service launch is anticipated for sometime next year.
“We have announced alliances with Hughes (Network) Systems and Siemens (Stromberg-Carlson), but there are many other companies getting into point-to-multipoint. It should be a huge and growing industry,” he said at a seminar on wireless local loop at the Telecom Business ’98 Conference and Expo.
As its name implies, point-to-multipoint radio uses a single antenna array to reach many locations. The technology allows WinStar to carve spectrum down to Digital Service level-zero (DS-0), Domolky said. OC-3 allows data throughput at the rate of 155 megabits per second.
“We already have announced that we will use our technologies to serve households … but we are less certain we will do [plain old telephone service] lines with point-to-multipoint,” Domolky said.
Providing fiber-grade wireless local loop service remains the long-term driver of WinStar’s business model.
“The proposition is, we don’t need to rely on the Bell companies for an end-to-end solution. The Baby Bells are constrained in areas where they already offer (fiber-based) service, and they’re not in suburban areas where [usage] is heading and they never thought of going,” he said.
Mobile wireless carriers were first in line for WinStar’s Code Division Multiple Access cell sites and they remain a strong customer segment.
WinStar started as a competitive access provider and quickly discovered cellular companies were extremely receptive to the company, Domolky said. “We married local loop to the Bells and (personal communications services) providers, overlaid with a switched voice network, which will be in 28 cities by year-end.”
WinStar also is upgrading its network to Asynchronous Transfer Mode, a high-bandwidth, very high-speed transmission technology using packet-like switching. ATM backbone switches are well-suited to support multiple services in corporations, wireless and wireline carriers and Internet service providers.
“Wireless and [low-earth-orbit] satellites will become the connectivity alternatives” to wireline systems, even for residential customers, Domolky said.
World Access Inc.
While WinStar is focusing its WLL efforts in the United States, Atlanta-based World Access Inc. continues to pursue opportunities in the developing world.
“Wireless local loop needs to offer basic toll-quality voice, but the biggest driver is its ability to support data for small-business users in emerging markets who need high data rates,” said James M. Bohac, the company’s Santa Clara, Calif.-based director of marketing.
World Access uses sectorized point-to-fixed-multipoint systems, “which look more expensive than omni-directional cells because there are more antennas, but work better because of the physical limitations of radio,” he said.
Later this year, the company plans to introduce a shared virtual [local area network] that will allow carriers to move Internet users onto one discrete channel, rather than sharing channels with voice callers, he said.
The virtual LAN is intended to solve a problem for WLL provision resulting from the fact an average voice call may last five minutes, while an Internet access call lasts 30 minutes. At 10 percent of total network usage, Internet callers can more than double radio costs.
“You can’t share a wire, but you can share the airwaves, so this is probably the most efficient way to get Internet access, [taking advantage of] the `bursty’ nature of Internet communications,” Bohac said.
In developing countries where both the telecommunications and postal service infrastructures are wanting, adequate switching capabilities also are essential to a successful WLL enterprise.
“The reason we look at switching carefully is you need the ability to offer debit billing from bank accounts and prepaid services in places where a postal service is virtually non-existent,” Bohac said.
