Australian ISP Vividwireless, a Seven Network subsidiary, has launched Australia's first 4G mobile broadband network in Perth. A spokesperson said the company plans to bring 4G network access to Sydney and Melbourne by August.
Vividwireless claims customers using its network will have access to average download speeds of 4 megabits per second, with peak speeds of 20Mbps.
Built by Seven Network stablemate Unwired, the network has been built using WiMAX technology, which has been backed by Google and Intel, as well as Long Term Evolution (LTE) hardware from China-based vendor Huawei. Technology research company Ovum has predicted LTE technology will make a significant impact on the telecom market by 2014.
"We will be offering prices that are competitive with current fixed ADSL offerings, with the added advantage of mobility," said Martin Mercer, Vividwireless CEO, in a statement.
Vividwireless customers have the options of prepaid, monthly subscriptions and fixed-term contracts on the 4G network.
As reported by IDG publication ARN, Unwired is confident in the profitability of its 4G network. "There is still growing demand for good old fashioned broadband access in the home — because Perth has lots of DSL blackspots — and on the move," said an Unwired spokesperson last year.
"There is no need for new killer applications to justify people buying more data. The growth in demand for wireless data is exponential here and around the world."
In August last year, Adelaide ISP Adam Internet began implementing a fixed WiMAX network.
