Tim and Tom have been away for a while. But Now we are back with our biggest, fastest, punchiest show yet. Literally a couple of dozen news topics of the past week are covered. And we do it fast. Net neutrality is a big hot button, Clearwire (88,000 subscribers) is getting big fast. The FCC AWS auction faces some challenges, The 802.20 Working Group is Suspended (at least for a while) and Much, Much MORE.

Just a quick note to our listeners. We apologize for being a bit slow in getting a new podcast up. Tom is dealing with some serious illness in his family and Tim has been extremely busy. We appreciate your understanding.

We will resume shows in the near future. We should have a spot up next week with Monica recapping her trips to India and Vienna for WiMAX World Europe. She promises a lot of good information. In the coming months look for some really interesting podcasts as we have been talking to a number of vendors and service providers about coming on the show.

Thanks again for your patience.

Tim and Tom

Listener Feedback. Plus Broadband Wireless World feedback. AOL & Clearwire enter Collaboration. WiMAX member SOMA licenses Qualcomm tech. The FCC imparts new rules. AOL gets close to big time VoIP and Tim is fascinated with Location based search with AI incorporated.

This is a big week as Qualcomm settles a Flarion suite by the Department of Justice. Plus Sprint crosses the 1 Million VoIP subscriber mark. Samsung wins a US WiBro deployment. Beceem launches a terrific new WiMax chip. A Swedish vendor HULU plans a gear launch and Nortel and Navini gain deployment wins.

Massive Canadian WiMax deployments are coming. Alcatel & Lucent merge. Plus Macedonian ambitions for a national broadband wireless network. Intel invests in another service provider. Harris wins BIG with government wireless contracts. The competition (DSL) grew strongly last year and Sprint and EarthLink are doing interesting things.

This week:

• Inukshuk launches wireless service in Canada

• Alcatel & Lucent are Merging

• Macedonia has ambitions for Nationwide broadband wireless

• Intel invests $25 Million in the UKs Pipex Wireless

• Harris nets $42.5 Million contract for secure wireless LAN

• DSL posts strong growth numbers last year

• Sprint plans to update its EV-DO network next year

• EarthLink Rescues the New Orleans Wi-Fi Network

• And as a reminder we love it when you call us at 828-398-0501 or TheFinalMile on Skype. You can also email us at Tim@Thefinalmile.Net. Thanks very much.

Interested in what happened at the WiMAX Summit conference in Paris? Today Tim Sanders interviews Monica Paolini with Senza Fili Consulting to tell us about that. Monica has some great tidbits including how Flarion is positioning these days. Also, she covers a wide-ranging subject of topics on the future of WiMAX and where the money is to be made in the near term. An interesting and comfortable chat with a superb industry analyst.

We skipped a week so we have a MASSIVE (yet fast paced) slate of news including service provider launches galore. VoIP, VoIP everywhere. FCC stuff and more.

Hello everybody. Just a quick note to let all of you know that we do have a show coming this week. Just both Tom and I are a bit underwater with committments. We will try to have a show up soon. I've done most of the basic notes for the script already. Probably the Monica Paolini interview will go up first. Thanks for your patience. Tim

A gargantuan WiMax news week. Mac-Daddy AT&T plans to acquire BellSouth with huge implications for the industry. A second Test lab site is picked. A Forum Whitepaper on Mobile WiMax hits the web. Plus PAN Wireless deploys in Kiev. Heavy Reading reports on carrier opinions. Texas based airBand gets $8 Million and Mobilepro closes out its Tempe deployment.

Are you looking for really in-depth meaty details of cost and functionality with WiMAX chipsets. Well you get it today. We are thrilled to have the co-founder of Sierra Monolithics Mr. Charles Harper on today to talk about WiMAX. His company, Sierra Monolithics is one of the crucial chip builders for WiMAX and Mr. Harperâ??s thoughts on his company, the industry and its future are things we've not heard anywhere before. It is simply a must for those interested in WiMAX. You wonâ??t be disappointed.

We get more listener feedback this week. Plus PicoChip is all over the news. Technology CEOs sharply criticize US and Bush administration spectrum policy. Aeroflex and Cetecom win their WiMAX conformance testing bid. Plus Navini nets a big Spanish win. And what are the Europeans doing with broadband over power lines?

We have a huge week of WiMAX goings on. It starts with the WiMAX Summit in Paris. Plus Chicago goes WiFi in a big way (or thinks it will). Alcatel and Samsung play nice. Plus Samsung debuts a WiMAX phone and PicoChip gets even more funding. Plus listener feedback and another chipset company interview this week.

Our interview series this week takes us to the door of WaveSat, one of the preminent chipset companies supporting the WiMAX ecosystem. Mr. Vijay Dube, the Vice President of Marketing and Business Development for WaveSat has a LOT of great information to share. WaveSat was one of the first four WiMAX vendors to achieve certification. And we felt you would want to hear from them. Their vision is very practical and seasoned. If you are looking for an informative session that really imparts a good sense of how chip sets fit into the ecosystem, this show is for YOU.

There is a lot going on in the WiMax world this week. Will President Bush tax the industry out of existence? Plus IBM invents a new and improved 60 GHz chip. VoIP capabilities are increasing as are opportunities. Phillips claims it knows of a cellular carrier who will launch Voice over Wi-Fi this year. Intel and Skype strike an exciting partnership. Plus we are really curious how the Olympics and its WiBro/WiMax test are going. Does anybody know?

One of the leading wireless telecom technology executives in the world joins us today to talk WiMAX and more. Mr. Martin Cooper is the Executive Chairman and co-Founder of ArrayComm which is the world leader in adaptive antenna technology. It is also a key technology adopted into the 802.16e Mobile WiMAX Standard. Mr. Cooper's career is storied. In fact he is credited with conceiving the very first portable cellular phone in 1973. For a unique perspective from a real industry veteran you cannot miss this show.

An FCC appointment solidifies the commission-so expect changes soon. Fujitsu gets some props and venerable equipment maker Wi-LAN exits the business. In service deployments Unwired Australia launches an expansion phase and an interesting niche wholesale play comes together in Texas. Also, First Avenue networks goes “governmental� on us.

A group wants to unwire all of Silicon Valley plus Wisconsin is going wireless---at least part of it anyway. Are Municipal networks an unstoppable juggernaut? Plus BellSouth motors on with WCS spectrum. And Nokia is a doubting Thomas. Also, Tim reports on some anecdotal feedback from providers with VoIP over wireless.

This past week was an absolutely HUGE WiMax news week. The first WiMAX Certified products were announced. Plus we cover Sprint’s early clues as to what it might do with its 2.5 GHz spectrum. BellSouth climbs on the IPTV bandwagon. More spectrum is coming says the government. And last but not least the Intel vs. Qualcomm battle over standards is beginning to be covered.

This week includes some very interesting news from Sprint and Clearwire. Plus the FCC gets set to auction in-flight wireless spectrum. The Bells are trying to charge content providers like Vonage and Google for access to their networks causing a major row. Finally the 802.11n Standard seems poised to happen and the profits of major Telcos including France Telecom are increasingly at risk.

* We will Recap Some Top WiMax Stories from 2005 * There Is More Russian Wimax Hitting The Street Soon * France Is Releasing 40+ Wimax Licenses * Samsung Unveils a mobile WiMax handset * Muni Wireless is Taking Off * There is Funding, Funding everywhere (Several companies got monies this week * BellSouth deploys in New Orleans, LA plus Gulfport and Biloxi, Mississippi * Once again, our Phone number is 828-398-0501. And the E-Mail Address Is: Tim@Thefinalmile.Net. Don’t Forget To Write.

This week's interview is with one of the most respected Telecom executives in the United States. Kelley Dunne who is a former Executive Vice President with Verizon Avenue and an early player in One Point Communications which became Verizon Avenue shares his take on how to leverage WiMax to its greatest effect. Kelley's point of view is very entrepreneurial and he offers fascinating thoughts on the value of unique markets.

This holiday season is packed with news. The IEEE puts its final stamp of approval on Mobile WiMax. Sierra Monolithics begins shipping its RF chipsets in volume. However there may be looming threats to the WiMax Chipset marketplace. Despite this deployments march on with a planned deployment in Prague and 10 new WiMax licenses issued in Croatia to several companies. Plus we have more listener feedback.

Proving that listener feedback is greatly valued at WiMax Global News today we have Lee Sparkman the President of Russian based Enforta at www.enforta.com who was kind enough to write us. After speaking with Mr. Sparkman we asked him to share some absolutely fascinating tidbits about his history in the development of broadband in Russia. Mr. Sparkman also describes the business climate, techical and business challenges and the terrific opportunities that Enforta anticipates from the Russian marketplace. His thoughts on the future of Russian broadband delivery are unique.

Gartner predicts Mobile and VoIP to take 30 percent of the U.S. market by 2010. Telcos are searching for ways to protect their wireline products, sell them or bundle them or something. Motorola wins an early 4.9 GHz deployment. WiBro makes more inroads, Maravedis research points to interesting new spectrum plays. And could European service providers be turning their noses up at 3.5 GHz Fixed opportunities?

This week's interview with Robert Hoskins the founder of Broadband Wireless Exchange is lively and fast paced. With his portal being one of the top sites for independent wireless operators in the US and abroad his take on the industry has a unique perspective. Bob offers numerous opinions on the health of broadband wireless, the role WiMax plays in it and where the industry is going. At times he is both complimentary and contrarian regarding the ype around WiMax, Bob offers an insightful and different point of view on what standards may predominate in the US. His thinking may surprise you!