Samsung to build WiBro network

Samsung Electronics has won a contract to supply a high-speed wireless broadband network based on the WiBro standard to TVA Sistema de Televisao in Brazil, the South Korean company said Wednesday.

WiBro can support data transmission at speeds of around 3Mbps for devices traveling at up to 120 kilometers per hour, according to Samsung. It was largely developed in South Korea and is compatible with the 802.16e mobile WiMax system being developed by a handful of major networking companies.

The network Samsung will build in Brazil is due to start trial service in the second quarter of 2006, the company said. Due to regulatory restrictions the initial service won't support the mobility aspect of WiBro but that is expected to be added later in the year when approval is received, said Shin Jung, a spokeswoman for Samsung in Seoul

Samsung has been working on WiBro system development for some time. Commercial networks based on WiBro are due to enter service in South Korea in the middle of 2006 and Samsung has already demonstrated the system working. It will do so again later this month to regional leaders when they gather for the APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation) meeting in Busan, South Korea.