BellSouth Readies Wireless Broadband

BellSouth announced on Tuesday that it would begin a deployment of a pre-WiMax technology across portions of Athens, Ga. later this summer, and then expand to several Florida cities by the end of 2005.

WiMax has been touted as a way to cheaply connect people to broadand Internet, and several cities including Philadelphia are already starting programs to turn entire cities into huge wireless hotspots.

"As BellSouth's focus continues its shift to broadband and wireless, we are excited about the potential of wireless broadband as an alternative high-speed Internet solution," Keith Cowan, president of BellSouth said in prepared remarks. "Wireless broadband complements BellSouth's wireline strategy and aids in our efforts to continuously extend the reach of our broadband service."

BellSouth selected Athens as its initial town for the service due to its high concentration of college students, which are usually more apt to try out new technologies. The company even gave the students the opportunity to pause their accounts during the summer months, paying only a small fee to keep the account active.

BellSouth said it plans to use WiMax as a way to bring broadband access to rural areas, as well as urban areas where broadband is still not available. The company has been testing wireless broadband since 2000.

Sprint has also been testing WiMax with Intel as a way to serve wireless broadband Internet to its customers.