Eircom has contracted a British-based multinational firm, Airspan Communications, to provide it with the technology to build a nationwide fixed wireless access network in a deal which could be worth more than £50 million over three years.
Airspan Communications will initially supply Eircom with enough base stations and subscriber terminals to support 45,000 lines capable of carrying narrowband voice and data services. Further equipment will be supplied by the company subject to demand for the services.
Wireless local loop technology complements existing fixed telephone connections by enabling quick deployment of a network without wires. It is considered a useful tool to bring telephone services to rural areas which have less extensive telephone networks.
The Eircom network will be capable of offering wireless voice, ISDN and future fast Internet services to residential and business consumers in rural and suburban areas.
An Eircom spokeswoman said it was difficult to put a definitive value on the deal as it was structured in a staged basis. But industry sources said it would probably cost at least £50 million to roll out a State wide network over three years.
The spokeswoman said the company was well advanced in its wireless plans but could not give a date for when the network would go live. A wireless network is made up of base stations which are used to direct wireless radio signals to a small subscriber terminals which can be attached to a home or a business.
Airspan Communications already supplies wireless local loop technology in the Philipines, the Indian sub-continent, North America, Africa and Europe.
It is understood the company has established a project office in the Republic. However, an Airspan spokesman said it would supply similar technology to one of the other companies holding a narrowband wireless local loop licences - Esat Telecom or Irish Multichannel.
Airspan was listed on the Nasdaq on July 20th. It reported record revenue of $6.9 million for the quarter ended the second quarter of this year, up 228 per cent from the second quarter in 1999 and 21 per cent from the first quarter this year.
