The Hindu Business Line : Intel looks for buys in WiMAX space

Santa Clara (California), Nov. 20 Sitting on a cash pile of $15 billion, chip maker Intel is looking to invest in companies which will enable uptake of WiMAX-based broadband services in India. This could include picking up stake in Indian telecom operators who win the WiMAX spectrum and also invest in smaller companies that have equipment or software solutions to build the ecosystem.

“We are always looking for opportunities. We have invested a significant amount in many countries including US, Japan, Malaysia and Taiwan. We have done roughly a dozen plus operators. Our objective is to cover a billion people over the next few years with WiMAX technology and India with its huge population offers good opportunity," said Mr Sriram Viswanathan, Vice-President, Intel Capital and General Manager, WiMAX Program Office.

Auctions in January

Auctions for WiMAX spectrum in India is expected to be held in January 2009. Other than the state-owned telecom majors BSNL and MTNL, private players including Reliance Communications and Tata Teleservices are expected to deploy WiMAX-based wireless broadband services in India.

WiMAX is expected to enable users to access Internet at 3 times higher speeds than existing mobile technologies. Intel, which has significant patents in WiMAX, is globally spearheading the efforts to boost the uptake of this technology.

Speaking during a media tour sponsored by the WiMAX Forum, Mr Viswanathan said that he did not rule out the possibility of investing in more than one operator in the country.

“India will have four WiMAX licences. We want the market to grow for which we will have to do some heavy lifting. Though we cannot have five different relationships in the same geography, it doesn’t mean that we need to have only one. In the US, we had commercial relationships with both Clearwire and Sprint," he said.

Other investments

On investing in smaller companies that make applications or equipment for WiMAX services, Mr Viswanathan said that Intel has already invested in a number of companies including Telsima (equipment provider), Beeceem (chip maker) and also NIIT, Sasken and Rediff.

Intel has also invested in a Silicon Valley-based software company called Hello Soft, which also has presence in Hyderabad. “We will continue to invest. There are so many opportunities not just carriers but even software companies. We want a healthy eco system. If there is anything that helps us advances our goals and that requires us to invest - we will do it. We are sitting on $15 billion cash, so it is a good position to be in ,” he said.

The likely hurdles

When asked as to what could go wrong for the uptake of WiMAX technology, Mr Viswanathan said that the current economic slowdown and the inability of equipment vendors to sustain R&D activities due to credit crunch could make the ecosystem weaker. He also said that opposition from incumbent players could also spoil the WiMAX growth opportunity.

Intel, through the Atom chipsets, is also enabling the introduction of mobile Internet devices that will be compatible to WiMAX technology. MIDs based on such chipsets will allow consumers to communicate, entertain, access information on Internet-based portable video players, navigation devices, converged tablets and other consumer products.