Re: Skynet
Global (ASX – SKG)
Extracts from
Communications Day …..
Communications
Day 8 January 2004 Page 2
SkyNetGlobal
on target to Wi-Fi Singapore
SkyNetGlobal
announced
yesterday that is on track to complete deployment and testing of its
Singapore Wi-Fi network comprising of 119 McDonald's restaurants, by
the end of January 2004. SkyNetGlobal plans to officially launch its
Singapore Wi-Fi network with 119 wireless hotspots February
2.
Once
completed the SkyNetGlobal Singapore public wireless network will become the
island state's largest branded chain of wireless hotspots with a potential
4.4 million visitors per month. SkyNetGlobal CEO Jonathan Soon claimed that
interest from potential new customers was strong and the operator is
currently in the process of finalising several major contracts. He also
forecast that SkyNetGlobal Singapore is expected to provide positive
cash flows and earnings to the group as early as this financial year ending
June 2004.
Natalie
Apostolou
Communications
Day 13 January 2004 Page 3
•
SkyNetGlobal
yesterday
said its W Home Automation subsidiary had made a net profit of
$412,971 for the half-year period ending December 31, representing what the
company claimed was a 26% increase on forecast earnings. SkyNetGlobal CEO
Jonathan Soon said, given that W Home Automation had nearly achieved its
fullyear forecast in the first half of the year, it would revise its yearly
figure up accordingly in due course.
Communications
Day 15 January 2004 Page 2
WiMAX
to vastly expand wireless broadband potential
While
everyone from courier companies to coffee shops is busily rolling out Wi-Fi
fixed wireless broadband (FWB) networks for the benefit of on-the-move
businesspeople and savvy consumers, new research from In-Stat/MDR
indicates that these remote networking segments will only represent a
portion of the market potential of FWB technology as new standards
emerge.
Wi-Fi,
based on the IEEE 802.11b standard, has been in development for over 20
years now and there is no doubt that it fills an important need in the
market, particularly in worker flexibility. However, according to new
In-Stat/MDR postings, the emergence of FWB-specific standards like IEEE
802.16 and IEEE 802.20, those supporting the so-called WiMAX platform, will
soon boost the capabilities of wireless broadband to enter whole new revenue
segments, something In-Stat/MDR analyst Daryl Schoolar says is just over the
horizon.
”The
need for and interest in FWB is already there, with the existence of areas
that have yet to be reached by common wireline broadband technologies and
those that lack basic copper infrastructure. These emerging standards will
merely give this market the extra boost that it has
needed.”
According
to Schoolar, the 802.16 and 802.20 standards will help grow FWB in three
main applications – last mile connectivity, network backhaul and private
networking. As a result, the market will grow from US$558.7 million in 2003
to over US$1.2 billion by the end of 2007. Growth will come from more than
just low-cost consumer/small business Internet access. Market drivers for
emerging FWB applications, such as cellular backhaul and metro Ethernet,
along with private networking, will all play important roles, Schoolar
says.
With
major backing from heavy-duty vendors like Intel and Alcatel
and Wi-Fi already attracting significant regard among operators and
users, there is little doubt that the first WiMAX gear will generate some
serious interest when it arrives later this year. The technology will vastly
increase the range of wireless hotspots and raise the prospect of copper
networks being finally condemned to the wastebasket of technology’s
yesteryear.
Tim
Marshall
Communications
Day 19 January 2004 Page 2
Operators
begin to see WiMAX potential
With
new studies last week predicting that WiMAX will drive massive growth in the
fixed wireless broadband market, the industry body responsible for
developing and commercialising the technology says it has more than doubled
its membership over the past five months and that telecoms operators are
starting to open their eyes to the potential it
presents.
While
the first commercial products supporting WiMAX are not expected to hit the
market until later this year, there is already considerable hype surrounding
the technology, essentially a suped-up version of
Wi-Fi.
Reflecting
the growing industry-wide confidence and interest in the technology, the
WiMAX Forum claims it has significantly boosted its membership of
late, with operators such as AT&T, Covad and PCCW,
as well as vendors like Siemens and ZTE now on the books. The
additions represent a considerable diversification of the Forum’s member
base from firms concentrating more specifically on WiMAX equipment
design.
”We
are delighted to have the active participation of prominent operators,
infrastructure providers and broadband wireless application innovators that
share the belief that interoperability of standards-compliant systems are
essential to delivering cost-effective broadband services on a global
scale,” WiMAX Forum president Margaret LaBrecque said. The Forum says it now
has a membership of 67, up from 28 since its creation five months
ago.
According
to an In-Stat/MDR study posted last week, WiMAX has the potential to
radically transform the fixed wireless broadband market with its additional
reach over Wi-Fi allowing it to support applications such as cellular
backhaul and metro Ethernet and private networking. As a result, In-Stat/MDR
expects the fixed wireless broadband market to grow from $US558.7 million in
2003 to over $1.2 billion by the end of 2007. Separate research from Allied
Business Intelligence recently pegged the market for broadband wireless
equipment at around US$1.5 billion in 2008.
Tim
Marshall
See IRG research reports
