Rhode Island Plans Statewide Wireless Broadband Network

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Rhode Island Plans Statewide Wireless Broadband Network

6:40 am on May 3, 2006 | Category: Business, Wireless Technology, Internet, Wi-Fi, WiMAX

The smallest American state is hoping to build the first statewide wireless broadband network, using a combination of Wi-Fi and WiMAX technologies, as part of a $20 million project.

Supporters of the project say that building such a network will make the state an excellent testing ground for new business technologies. It will also serve to lure businesses to state capital, Providence, from nearby Boston Massachusetts, where high office rents are putting a crimp in many corporate budgets.

The so called Rhode Island Wireless Innovation Networks (RI-WINs) are expected to be in place by 2007, providing border-to-border wireless coverage in the 1,045 square mile state. The hybrid Wi-Fi/WiMAX network will deliver real-time connection speeds of at least 1 Megabit/second, through a network of 120 base antennas placed around the state.

A few small (3 to 4 foot tall) antennas are already being placed at select locations in the cities of Providence and Newport, in preparation for initial tests of the technology.