Nomotech upgrades Wi-Fi infrastructure to MiMo

French wireless internet company Nomotech is preparing to increase capacity on its high-speed Wi-Fi infrastructure, which is mainly found in rural areas where there is no ADSL network or where only one provider is present, Ariase reports. CEO Philippe Le Grand told the website that the company will progressively upgrade its WiFiMax-branded WLL service, based on Wi-Fi but offering speeds comparable to WiMax, with MiMo technology to boost its top bandwidth from 4-6 Mbps, symmetrical, to 18 Mbps downstream and 10 Mbps upstream. Not only is service quality higher, but at these speeds, the local networks can be used to deliver IPTV, he stated, adding that the upgrade requires a major investment in the backbone infrastructure connecting to the WiFiMax base stations, to switch from ADSL to fibre. Where this is not an option, the antennas still can achieve terrestrial radio links of several hundred Mbps, he explained. SFR-backed Nomotech has built WLL networks using 2.4 GHz and 5.4 GHz spectrum for local authorities in counties such as the Manche, Moselle, Cher and Herault, for use by third-party service providers and for its own subsidiary Ozone, which sells internet access and VoIP to customers. The company's WifiMax Mimo branded service is going through its final test phase in the Manche, which it describes as the world's biggest Wi-Fi hotspot. Its first MiMo-based services will be launched within weeks, costing around EUR 35-EUR 45 a month, depending on whether they include unlimited VoIP and other elements. According to Le Grand, it would cost less than EUR 10 million to cover a county with 200 of these base stations, or as little as a quarter of the cost of France Telecom's NRA-ZO system, which entails building smaller exchanges closer to end users on its ADSL network.