WiMAX Forum Launches Open Retail Certification Initiative

Taipei, April 19, 2010 (CENS)--WiMAX Forum recently launched an initiative to define a set of processes, features and testing cases that ensures end-user devices can be sold to consumers via any retail store, and allows end users to activate the services without any help from service providers.

The initiative, dubbed as WiMAX Forum Open Retail Certification Initiative, is designed to test WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) devices in an end-to-end network interoperability-test (IOT) environment with common test requirements accepted by WiMAX operators around the globe.

All WiMAX Forum-certified laboratories throughout the world will begin to offer the certification service in May. According to the forum, the initiative aims at bringing down internal test costs at service providers and ensuring reliability of the products in addition to shortening time of the products to the market through retail channels.

The forum's studies have confirmed that service providers are inclined to accept IOT-certified products into their networks over unproven products because end users can connect to their systems as soon as they activate proven products.

Industry watchers expect the initiative to help facilitate widespread of WiMAX end-user products.

The Open Retail Certification Initiative adds three layers of testing on top of the current WiMAX Certification program, which focuses on air interface conformance testing. The newly added tests focus on network entry, diction, selection and security; over-the-air activation and provisioning; and Certification Version Signaling (CVS) related testing.

Licensed laboratories to offer the certification service include the independent AT4 Wireless each in the United States and Spain, Bureau Veritas ADT of Taiwan, Telecom Technology Center of Taiwan, Compliance Certification Service Inc. of Taiwan, China Academy of Telecom Institute of mainland China, and Telecommunications Technology Association of South Korea. Later this fall, WiMAX Forum will add another test facility in Malaysia.

According to WiMAX Forum Chairman Ron Resnick, the introduction of the Open Retail Initiative is a pivotal step for the WiMAX ecosystem to remain on the current accelerated path for mass adoption through a certification and IOT program that provides significant benefits to operators and vendors.

Resnkick noted that the Open Retail Initiative enables innovation with a robust, lower-cost device ecosystem and enhanced distribution channels for WiMAX devices. "Consumers will have more choice of devices with a greater number of operators and a growing number of consumer retail outlets," he asserted.