Clearwire, WiMax face uphill battle vs. tight credit
Today's Wall Street Journal notes that Clearwire's plans to rollout its Clear WiMAX network faces hurdles thanks to the still-tight credit markets. Though Clearwire Corp.'s recent merger with Sprint Nextel's wireless broadband unit put the company on more solid financial footing, it still faces challenges as it tries to overcome rivals by rolling out its new fourth-generation mobile Internet access.
Just a few months ago, Clearwire said it could draw out the timing on its network build-out if it wasn't able to raise money at reasonable rates. According to reports, the company said it has to raise up to $2.3 billion to cover the gap between the costs of its nationwide WiMAX build-out and the $3.2 million invested in the venture by Google and cable companies. But it may be an even bigger figure.
Does this slow Clearwire so much that the company loses pole position in the 4G push?
Perhaps, depending on how quickly other carriers move to Verizon LTE (fittingly, "Long Term Evolution"). On the other hand, Clearwire may have a price advantage over LTE services.
The problem, of course, is that delays the company's profits considerably -- according to one analyst, all the way until 2015.
Related reading:
- Larry Dignan: Sprint unveils dual 3G/4G modem
- Sam Diaz: Clearwire-Sprint make it official, pave way for WiMax rollout
- Matthew Miller: HTC announces world's first GSM/WiMAX mobile phone
- Christopher Dawson: What would you do with wireless broadband?
- Andrew Nusca: Free national Wi-Fi? Pardon me not holding my breath.
- John Morris: Laptops with mobile WiMax now available
- Jason Hiner: Beyond mobile broadband, WiMAX is about blowing up the wireless business model
[techmeme]