TelstraClear goes wireless for last mile

TelstraClear's plans for radio bands revealed

TelstraClear, which succesfully bid for three 3.5GHz bands in the government radio frequency spectrum auction in 2002, has finally revealed what it is using them for: data tails alternatives to Telecom-supplied circuits. The telco also won the bids for two Local Multi-Point Distribution Service bands in the 24.4-26.4GHz range.

Data tails are links between businesses and the telecommunications backbone, but TelstraClear says they are not a substitute for fixed local loop links.

“We’ve been deploying wireless data tails for the last four or five months together with Siemens,” says Paul Carson, head of solutions management at TelstraClear. The deployment has taken place in Rotorua and areas of Auckland, where it has been deemed economical to do so.

The wireless links use a version of the IEEE 802.16 protocol and are upgradable to the Intel-sponsored WiMAX standard later on. They do not require direct line of sight, making the wireless links easier to deploy than current solutions that are unable to cope with obstacles in the way of the radio signal.

The speed of the links is 512kbit/s with a 1Mbit/s upgrade coming up later, says Carson. This is sufficient for eight to ten voice over IP connections, and reaches customers some 3km to 5km away. Currently 70 customers are served by TelstraClear’s wireless links.

Carson declines to give an figure for the cost of the wireless links, but says it is comparable to fixed network costs. The service is aimed at businesses with “five or six employees”, says Carson, and not for residential access.

Asked if TelstraClear would use the wireless technology to provide mass market local loop access, Carson said it was not “a fixed line substitution”, and therefore unlikely to become an alternative to wired land circuits.