Dish Network To Partner With Wireless Carrier For Fixed 4G Broadband Trial

Dish Network has announced that it will be collaborating with a major wireless carrier to trial a fixed wireless broadband service. Dish will be working with Sprint on the broadband service trial, which will be conducted in Corpus Christi, Texas. Dish expects that the fixed wireless broadband service will be available by mid-2014.

Dish does say that the fixed service is planned to expand into additional markets in the future. The way that the fixed wireless broadband will be delivered to the customer's home will depend on the location. Some users will get a ruggedized outdoor router while others will receive an indoor solution.

Both solutions will use integrated high-gain antennas to receive 4G TDD-LTE signals using Sprint 2.5GHz spectrum. Dish says that the tie up will work well for both companies involved. Dish has a large workforce of skilled installers that already travel to customer homes.

It's unclear exactly how the service will work. Most wireless broadband plans offer a small amount of data each month. If the same data caps limit the fixed wireless service for homes, having 4G connectivity for you home could get very expensive. Pricing for the service is also unannounced at this time. Dish is tipped to be the largest bidder in the upcoming FCC spectrum auction, could the company be after its own spectrum for wireless broadband?

SOURCE: Dish