Editing WiMAX (section)

== Uses of WiMAX ==
The scalable physical layer architecture that allows for data rate to scale easily with available channel bandwidth and range of WiMAX make it suitable for the following potential applications:

* Providing portable mobile broadband connectivity across cities and countries through various devices.
* Providing a wireless alternative to cable and [[digital subscriber line]] (DSL) for "[[Last mile (telecommunications)|last mile]]" broadband access.
* Providing data, telecommunications (VoIP) and [[IPTV]] services ([[triple play (telecommunications)|triple play]]).
* Providing Internet connectivity as part of a [[business continuity]] plan.
* Smart grids and metering.

=== Internet access ===
WiMAX can provide at-home or mobile [[Internet access]] across whole cities or countries. In many cases, this has resulted in competition in markets which typically only had access through an existing incumbent DSL (or similar) operator.

Additionally, given the relatively low costs associated with the deployment of a WiMAX network (in comparison with [[3G]], [[HSDPA]], [[xDSL]], [[Hybrid fibre-coaxial|HFC]] or [[FTTx]]), it is now economically viable to provide last-mile broadband Internet access in remote locations.

=== Middle-mile backhaul to fiber networks ===
Mobile WiMAX was a replacement candidate for [[cellular phone]] technologies such as [[GSM]] and [[code-division multiple access|CDMA]], or can be used as an overlay to increase capacity. Fixed WiMAX is also considered as a wireless [[Backhaul (telecommunications)|backhaul]] technology for [[2G]], [[3G]], and [[4G]] networks in both developed and developing nations.<ref>{{cite web|title=Sprint Eyes WiMax Backhaul|url=http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=104349|website=Lightreading.com|access-date=2008-03-22|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080312140258/http://www.lightreading.com/document.asp?doc_id=104349|archive-date=2008-03-12|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=WiMax signals get stronger in India|url=http://www.eetimes.com/news/latest/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=206901605|website=Eetimes.com|access-date=2008-03-22|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120713001728/http://www.eetimes.com/news/latest/showArticle.jhtml?articleID=206901605|archive-date=2012-07-13|url-status=live}}</ref>

In North America, backhaul for urban operations is typically provided via one or more [[Electrical wiring|copper wire]] line connections, whereas remote cellular operations are sometimes backhauled via satellite. In other regions, urban and rural backhaul is usually provided by [[microwave link]]s. (The exception to this is where the network is operated by an incumbent with ready access to the copper network.) WiMAX has more substantial backhaul bandwidth requirements than legacy cellular applications. Consequently, the use of wireless microwave backhaul is on the rise in North America and existing microwave backhaul links in all regions are being upgraded.<ref>{{cite web|title=Overcoming the wire-line bottleneck for 3G wireless services|url=http://supercommnews.com/wireless/features/wireline_wireless_networks_060305/|website=Supercommnews.com|access-date=2009-01-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202142859/http://supercommnews.com/wireless/features/wireline_wireless_networks_060305/|archive-date=2008-12-02|url-status=dead}}</ref> Capacities of between 34&nbsp;Mbit/s and 1&nbsp;Gbit/s<ref>{{cite web|title=High-speed Microwave|url=http://www.wimaxforum.org/technology/faq|website=Wimaxforum.org|access-date=2008-03-12|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080306033728/http://www.wimaxforum.org/technology/faq/|archive-date=2008-03-06|url-status=dead}}</ref> are routinely being deployed with latencies in the order of 1&nbsp;ms.

In many cases, operators are aggregating sites using wireless technology and then presenting traffic on to fiber networks where convenient. WiMAX in this application competes with [[microwave radio]], [[Ethernet Virtual Private Line|E-line]] and simple extension of the fiber network itself.

=== Triple-play ===
WiMAX directly supports the technologies that make [[triple play (telecommunications)|triple-play]] service offerings possible (such as [[quality of service]] and [[multicast]]). These are inherent to the WiMAX standard rather than being added on as [[carrier Ethernet]] is to [[Ethernet]].

On May 7, 2008, in the United States, [[Sprint Nextel]], [[Google]], [[Intel]], [[Comcast]], [[Bright House Networks|Bright House]], and [[Time Warner]] announced a pooling of an average of 120&nbsp;MHz of spectrum and merged with [[Clearwire]] to market the service. The new company hoped to benefit from combined services offerings and network resources as a springboard past its competitors. The cable companies were expected to provide media services to other partners while gaining access to the wireless network as a [[Mobile virtual network operator]] to provide triple-play services.

Some wireless industry analysts, such as Ken Dulaney and Todd Kort at Gartner, were skeptical how the deal would work out: Although fixed-mobile convergence had been a recognized factor in the industry, prior attempts to form partnerships among wireless and cable companies had generally failed to lead to significant benefits for the participants. Other analysts at IDC favored the deal, pointing out that as wireless progresses to higher bandwidth, it inevitably competes more directly with cable, DSL and fiber, inspiring competitors into collaboration. Also, as wireless broadband networks grow denser and usage habits shift, the need for increased backhaul and media services accelerate, therefore the opportunity to leverage high bandwidth assets was expected to increase.

=== Aviation ===
The Aeronautical Mobile Airport Communication System (AeroMACS) is a wireless broadband network for the airport surface intended to link the control tower, aircraft, and fixed assets. In 2007, AeroMACS obtained a worldwide frequency allocation in the 5&nbsp;GHz aviation band. As of 2018, there were 25 AeroMACS deployments in 8 countries, with at least another 25 deployments planned.<ref>{{cite conference|title=AeroMACS Standardized Solution for the Airport Surface|url=https://www.icao.int/SAM/Documents/2018-SAMIG22/AeroMACS%20Presentation%20-%2022November2018_Final.pdf|first=Alessandra |last=Rocha|conference=SAMIG22|date=November 22, 2018|location=Lima, Perú|publisher=ICAO}}</ref>