SAO PAULO (WiMAX DAY) by Joachim Bamrud. The US chip giant Intel, which is a leading proponent of WiMAX technology worldwide, is exploring many different business models for WiMAX in Latin America.

Intel has signed licensing agreements for its equipment and solutions throughout Latin America. Commercial use of 3.5 GHz spectrum has so far only taken place in Mexico, Colombia, Chile and Argentina, and many local companies are working with Intel to deploy networks with models that address local needs.

Vertical Markets
The mining industry, key in countries like Chile, Brazil and Peru, is one of the sectors that should see immediate enterprise value from WiMAX technology, according to Elaine Nucci, market development manager for Intel in Latin America. Currently a major Chilean mining company is testing WiMAX to track its mining processes.

There are many other industries that will directly benefit from the use of WiMAX, from security to manufacturing and tourism. Nucci added that “It’s interesting to see how technology can be used in other models than on devices.”

Healthcare is also an area that Intel believes has potential for WiMAX in Latin America. Intel is exploring potential work with the national health ministry in Mexico and the City of Monterrey, both of whom are Intel clients and have been actively looking at WiMAX.

Rural Connectivity
Nucci also sees strong potential in all rural areas not covered by traditional broadband connections. Intel itself gained valuable experience from a recent test in Parintins, a small village on the Amazon River in Brazil with no road or air access. “It is far away from everything,” Nucci says.

Intel sent a boat loaded with PCs and WiMAX equipment to Parintins and enabled residents in the village to hook up to the Internet for the first time. While Parintins “was an extreme experience” for remote WiMAX, according to Nucci, Intel is looking to replicate this model in other areas.

Urban Broadband
Intel also actively supports the broadband connectivity market in Latin America because, according to the Intel executive, “we see this as a boost to broadband adoption.”

However, the regulatory environment in some countries is not ready for the deployment of WiMAX for consumer broadband use. In particular, while Brazil could reap tremendous benefit from WiMAX and open up the broadband market, repeated delays in its spectrum auction means that other markets represent greater short-term potential. At the top of the list is Mexico, Latin America’s second-largest economy.

“We see it has having the greatest potential [in Latin America] because they already have the frequencies, they have all the pipelines and demand from users,” Nucci says. “The government is pushing WiMAX, which makes it so much easier for service providers to deliver.”

The top Intel client in Latin America is Telmex, Mexico’s leading telecom operator, which has acquired WiMAX equipment from Intel both for Mexico and its Latin America subsidiaries.

Other key clients of Intel in Latin America include Argentina’s two WiMAX providers, Ertach and VeloCom, Colombian operator Orbitel and Chilean operator ENTEL. However, in both Colombia and Chile, Intel is also increasingly delivering WiMAX solutions to private non-telecom companies that want to have their own infrastructure.

As the market for WiMAX in Latin Amercia continues to grow and expand every week, it is a region that has embraced the technology and will soon have some of the largest WiMAX deployments in the world, spread throughout different markets. According to Nucci, “the opportunities for [different] business models is really exciting.”