Wi-LAN to Co-Develop Semiconductor Intellectual Property Cores with Leading Semiconductor IP Supplier.Business Editors/High-Tech WritersCALGARY, Canada--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 1, 2003 Agreements Enable Wi-LAN to Produce and License Semiconductor IP Cores for IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, New York, www.ieee.org) A membership organization that includes engineers, scientists and students in electronics and allied fields. WirelessMAN Standard System-on-Chips Wi-LAN Inc. (TSX TSX Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE before April, 2002) TSX Transfer from Stack Pointer to Index TSX True Space Extension : WIN), a global provider of broadband wireless See wireless broadband. communications products and technologies, announced today it has agreed to co-develop semiconductor intellectual property (SIP) cores for IEEE WirelessMAN(a) Standard broadband wireless systems-on-chips (SoCs) with a leading SIP provider. "These agreements are intended to allow us to accelerate the development work for our WirelessMAN Standard SoC's and broadband wireless systems and to broaden the market for our intellectual property," said Dr. Sayed-Amr El-Hamamsy, Wi-LAN's president and chief operating officer Chief Operating Officer (COO) The officer of a firm responsible for day-to-day management, usually the president or an executive vice-president. . "We intend to develop SIP cores, based on our patented W-OFDM technology, incorporating the physical layer of the WirelessMAN standard. Wi-LAN expects to license the SIP cores to semiconductor companies, and to incorporate resulting SoC's into our LIBRA Libra (lē`brə, lī`–) [Lat.,=the scales], southern constellation lying on the ecliptic (the sun's apparent path through the heavens) between Virgo and Scorpius; it is one of the constellations of the zodiac. products to produce the first WirelessMAN compliant systems. This is a key component in our ongoing strategy of licensing our intellectual property, developing the first WirelessMAN Standard system and reducing the cost of our broadband wireless products." Wi-LAN and the SIP provider have entered into two agreements: a consulting agreement and a licensing agreement. The combined agreements require periodic payments from Wi-LAN to the SIP supplier of approximately $0.8 million in total over the initial eight-month period, as well as warrants for Wi-LAN common shares with a total strike price of $75,000 (subject to regulatory approvals). Also, the SIP supplier will be entitled to a portion of all future related SIP Core license fees collected by Wi-LAN. WirelessMAN's wireless metropolitan area network technology will connect 802.11 hot spots hot spots acute moist dermatitis. to the Internet, provide a wireless extension to cable and DSL DSL in full Digital Subscriber Line Broadband digital communications connection that operates over standard copper telephone wires. It requires a DSL modem, which splits transmissions into two frequency bands: the lower frequencies for voice (ordinary for last mile broadband access See broadband and wireless broadband. , provide an inexpensive infrastructure for internet protocol See Internet and TCP/IP. (networking) Internet Protocol - (IP) The network layer for the TCP/IP protocol suite widely used on Ethernet networks, defined in STD 5, RFC 791. IP is a connectionless, best-effort packet switching protocol. based telephony systems and provide backhaul for cellular base stations. It provides up to 50-kilometers of range and allows users to receive broadband connectivity without requiring a direct line of sight with the base station. The wireless broadband High-speed wireless transmission of data. What is "high" speed is always a changing number. Wireless systems are typically slower than land-based, wireline networks. In the past, wireless broadband started at 250 Kbps, whereas land-based broadband was generally considered to start at T1 technology also provides shared data rates up to 70 Mbps, which is enough bandwidth to simultaneously support more than 60 businesses with T1-type connectivity and hundreds of homes with DSL-type connectivity with a single base station. Wi-LAN is a member of the WiMAX(TM) Forum, a non-profit corporation formed to help promote and certify the compatibility and interoperability of broadband wireless access (BWA (Broadband Wireless Access) High-speed wireless access. Typically refers to wireless last mile access to the Internet. See WiMAX and broadband. ) equipment. Other WiMAX Forum members include Fujitsu, Intel, Nokia and other BWA equipment providers. The group's efforts will help accelerate the introduction of WirelessMAN Standard wireless broadband equipment into the marketplace, speeding up last-mile broadband deployment worldwide. Comparison of IEEE WirelessMAN Standard to other OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing) A digital transmission technique that uses a large number of carriers spaced apart at slightly different frequencies. based standards The IEEE Wireless Metropolitan Area Networks (WirelessMAN) Standard, announced on January 30, 2003, defines a standard for BWA systems operating in radio frequencies from 2 to 11 GHz. The emerging European equivalent to the WirelessMAN Standard, the ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute, Sophia Antipolis technical park, Nice, France, www.etsi.org) A non-profit membership organization founded in 1988, dedicated to standardizing information and communication technologies (ICT) throughout Europe. (European Telecommunications Standards Institute (body) European Telecommunications Standards Institute - (ETSI) A European version of the ITU-T(?). ) HiperMAN standard, will incorporate the same OFDM technology used in WirelessMAN, making OFDM the worldwide standard for BWA systems.
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IEEE (North ETSI Global Applicable Intended Range
American) (European) Compatibility Radio
Standard Standard Between IEEE Frequencies
and ETSI
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WirelessMAN HiperMAN(1) Yes 2 to 11 GHz Up to 50 km
802.11a HiperLAN2 No 5.x GHz Up to 30 meters
802.11g NA NA 2.4 GHz Up to 100 meters
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(1) Under development
The W-OFDM Advantage Wi-LAN's patented Wide-Band Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing See FDM. (communications) frequency division multiplexing - (FDM) The simultaneous transmission of multiple separate signals through a shared medium (such as a wire, optical fibre, or light beam) by modulating, at the transmitter, the separate signals into separable (W-OFDM) technology is a variation of OFDM that further improves its characteristics. The signal reception is corrected for distortions, allowing greater transmission speeds, and the signal is processed to maximize the range and multipath resistance. W-OFDM allows spectrally efficient, non-line-of-sight, point-to-multipoint wireless networks to be implemented while minimizing interference with adjacent networks. About Wi-LAN Inc. Wi-LAN is a global provider of broadband wireless communications products and technologies, offering businesses, including telecom service providers, and government enterprises effective, economic and secure wireless high-speed communications solutions. Wi-LAN specializes in high-speed Internet See broadband. access, data network extension, and wireless data and telephony backhaul, utilizing its high quality products and industry-leading technologies. Wi-LAN believes its W-OFDM patents are necessary for the implementation of devices using the IEEE standards WirelessMAN, 802.11a or 802.11g, the ETSI BRAN HiperLAN/2 standard or the current draft of the proposed ETSI BRAN HiperMAN standard. Wi-LAN licenses its W-OFDM technology and has executed non-exclusive W-OFDM license agreements with semiconductor companies. Wi-LAN is the Chair Company of the OFDM Forum (www.ofdm-forum.com) and an active member of the WiMAX Forum (www.wimaxforum.org). Wi-LAN's common shares trade on The Toronto Stock Exchange Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE) Canada's largest stock exchange, trading approximately 1,200 company stocks and 33 options. under the symbol "WIN." Detailed information on Wi-LAN can be found at www.wi-lan.com. Forward Looking Information Certain statements in this release, other than statements of historical fact, may include forward-looking information that involves various risks and uncertainties. These may include, without limitation, statements based on current expectations involving a number of risks and uncertainties related to all aspects of the wireless data communications data communications, application of telecommunications technology to the problem of transmitting data, especially to, from, or between computers. In popular usage, it is said that data communications make it possible for one computer to "talk" with another. industry. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not restricted to, continued increased demand for the Company's products, the Company's ability to maintain its technological leadership in the field of high-speed data communications, the Company's ability to attract and maintain key employees, the enforceability of the Company's patents, and the availability of key components. These uncertainties may cause actual results to differ from information contained herein. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate. Actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. These and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements are based on the estimates and opinions of management on the dates they are made and expressly qualified in their entirety by this notice. The Company assumes no obligation to update forward-looking statements should circumstances or management's estimates or opinions change. (a) Trademarks and brands are property of their respective owners. |
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