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Press Release

Wireless Industry Leaders Promote Next-Generation Wi-Fi Technology to Accelerate IEEE Standards Development

Enhanced Wireless Consortium to Enable Ecosystem of Interoperable, High-Speed Wireless LAN Solutions In Advance of 802.11n Standard

San Jose, California, October 10, 2005 – Twenty seven Wi-Fi® industry leaders today announced a coalition formed to accelerate the IEEE 802.11n standard development process and promote a technology specification for next-generation wireless local area networking (WLAN) products. By introducing a specification with widespread industry support, the Enhanced Wireless Consortium (EWC) hopes to speed ratification of an 802.11n standard, while enabling an ecosystem of high-performance WLAN products built to a common set of guidelines. This widely adopted specification will benefit consumers by, among other things, ensuring the interoperability of next-generation wireless products across a variety of brands and platforms.

The Enhanced Wireless Consortium has developed a specification that is designed to enable consumers to enjoy new levels of wireless performance, coverage and interoperability prior to ratification of an 802.11n standard. The EWC specification defines technologies that address the PC and networking equipment market, as well as emerging handheld and consumer electronic applications. The consortium has designed its specification to support speeds of up to 600 Mbps, and is considering the inclusion of other advanced technologies – including Space Time Block Coding (STBC) and beamforming – that will enable systems to deliver greater range for wireless products across multiple market segments and support advanced multimedia applications.

The EWC will make its draft product specification available for public download and will provide implementation rights to all silicon suppliers and system vendors who join the organization. Among the current members are Airoha, Apple, Atheros, Azimuth, Broadcom, Buffalo, Cisco Systems, Conexant, D-Link, Gateway, Intel Corporation, Lenovo, Linksys, LitePoint, Marvell, Metalink, NETGEAR, Ralink, Realtek, SANYO, Sony, Symbol Technologies, Toshiba, USRobotics, WildPackets, Winbond and ZyDAS. If the EWC specification is ratified by the IEEE, EWC members have agreed to make their relevant intellectual property (IP) available to all parties on reasonable and non-discriminatory (RAND) terms.

Members of the EWC will continue to work within the IEEE Task Group “N” to facilitate a ratified 802.11n standard. Its specification includes many elements of previous proposals, which will accelerate the completion of a merged proposal draft within the official IEEE timeline .

The EWC specification comprises a number of technical elements, including:

• Mixed-mode interoperability with 802.11a/b/g networks – provides enhanced performance while maintaining communication with legacy devices;
• PHY transmission rates up to 600Mbps – supports applications requiring high data rates (such as transmitting multiple HDTV streams), and reduces battery drain by minimizing the time required to send and receive data streams;
• Enhanced efficiency MAC with frame aggregation – brings actual throughput closer to the raw PHY rate, providing end users with at least 100 Mbps application level bandwidth;
• Use of 2.4GHz and/or 5GHz unlicensed bands – matches the frequency plan of existing 802.11 devices;
• 20MHz and/or 40MHz channel support – uses more of the wireless spectrum when available to enhance performance;
• Spatial multiplexing modes for simultaneous transmission using 1 to 4 antennas – increases robustness of wireless connections to support very high data rates;
• Enhanced range via multiple antennas and advanced coding – provides for a wider coverage area with consistent wireless speeds.

For additional information about the Enhanced Wireless Consortium and a complete listing of member companies, please visit www.enhancedwirelessconsortium.org.

Addendum of Quotes from EWC Members

Airoha Technology Corporation

“Airoha has been closely watching the status of the IEEE 802.11n standard and supports the EWC’s efforts to speed its ratification,” said Michael Lu, CEO of Airoha. “We feel that by bringing a widely-accepted specification to the IEEE, the EWC is taking the lead to hasten the standards process.”

Atheros Communications, Inc.

“The EWC specification combines the best features of the TGn Sync and WWiSE proposals to accelerate agreement within the IEEE. We believe the EWC is the catalyst necessary to establish an IEEE standard that will drive adoption of high-performance WLAN devices. Early availability of interoperable products will benefit consumers and, ultimately, the entire WLAN industry,” said Craig Barratt, president and chief executive officer of Atheros.

Azimuth Systems

“As the leader in Wi-Fi engineering test equipment, Azimuth knows the importance of timely delivery of standard tools in bringing new technology to market,” said Jeff Abramowitz, vice president of marketing for Azimuth Systems. ”We have been aggressively developing our next generation test solutions and are eager to support the EWC’s effort to accelerate the 802.11n standard.”

Broadcom Corporation

“By joining with other W-Fi leaders to create a specification for high-performance interoperable wireless solutions, Broadcom hopes to accelerate the IEEE process,” said Michael Hurlston, general manager of Broadcom's Home & Wireless Networking Business Unit.  “We intend to meet customer demand for networked wireless products that have the bandwidth and quality of service necessary to deliver exciting new data, video, and voice services in the home and the office.”

Buffalo Inc.

“As a leading Wi-Fi solution provider, Buffalo combines state-of-the-art wireless technologies to make the user’s experience easy and stable, while delivering the highest performance,” said Kuniaki Saiki, president of Buffalo Inc. “By joining the Enhanced Wireless Consortium, we expect to accelerate the introduction of high-speed, interoperable products and further enrich the user experience in the home, small office and enterprise.”

Cisco Systems, Inc.

“Cisco has a strong commitment to the standards process, and supports the Enhanced Wireless Consortium and its goal of helping accelerate 802.11n standardization,” said Brett Galloway, vice president and general manager of Cisco’s Wireless Networking Business Unit. ”We believe that accelerating this effort is in the best interest of customers as they continue to deploy more advanced, content-rich services and applications over their wireless networks.”

Conexant Systems, Inc.

“Conexant is a strong advocate of standards-based products, and we joined the Enhanced Wireless Consortium to help drive an industry-wide consensus on an 802.11n specification,” said Chee Kwan, vice president and general manager of Conexant’s Wireless Networking business. “Achieving this important milestone quickly will help to ensure the early availability of interoperable, higher performance wireless LAN products, which benefits both end-users and wireless networking solutions providers.”

D-Link Systems, Inc.

“Technology users are best served when the technology designers, developers and manufacturers work together to deliver standards that meet a range of objectives like those in the EWC specification, which embrace the needs of the users in the long run,” said AJ Wang, chief technology officer for D-Link. “The fundamental principle for building industry standards is to create the next generation of interoperable, performance, range and security solutions in an open environment for compatibility and variety, where the market is right-sized through competition.”

Intel Corporation

“Intel is committed to advancing the adoption of standards, and participation in the Enhanced Wireless Consortium is one way we hope to accelerate the adoption of a final IEEE 802.11n standard,” said Jim Johnson, vice president and general manager of Intel’s Wireless Networking Group. “By joining with numerous other industry players, we hope to speed ratification of the standard as well as jointly develop a common guideline to deliver interoperable solutions in the interim.”

Lenovo International

“Lenovo is dedicated to investing in technology that enhances the computing experience of our customers, as we’ve demonstrated through our award-winning ThinkPad notebooks and ThinkVantage Technologies,” said Howard Dulany, worldwide marketing manager for wireless products at Lenovo. “We’re looking forward to working closely with the EWC on developing wireless standards that create a more robust yet simplified environment for mobile consumers and workforces.”

Linksys, a Division of Cisco Systems, Inc.

“Linksys is committed to driving specifications that help enhance the speed, range and security of networking products for consumers, as standards are essential to mass adoption and acceptance of any new technology,” said Malachy Moynihan, Linksys Vice President of Engineering and Product Marketing. “The EWC’s efforts to advance WLAN technology towards the industry’s ultimate goal of a 802.11n standard will help provide the public with products that simplify their lifestyle at home, on the road or in the office.”

LitePoint Corporation

“Users of wireless products want standards. They want to be free to pick the products that best meet their needs without giving thought to interoperability. Through the Enhanced Wireless Consortium, we will arrive at an IEEE 802.11n standard sooner, giving users that freedom,” said Benny Madsen, CEO of LitePoint. “LitePoint, the leading supplier of one-box test equipment for Wi-Fi and MIMO, will continue to support the test requirements for emerging wireless technologies. When the chipsets are ready, LitePoint will be there with competitive test solutions.”

Marvell

“Consumers are demanding increasingly complex products that require higher data rates and expanded range. It is in the best interest of the market to accelerate the development of the 802.11n standard to meet this demand,” said Dr. Paramesh Gopi, General Manager of Marvell’s Embedded and Emerging Business Unit. “Joint development of the 802.11n spec between Marvell and the other EWC members is the fastest path to reach a decision on the new specification, and ultimately deliver leading edge products into the hands of consumers.”

Metalink Broadband, Ltd.

“The convergence of consumer electronics and PC worlds requires a new grade of networking. Networks based on 802.11n are positioned to become the infrastructure for the broadband home,” said Tzvika Shukhman, chairman and CEO of Metalink. “We believe that the establishment of the EWC will speed up the creation of a successful standard for wireless LAN, enabling a wide array of new, rich multimedia applications such as the delivery of multiple HDTV streams throughout the home.”

NETGEAR, Inc.

“Our customers are demanding innovation in wireless networking to support the applications of tomorrow, and multi-vendor interoperability is just as important to them as speed, range, and security,” said Mark Merrill, chief technology officer of NETGEAR. ”As a leader in the networking industry enabling connectivity for computing and consumer electronics devices, we are pleased that our technology partners are collaborating to accelerate the realization of the next generation of advanced wireless solutions that will be multi-vendor interoperable.”

Ralink Technology Corporation

“The EWC brings together the best ideas from the 802.11n task group for implementation, and we are happy to participate” said Dr. Dennis Lo, senior vice president of Ralink Technology. ”This initiative will ultimately streamline the ratification process by building a wide industry consensus, and will broaden the WLAN market by bringing interoperable, high-speed products to the multimedia market. In the end, the consumer will win by having this tremendous technology available sooner in a wide array of wireless data, voice and video products.”

Realtek Semiconductor Corp.

“We are pleased with the establishment of the Enhanced Wireless Consortium and believe that this collaboration will speed the release of the 802.11n standard,” said Alex Chiu, president of Realtek Semiconductor. “This makes it possible for the WLAN industry to accelerate development of wireless technologies and speedily provide new-generation interoperable, high-performance, and wide-coverage wireless solutions that enable construction of the digital home and offer the convenience of digital living.”

Toshiba

“Toshiba wants to contribute to standardization of the next-generation wireless LAN, and EWC is clearly the best forum for doing so,” said Mutsuhiro Arinobu, director of Toshiba’s Corporate Research and Development Center. “The EWC initiative is bringing the industry to a consensus standard for WLAN that will boost speed and range and offer improved usability to consumers. It will provide a strong stimulus for growth and development in PC, AV and handheld applications markets.”

USRobotics

“USRobotics believes in the adoption of standards to ensure the highest level of vendor interoperability for our customers. By joining the EWC and supporting the specification within the IEEE, we hope to accelerate the availability of next generation wireless solutions to provide industry-leading performance, maximum coverage and just as importantly, multi-vendor interoperability,” said Joseph Hartnett, president and CEO of USRobotics.

WildPackets

“This vendor group represents a very strong presence in the wireless industry, from chips to analyzers, forming the necessary catalyst to bring cohesion to the 802.11n effort and accelerate wireless adoption. WildPackets has always been aggressive in supporting the manufacturing community in their development of interoperable hardware to support new standards through the visualization of the packets underlying these standards,” said Bill Northlich, vice president of technology and product management for WildPackets.

Winbond Electronics Corp.

“The next step in WLAN evolution is long overdue,” said Jonathan Wang, AVP of Network Access Products at Winbond. “The EWC brings new vigor to the standardization process. The interoperable baseline will enable creativity in WLAN technologies to serve the particular needs of the PC, CE and mobile products in a scalable fashion. As such, Winbond is eager to share its wireless networking expertise with this group interested in fostering a healthy diversity of solution providers that will benefit consumers.”

ZyDAS Technology Corporation

“The EWC will help to build an interoperable specification and accelerate the 802.11n standard building process. As an 802.11 a/b/g chipsets provider, ZyDAS will keep supporting the upcoming 802.11n standard and is glad to join this constructive and productive group,” said Wayne Hwang, president of ZyDAS.

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Wi-Fi® is a trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance. All other trademarks or trade names mentioned are the property of their respective owners.

Media Contacts for Additional Information:

Airoha – Giant Su (+886-3-6117509, GiantSu@airoha.com.tw)
Atheros – Susan Lansing (408-773-5216 , susan@atheros.com)
Azimuth – Jill Ryan (401-438-0614, jill.ryan@svmpr.com)
Broadcom – Henry Rael (949-926-5734, hrael@broadcom.com)
Buffalo – Kelly Reeves (949-509-1888, kelly@klrcommunications.com)
Cisco Systems – Chris McKie (408-525-6366, cmckie@cisco.com)
Conexant – Gwen Carlson (949-483-7363, gwen.carlson@conexant.com)
D-Link – Darek Connole (800-326-1688 Ext. 6223, DConnole@dlink.com)
Intel – Amy Martin (408-653-6622, amy.martin@intel.com)
Lenovo – Jeff Dudash (919-991-3445, jdudash@us.lenovo.com)
Linksys – Karen Sohl (949-823-1578, ksohl@cisco.com)
LitePoint – Paul Wcislo (408-456-5000 Ext. 242, paul.wcislo@litepoint.com)
Marvell – Diane Vanasse (408-242-0027, dvanasse@marvell.com)
Metalink – Mor Abraham (+972-9-9605406, amor@MetalinkBB.com)
NETGEAR – Doug Hagan (408-907-8053, doug.hagan@netgear.com)
Ralink – Lillian Chiu (408-725-8070, lchiu@ralinktech.com)
Realtek – Cynthia Tai (+886-3-578-0211 Ext. 5619, cynthiat@realtek.com.tw)
SANYO – Ryan Watson (+81-3-3837-6206, WATS016933@sanyo.co.jp)
Sony – Corporate Communications (+81-3-5448-2200)
Symbol Technologies – Ed Tan (408-528-2996, ed.tan@symbol.com)
Toshiba – Midori Suzuki (+81-3-3457-2105, midori.s uzuki@toshiba.co.jp)
US Robotics – Gena Mazzeo (847-874-2135, gena_mazzeo@usr.com)
WildPackets – Ronnie Holland (925-937-3200, ronnie@wildpackets.com)
Winbond – Renato D’Orfani (408-474-1605, rdorfani@winbond.com)
ZyDAS – Yuh-Ren Jauh (+886-3-5773309 Ext. 652 , yrjauh@zydas.com.tw)