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KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Sprint Nextel Corp., the nation's third-largest cellular provider, said Tuesday it will use an emerging technology called WiMax to build a new high-speed wireless network.

The company said the new network, expected to launch in some markets by late 2007, will provide customers with wireless Internet speeds on par with DSL and cable TV modems and four times faster than speeds available on current wireless networks.

Gary Forsee, Sprint's chief executive, said during a teleconference that Intel Corp. will be supplying equipment to build the network while Motorola Inc. and Samsung Telecommunications America will develop WiMax-compatible phones and mobile devices.

Sprint expects to spend about $1 billion on the initiative in 2007, and between $1.5 billion and $2 billion in 2008. Forsee didn't specify to what extent the other companies might help offset Sprint's costs, saying those details will come later this year when Sprint provides financial guidance for 2007.

The new WiMax network would provide download speeds of between 2 megabits per second and 4 mbps. That's in the same range as today's typical broadband offerings over phone and cable wires, but considerably slower than the speeds those providers are starting to offer as they upgrade their networks.


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