Exploiting German technology, Airdata Wiman Systems Inc, Naples, Florida believes in Metropolitan Area Networks, but it doesn’t believe in digging up the roads. Its answer is the WIMAN, which stands for Wireless Metropolitan Area Network, which it is pitching at Internet service providers, saying it enables them to provide customers with secure high-speed, wireless Internet service at a fraction of the cost of leased ISDN lines. It uses 2.4GHz frequency-hopping spread spectrum technology, and was originally developed for the German military by the company’s founder and president, Ulrich Altvater. It incorporates point-to- point and point-to-multipoint applications in one synchronized network, eliminating the possibility of interference. It presently supports end-user data speeds of up to 128Kbps but will be extended soon to 2Mbps. Airdata will offer Internet providers exclusive territorial rights.
