Sony-Ericsson backs WiMAX

Sony-Ericsson today announced that it had joined the WiMAX Forum, a group of companies committed to the still new wireless Internet standard. The move gives the cellphone maker inside access to the format and is likely to indicate the company's approval of the standard for its future devices. No hardware has been announced by but is likely to include notebook cards and smartphones that could take advantage of the extra speed. Today's entrance is primarily an attempt to "understand the technology and the opportunities" in the market before jumping in, Sony-Ericsson says.

WiMAX is frequently considered a 4G cellular Internet technology for its combination of speed and range: also known as 802.16e, the connection is said to offer multi-megabit connection rates similar to Wi-Fi but over areas that would previously required far slower access. The technology also avoids the data bottlenecks that often occur with 3G as more users access the network.

Sprint is schedled to officially launch WiMAX in the US in mid-2008.