Sprint says WiMax on track for end of April

By Sinead Carew

LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Sprint Nextel is on track to launch commercial services for its next-generation WiMax high-speed wireless network at the end of April, Chief Technology Officer Barry West said on Tuesday.

Speaking on a WiMax panel at the Consumer Electronics Show, West said Sprint would sell the service at reasonable rates with options including per day, week or month, as well as longer term contracts.

But unlike typical phone services, Sprint does not plan to subsidize WiMax devices for customers.

"People will be excited about our rates. They won't be ecstatic about them because we're not going to give it away," said West. WiMax service fees could also be included in the purchase price of devices, such as WiMax-enabled cameras.

Asked about the risks of introducing services based on a commercially untested technology during an economic downturn, West said he was not concerned and had not seen any signs of a pullback in electronics spending so far.

"I really don't see it," West said in an interview with Reuters. "The fourth quarter for the consumer electronics industry ... was different, but it wasn't bad."

Sprint hopes WiMax will help the No. 3 U.S. mobile service stand out from the competitors it has been losing ground to, including AT&T Inc and Verizon Wireless, owned by Verizon Communications Inc and Vodafone Group Plc.

West said he is talking to operators developing WiMax services around the world to set up roaming agreements that make it easier for customers to use their devices abroad.