Fujitsu's US chip division, Fujitsu Microelectronics America (FMA), will roll out a single-chip WiMAX product early next year, the company said today.

The chip, which incorporates both the 2-11GHz radio interface (PHY) and the data controller (MAC) onto a single piece of silicon, is set to appear at the "beginning of 2005", FMA said, with adoption set to "accelerate" through the "second half of 2005 and throughout 2006".

That broadly matches Intel's timetable for WiMAX adoption. FMA's announcement puts it head to head with the chip giant to offer the chips that will power both service providers' base-stations and the transceivers on end users' premises walls - and eventually within mobile devices like notebooks.

Intel has already signed up Proxim and Alcatel to develop WiMAX base-station and CPE (Customer Premises Equipment) kit. ®

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