For more coverage of Sprint and Clearwire’s WiMAX plans, see Telephony’s Xohm topic page

SAN FRANCISCO – A day before its ground-breaking deal with Clearwire is finalized, Xohm strategy vice president Rebecca Hanson was here at the Open Mobile Summit stumping for the new operator, insisting that the new Clearwire will be fundamentally different operator than its telco predecessors by offering—at least initially—unfettered and unlimited access to its wireless broadband network to any device and any service. It was a claim, however, that several in the audience were skeptical of, pressing Hanson to explain how any wireless network, no matter how spectrally efficient, could support the eventual capacity demands of millions of subscribers with no bandwidth or usage restrictions.

Sprint’s Xohm network uses WiMAX technology that is inherently more spectrally efficient than current 3G technologies, and the combined Xohm and Clearwire will have as much as 100 MHz of spectrum in many of their markets. But even though Clearwire has the capability of providing enormous amounts of capacity in its markets, achieving that potential would require enormous capital investments and operational costs. The question is whether Clearwire can justify those costs charging $25 to $55 a month to customers using the wireless network much like they would a DSL or cable modem at home.

“There may be a point where congestion on the network becomes an issue,” Hanson conceded, but she said Xohm and the new Clearwire will address that issue when and if it arises. By introducing bandwidth controls or data caps or limiting specific applications, Xohm would bring complexity and confusion to 3G wireless data models. “We don’t want to start off capping; we want to stay away from service tiers,” Hanson said. “We’re not requiring that of our customers out of the gate. It would undermine our commitment to simplicity and ease of use.”

On Thursday, the Clearwire board will vote on whether to approve the merger of Clearwire with Sprint’s WiMAX assets and operations—the final obstacle to the deal. The deal’s close will trigger a $3.2-billion investment from Google, Intel, Comcast, Time Warner and Bright House Networks, which the new Clearwire will use to start its nationwide network. Sprint has already launched a network in Baltimore under the Xohm brand, while Clearwire is running live WiMAX trials in Portland, Ore. The two companies, however, have already begun network construction in Chicago; Washington, D.C.; Las Vegas; Atlanta and Grand Rapids, Mich., all of which will be launched commercially between now and the end of the second quarter, the companies said, though there is now a question of whether the Grand Rapids network could be blocked by Sprint affiliate iPCS.