Weekend Question 1: Doesn’t Sprint’s WiMax Announcement Blow Holes in the “Net Neutrality” Arguments?

Answer: I would say so.

Here’s what they’re up to (from a Tuesday story at PCmag.com):

Sprint Nextel will build the first nationwide mobile WiMax network, giving 100 million Americans wireless Internet access four times faster than current high-speed networks by the end of 2008, Sprint CEO Gary Forsee said at a press conference today.

The “4G” (fourth-generation) network will launch by the end of 2007, Forsee said. Prices will be considerably less than current data charges, said Sprint CTO Barry West. Sprint right now charges $60/month for unlimited access to their EVDO network.

Sprint’s mobile WiMax system will be supported by “single and multi-mode devices” from Motorola, Motorola CEO Ed Zander said. Samsung will also provide dual-mode phones, and “Sprint is actively engaged with [consumer electronics] product leaders,” according to Forsee. Motorola, Samsung and Intel will all help build Sprint’s WiMax infrasutructure.

Consumers should expect to see a whole range of different kinds of devices on the network, including “new, small types of PCs,” said Intel executive vice president Sean Maloney, also present at the press conference.

….. Mobile WiMax, otherwise known as 802.11e, will boost real-world download speeds to 2-4 megabits/second, Forsee said.

“Much of this 4G usage will be user-generated content,” Forsee said. “Imagine accessing and building MySpace and YouTube literally on the fly.”

….. But the advantage of Mobile WiMax isn’t just that individual download speeds will rise. It’s that Sprint’s virtual “pipes” will be able to support more simultaneous users at less cost, West said, and that WiMax chips cost “around 1/10″ the price of those of competing technologies.

“I set the target for my team to generate a gig of data per customer per month for less than $20. With the Mobile WiMax technology, we are significantly south of that,” West said. That means Mobile WiMax will be price-competitive with cable and DSL, he said.

So it won’t be long until there are at least four high-speed Internet connectivity options: Cable, DSL, EVDO enhanced, and Mobile WiMax. If pricing for Mobile WiMax ends up being in the neighborhood of current DSL or cable, then the newly-pokey DSL and cable will have to lower their prices to roughly where dial-up is now to stay viable.

All this, and no mention of content restrictions, without net neutrality legislation. Imagine that.