Sprint's mobile WiMAX service called XOHM?

We have information from an anonymous tipster claiming that Sprint is set to take the wraps of their new WiMAX brand dubbed XOHM. It's anybody's guess at this point how you'd pronounce that ("x-ohm" or "zohm" perhaps) but we're told to expect a formal announcement as early as Thursday. The timing is certainly legit what with plans to have the 4G service up and running in select cities "by year-end 2007." We'd expect any new branding to encompass the combined efforts of those Clearwire and Google deals though our source ain't sayin'. Perhaps XOHM was the delayed little secret behind Sprint's "wireless evolution" teaser site which was pulled without explanation before its July 4th pop date. Who knows, but anything that moves us closer to a WiMax-enabled N800 and that "ultra thin" WiMax smartphone from Palm is fine by us.

Update: Bonus: xohm.com, while rendering a blank page, points to 67.192.32.138, which also resolves server1.sprintnextelbrandsite.com. So put that in your pipe and smoke it.

[meeka @ Aug 15th 2007 2:46AM]

XOHM - X="No" OHM="Resistence"
"No Resistence"

[roulette843 @ Aug 16th 2007 9:28PM]

Ok look, let's just hope the public doesn't adapt to this brand name like they did to the 'Wii'.

Nintendo has so much more street cred than Sprint, 'XOHM' is seriously an accident waiting to happen.

[Jonathan Dusing @ Aug 15th 2007 3:02AM]

Well thanks for adding to my domain name purchases for the night :-)

[MegaZone @ Aug 15th 2007 4:06AM]

Nicely done.

[Dan @ Aug 16th 2007 1:41AM]

Sprint already has www.xohm.com up and running.

[Logik @ Aug 15th 2007 3:03AM]

Nice! Too bad I moved out of a [select] city years ago.

[Dheon @ Aug 15th 2007 3:32AM]

Is it high speed connection tech? hope i can enjoy this techno soon. mmm looks very cool.

dion

[MegaZone @ Aug 15th 2007 4:05AM]

I'm guessing 'Zoom' is how they're going to try to get people to pronounce it.

[xc7x @ Aug 15th 2007 6:22AM]

That logo looks mighty familiar,hmmm

[BigD @ Aug 15th 2007 6:23AM]

ZOMG!!!! It's XOHM!!!!!!!!!

[johnzilla @ Aug 15th 2007 7:25AM]

Who is "Caroline Ventures"? They own the trademark.

[Rick @ Aug 15th 2007 7:57AM]

Is it me or does that picture look photoshopped?

[devils advocate @ Aug 17th 2007 12:58PM]

it's you. this is the drape that's at their demo station in Sprint's Technology Summit.

[Jared @ Aug 15th 2007 9:02AM]

Man, I hope it has nothing to do with Clearwire. They just started driving a Clearwire van around our city so I checked them out because I'm always looking for a TimeWarner alternative. Anyway it looked interested, but 3 min of Googling turned up a mountain of complaints. Another 20 min of Googling couldn't turn up a single positive comment.

[HJMtm @ Aug 15th 2007 9:03AM]

There's no way that a compnay as big as Sprint didn't already have the domain months before now.

[gian @ Aug 15th 2007 9:20AM]

This service is going to tank. I cannot foresee WiMax taking off. There are a myriad of technical hurdles inherent in the protocol and the competing 3G and 4G technologies are going to crush it.

[HJMtm @ Aug 15th 2007 9:25AM]

Dude, what do think 4G is? 4G is WiMAX!! Wireless broadband...

[gian @ Aug 15th 2007 9:43AM]

Dude, 4G and WiMax are not synonymous. There are other 4G technologies being developed besides WiMax.

[Bob @ Aug 15th 2007 9:41AM]

It's either WiMAX or a mythical dragon http://www.stuffoflegend.com/Ambar/07Religions/2GodsofAmbar/EarthMother/xohm?single=1

[oshean @ Aug 15th 2007 10:25AM]

E.T. xohm home.

[rcappo @ Aug 15th 2007 11:15AM]

Can we have some non-profit driven company deploy WiMax? Maybe a co-op of neighbors, public libraries, public schools, Google (they make money in other ways) hell even the local public utility company would be better than the telephone company or cable company (they are all the same, Sprint, Verizon, Time Warner...). They will probably charge you $60+/month for this, when it would cost about $10/month if you took out the profit. Even a basic connection that would be enough for 50% of the people could even be less $ than that.

In an ideal world, accessing the internet would be free and their would be no gatekeepers collecting money to hook you in. Yes, new equipment and setting it up costs money, but if there aren't any stockholders to please, the cost of the service can be much less. The Internet would be even more widespread if there wasn't a cost barrier to entry, and that is the way it should be.

[Jon @ Aug 15th 2007 6:18PM]

WiMax can't be free. The backbone network to support it is/will cost billions. Oh, and the cities deploying wireless networks are using Wi-Mesh, a different technology.
The mobile version of WiMax requires multiple antennas, kinda like a cell phone network, hence the reasons that phone companies are doing it, they can add on to their existing antennas.
As for worries about backhaul, well Sprint is the only company with a nation wide fiber backbone. Unlike the other carriers that have to lease lines, Sprint has its own.
We all heard how Google got the gov't to auction off the UHF spectrum, but Google hasn't bought it yet, they can't. They can't afford to build a network to support it. Also the UHF is 30-300Mhz, nice penetration, but lousy for multiple high data rates. Come-on your phones are working at 1.9Ghz and they can't handle the data levels, what good is 300Mhz going to do you?

[Rboyett @ Aug 15th 2007 11:36AM]

I hope they offer this in my area. I would love to dump Charter. What a POS ISP they've become.

[Jeff Lewis @ Aug 15th 2007 2:33PM]

Is this WiMAX or Mobile WiMAX? Canada has had a national WiMAX network for a few years now - but you can't use it while moving because the stock WiMAX standard can't be used while moving at any real speed.

South Korea's WiBro is Mobile WiMAX... and if that's what XOHM is, this could be big.

[wirelessjohn22 @ Aug 15th 2007 3:40PM]

Why not just call it Sprint WiMAX - or WiMAX - XOHM.. weird

[2084 @ Aug 15th 2007 5:00PM]

1. It is pronounced "zhome" which sounds like "zome" to me.
2. The tag line is even worse. "Xohm: It's what you make it." I think Xohm is actually Sanscrit for "No customers yet."
3. The logo is not Photoshopped. They have handed out "tech polos" with this logo.
4. In spite of what Sprint says, WiMAX and 4G are not equivalent.
5. I doubt WiMAX will be crushed by other 3G or 4G alternatives. It would simply be another option available. What will crush any high speed wireless service is a lack of customers or a lack of backhaul bandwidth.
6. Anyone who believes that Google, a utility company, or a non-profit would somehow be more altruistic than a telco is living in a dream world. Here's a little secret: the first two are profit driven and being a non-profit does not mean you don't make money.
7. Anyone who believes that there is a huge profit in running a wireless network (or any other network for that matter) doesn't know what it takes to deploy and maintain a service with any kind of availability or generally has no idea what they are talking about (probably a mixture of both). Why do you think there was such consolidation in the sector? They need the volume to make decent money. Are there inefficiencies in Telco comanies that increase the cost of a service? Sure. However, they make up for a lot of that with their economies of scale that they leverage in just about every part of their business (equipment, software, services, etc).

[Blake @ Aug 16th 2007 12:40AM]

The xohm.com website is no longer blank.

[zuckerwar @ Aug 16th 2007 8:59AM]

"They will probably charge you $60+/month for this, when it would cost about $10/month if you took out the profit."
Yes, you will probably pay $40 - $60 per month for a wimax account. But you can cancel your cellphone account, internet service provider account, landline telephone account, cable TV account and/or satellite TV account. Wimax phones will work with services such as Skype. Television channels will be delivered via wimax on a subscription basis. Everything will be delivered wirelessly. No wonder the cable companies are pursuing options such as BPL and wireless licenses. Let the revolution begin!

[Greg K @ Aug 16th 2007 6:07PM]

They should provide U.S. Nationwide Free Wi-Fi at least until 2050, for the $200 BILLION+ they've ripped off already!
http://www.newnetworks.com/ShortSCANDALSummary.htm

Other options...
1. Reimburse the taxpayers every penny?
2. String up all the past/present Telco CEO's involved by their outdated copper wire?

#2 is much more realistic! :)

[JFat @ Sep 20th 2007 11:26PM]

just heard from my sprint rep; its pronounced "zohm"

[Drew @ Sep 28th 2007 7:16PM]

xOhm? sounds a whole lot like XMAX from xG
Seriously this is the only way Sprint-Nextel could roll these services out this fast, and it does sound like they are abandoning their current infrastructure path.
http://www.xGtechnology.com