Kissimmee Provides City-Wide Wireless Broadband Access with Motorola’s Mesh Networks

Motorola, Inc (NYSE: MOT) today announced that the City of Kissimmee, FL has deployed its HotZone Duo and Mesh Enabled Architecture (MEA®) networks for municipal wireless connectivity. The two-tier wireless system will be paid for by a partnership between the Kissimmee Utility Authority (KUA), the City of Kissimmee and the Toho Water Authority. In addition to providing public access, the network will also benefit Kissimmee’s government agencies, utilities workers and first responders. Scientel Wireless, a Motorola value-added reseller, provided the network design, project management and systems integration for the Kissimmee network.

“Kissimmee’s downtown area is rich in historical culture and is also located at the heart of a major tourist center. As the fourth fastest growing county in the nation, we sought to maintain that positive historical character as well as support Kissimmee’s escalating economic vitality,” said Maria Grulich, leader of the county’s economic development department. “Using Motorola’s technology, we can do both without upsetting the delicate balance between preserving the city’s past while progressing into the future.”

Located just south of Orlando, the networks provide coverage in the city’s downtown and lakefront areas and the Kissimmee Gateway Airport. Public access is enabled through Motorola’s HotZone Duo, a high-performance, meshed WiFi network, that provides flexibility and value for city-wide deployments. Connectivity to the Kissimmee WiFi network can be established with any standard wireless subscriber device using an 802.11b/g wireless card.

First responders and other government agencies use Motorola’s 2.4GHz MEA system, a single radio network, for seamless mobile broadband connectivity. The MEA network offers capabilities beyond WiFi such as broadband access at vehicular speeds, high reliability and ad hoc capabilities, all which are critical to meeting public safety needs. Additionally, the MEA system integrates several mesh-enabled wireless surveillance cameras, ideal for access to mission-critical information such as real-time video feeds in the field.

“Kissimmee’s network runs the whole gamut, providing undeniable benefits to users across all sectors of the municipality using one single network,” said Peggy Sousa, the city’s technology director. “Both Motorola’s HotZone Duo and MEA solutions provide exceptional coverage and flexibility, allowing us to easily expand the network in the future to other users as needs arise.”

HotZone Duo and MEA are part of the comprehensive MOTOMESH™ suite of wireless broadband networks by Motorola. The visionary network design of HotZone Duo enables a choice of either single radio (2.4GHz, 802.11b/g) or dual (2.4GHz, 802.11b/g and 5.8GHz, 802.11a) network configuration and its wireless backhaul technology, Canopy™, to best meet city-wide coverage needs. MEA technology originally developed for battlefield communications, works in the harshest environments, automatically creating a high-speed, self-forming and self-healing mobile broadband communications network necessary for enhanced and always-on public safety access. Motorola’s experience in deploying outdoor wireless networks along with the breadth of its mesh portfolio, make it the answer to all municipal wireless needs. “Kissimmee is included in a growing number of forward-thinking municipalities trying to cater to a new, demanding population of mobile users that insist on having wireless connectivity as a basic utility,” said Mark Moon, senior vice president, government and commercial markets, Motorola Networks & Enterprise. “Motorola is excited to help bring Kissimmee to this next level of wireless connectivity, by providing the networks that meet the needs of all their constituents.”
HotZone Duo and MEA are available in most global markets and are part of Motorola’s MOTOwi4™ portfolio of wireless broadband solutions and services that creates, complements and completes IP networks. Delivering IP coverage to virtually all spaces, MOTOwi4 includes wi4 Fixed Broadband, wi4 Mesh, wi4 BPL, and wi4 WiMAX solutions for private and public networks. Further information about the HotZone Duo solution can be found at: www.motorola.com/mesh.