NTT East has brand named the service biportable (broadband Internet protocol platform with optical and radio technical ability).

The trial will involve 46 companies, with the majority being content providers and the remainder providing sites where mobile terminals can be placed. In addition, 20 households in the city will participant in the trial, the company said.

Participants will access the biportable services via mobile terminals such as laptop computers equipped with adapter cards or PDAs connecting to NTT East’s optical fiber IP network. They will be able to take advantage of a host of services, including the ability to download multimedia images via wireless devices at transport rates up to 36 mbps.

The biportable service uses NTT’s advanced wireless access (AWA) technology, the world’s fastest high-speed wireless technology, said Tadao Kobayashi, NTT EAST’s executive in charge of the trial project. One wireless base station with the AWA technology can connect up to 122 wireless users simultaneously, the company said.

Once the service trial is complete, the company will assess its business viability to determine future expansion.