Sprint and its WiMAX partners recently spoke to analysts and were bullish on the pace of their WiMAX network roll-outs for 2008. They failed to mention, however, if their test markets will be up and running on schedule later this year.I think the entire industry is waiting with baited breath to see what happens when Sprint and Clearwire together with Intel, Motorola, Nokia and Samsung, launch the first large-scale WiMAX networks. Will it work? Will it succeed? Will it be a failure? Will consumers care? Or will they greet it with a collective shrug of the shoulders? Inquiring minds want to know.

Sprint first announced its intent to use WiMAX for its next-generation wireless broadband network in August 2006. Since then, there have been semi-regular updates on what Sprint is doing to roll out the technology.

But here we are entering the last few months of 2007 and Sprint has yet to give any indication on how its test markets (D.C., Baltimore and Chicago, among others) are doing. Will they light up Chicago, where next week's WiMAX World event is taking place, first? It would make sense, and certainly give the entire conference a shot in the arm. Sprint seems to be mum on the subject.

Whenever its test markets to actually get off the ground, Sprint says approximately 100 million people will be covered by its "30ish" WiMAX networks by the end of next year.