Wavesat Gets $14.4 Million In VC Funding For 4G Silicon

Wavesat has targeted 4G silicon as its bailiwick, but what's particularly intriguing investors is its multiple broadband wireless technologies that promise to enable customers to migrate seamlessly from WiMax Wave 2 to Long Term Evolution as wireless markets mature.

The Canadian company announced this week that it has raised $14.4 million from a group of venture capital firms to help bolster its Odyssey brand chipset technology. Wavesat, which has been at the forefront of companies gaining product certification from the WiMax Forum, said the latest round's participants include BDR Capital, BDC Capital, and Multiple Capital.

Wavesat said also that it will demo its Odyssey multiprotocol architecture products at the upcoming Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. Handset maker Compal recently selected Wavesat's Odyssey for mobile WiMax USB dongles.

"We are impressed by the great strides the company has made since the introduction of the Odyssey chipset and how they are executing and adapting their 4G strategy in this challenging environment," said Jean Bedard, BDR Capital's managing partner, in a statement. BDR Capital led the latest round of Wavesat financing.

Bedard noted that Wavesat's 4G Odyssey chipsets have been chosen by Japanese wireless operator Willcom for use with its XG-PHS services and gear slated to be deployed in Japan. XG-PHS technology is an advanced OFDMA standard that promises to deliver advanced wireless broadband services and data speeds.

An ongoing debate in the wireless broadband world centers on whether WiMax or LTE will be the chief robust standard going forward. Wavesat and others have entered the debate by planning products that, for instance, will enable WiMax technologies to move seamlessly to LTE.