UWB Group Gets Support In Standards Battle

One of the two groups in the standards battle over ultra-wideband wireless (UWB) technology said Monday that it will work with an independent industry group to have its version of UWB adopted as a worldwide standard.

The WiMedia Alliance said it will work with Ecma International to push its UWB standard toward worldwide acceptance. The alliance is one of two groups vying to have its version of UWB adopted by the IEEE as the single standard for that short-range wireless technology.

Members of the group include Microsoft, Nokia, Intel, HP, Sony, Samsung and Texas Instruments. It also has been working with the Bluetooth Special Interest Group to blend those two technologies. That proposal has been competing with one championed by Motorola and Freescale Semiconductor and most observers believe the standards logjam won't be broken through normal standard-setting processes.

Ecma International is a non-profit technology industry group that works with other groups to submit standards proposals to a variety of worldwide standards bodies such as ISO and ETSI.

"We are very pleased to be working with Ecma, who make it possible to quickly complete the process of establishing a recognized international standard by the end of this year, which corresponds to UWB product launches," Stephen R. Wood, president of the WiMedia Alliance, said in a statement. "We're extremely encouraged by the efficiency and maturity of the Ecma standard process, which balances quality with timeliness in standards drafting and publication."