FIRST BALKAN CITY TO HOST HIGH-SPEED WIRELESS NETWORKING FOR DELIVERY OF METROPOLITAN VOIP AND INTERNET ACCESS

Founded around the 3rd century BC and one of Europe’s oldest cities, the Serbian capital of Belgrade is home to 1.5 million people and covers an urban area of some 360 km².
Renowned for its contribution to science and the arts, this progressive city has taken another monumental step in its development by being host to the country’s first etropolitan Mesh-based WiFi wireless network. Pioneered by local ISP and Motorola partner, ZoviMe (meaning Call Me in English), the network offers broadband speed Internet access and VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) and is expected to attract in excess of 60,000 users by the end of 2009.

The company has earmarked €2 million for the development of the network which will provide a much-needed platform to enhance local business and bolster the delivery of public services.
Currently, around 100 4300 series mesh access points are installed around the city centre with an additional 600 to be deployed to accommodate the predicted growth in the user base. The aim was to build a reliable, cost-effective wireless network that could host bandwidth-intensive applications such as web browsing, email and telephony using VoIP. It would also need the scalability to host future applications such as video surveillance and other public and private services. 

“I’M VERY CONFIDENT THAT THE NETWORK WILL ACHIEVE ITS GOAL OF PROVIDING RELIABLE, HIGH-SPEED BROADBAND ACCESS ACROSS THE BELGRADE CITY CENTRE – EARLY INDICATIONS ALREADY SHOW A SIGNIFICANT USER BASE SO WE’RE ALREADY ON TARGET TO EXPAND. THIS IS TRULY AMAZING TECHNOLOGY THAT IS OPENING UP OUR COUNTRY TO THE WORLD.”

Zoran Markovic, CEO at Zovime

An initial problem was the availability of suitable sites for installing hardware, which requires a reasonable height to ensure good coverage. Belgrade has strict laws governing the protection of historical buildings, so Zovime had to negotiate with utility companies to obtain permission to deploy equipment on lamp posts and other high-rise infrastructure.

UBIQUITOUS CONNECTIVITY AND HIGH-SPEED PERFORMANCE GUARANTEED

Motorola’s Mesh Wide Area Network (MWAN) standards-based technology was chosen after tests showed its ability to deliver high-speed communication with the flexibility to meet network performance and capacity. Motorola’s incountry support and 24-hour global technical help desk were other significant factors in the decision-making.

SOLUTION FEATURES
  • Flexible Design
  • High-performance Routing
  • Quality of Service
  • Minimising Total Cost of Ownership
 
PRODUCTS & SERVICES
  • Motorola Mesh Wide Area Network
  • AP 4300
  • Element Management System (EMS)
  • One Point Wireless Manager