UWB standards groups merge

The WiMedia Alliance and the MultiBand OFDM Alliance Special Interest Group announced that the two groups have merged and will operate under the WiMedia Alliance banner. The merger “makes sense” because the two organizations have been “aggressively supporting the same technology, regulatory and marketing goals for a while now,” regarding the standardization and adoption of ultrawideband technology, said Glyn Roberts of STMicroelectronics and former president of the Wi-Media Alliance.In related news, Intel said an important technical specification for Wireless USB would be completed by the end of March. Wireless USB, which is expected to deliver the same ease of use and high speeds offered by USB 2.0, but without wires, will use UWB as the radio technology. The specification is being developed by the Wireless USB Promoter Group, of which Intel is a member.