Mobile firms wary of WiMAX investment

The investment in WiMAX would be similar in amount to the 3G technology, he added.

Despite the unfavorable factors mentioned above, Shih and Wang said their companies would bid for a WiMAX license next year.

Far EasTone Telecommunications Co (遠傳電信), the nation's second-largest mobile carrier, and First International Telecom Corp (大眾電信), the sole low-power system (PHS) service provider, also said they were interested in joining the bidding for a WiMAX license to enhance their competitiveness.

Chunghwa Telecom said it would not build WiMAX base stations for full coverage, but instead would focus only on populous urban areas as a complement to its existing 3G services.