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The $5 billion price tag to bring Xohm, Sprint's WiMax offering, to fruition may be just a little too rich as the wireless carrier looks at options for the business.

The best news about Sprint offering WiMax suggests that the project will launch. Recently a Sprint executive told a conference audience the service would come and tear down the walls to high speed wireless access.

How Xohm will be structured to do so from a corporate viewpoint could change. Sprint's current search for a new CEO, coupled with a rough third quarter that saw subscribers and net income plunge, may require Xohm to zoom out of Sprint.

The Wall Street Journal said Xohm could be spun out as a separate unit. Clearwire, a wireless startup shepherded by Craig McCaw, has been mentioned as a possible partner for Xohm.

The promise of WiMax for Internet users, particularly those in rural areas, makes it a compelling technology. It has a far greater range than WiFi, and offers practical connections of 2 to 10 Mbits/s.

Google has been associated with Sprint for the Xohm project by taking a role in building a portal for Xohm users. It has been reported that the work between Google and Sprint could extend to Google's mobile software appearing on phones offered by Sprint for its subscribers.