TechPulse 360

Despite financial woes, Clearwire plans to expand its wireless broadband network into six new cities in the U.S. this year on the way to reaching 120 million consumers by the end of 2010.

The company said Thursday it raised $3.2 billion of new financing to fund the expansion from companies including Google, Intel, Comcast and Time Warner Cable.

Company raises $3.2 billion from Intel, Google, Comcast and others

The wireless operator is in a race against cellular carriers who plan to use LTE technology to build advanced 4G networks to increase the speed and capacity of their wireless data services.

As it released fourth-quarter results, Clearwire said it will expand WiMAX into Las Vegas, Atlanta, Chicago, Philadelphia, Dallas and Fort Worth this year. Las Vegas and Atlanta will be ready by the summer.

It also expects to convert existing networks in Seattle, Honolulu and Charlotte, covering a total of 75 million people.

In 2010, the company will push into New York, Boston, Houston and the San Francisco Bay Area – expanding its coverage area to 120 million people in 80 markets.

WiMAX has received a lot of negative press, said Philip Solis, principal analyst at ABI Research. However, “Clearwire has capital and a nice amount of spectrum and will be moving forward at a decent pace over the next few years. Combine this with ever-cheaper WiMAX chipsets and newer ultra-mobile devices hitting the market, and you have a great potential for success.”

However, finances remain a challenge. The company recently said it needed to raise $2 billion during the next couple years, which its new financing will provide. But on Thursday it reported this year’s network expansion will cost $1.5 billion to $1.9 billion this year, a big chunk of the money.

It also posted a net loss of $118 million in the fourth quarter.

An estimated 100 million devices, including laptops, handhelds, modems and netbooks, are expected to be out-fitted for WiMAX by the end of the year.