Sprint Nextel, which expects to serve high-speed wireless broadband to 100 million people by the end of next year, said it will be unveiling the service first in Chicago and Washington, D.C.

Consumers in the two cities will be able to purchase access to Sprint's new network, which uses WiMax, by the end of the year, Forbes reported.

Kirkland-based Clearwire has rolled out pre-WiMax networks in about 34 markets. Its largest is the Seattle area, and is not currently in Chicago or Washington, D.C. Its first true WiMax market will likely be in Grand Rapids, Mich. It will also sent up a network in Portland, where it will likely be open only to Intel employees for testing.

Currently, Clearwire's competition is considered DSL and cable providers. I wonder what will happen when Sprint and Clearwire are providing service in the same market?

In that scenario, a consumer's options could includue two WiMax providers, DSL and cable, and all of the wireless carriers providing high-speed access.

I guess we'll start to see by the end of the year.