Advanced Radio Telecom (ART) is rolling out its second-generation broadband wireless network that will eventually link cities around the U.S. and overseas.

The Bellevue, Wash. wireless service provider yesterday announced that it would build metropolitan area networks in 10 cities by year-end that will allow business users to set up virtual private networks or connect to the Internet at up to 100M bit/sec over its 38GHz wireless networks. ART already has one network up and running in San Jose and plans on having metropolitan area networks online in Los Angeles, Houston, Seattle and Washington, D.C., early in the second quarter. By year-end ART plans on having networks up and running in Boston, Dallas, New York, Orange County, Calif., Phoenix and San Diego. Instead of deploying fiber optic facilities, ART deploys wireless access devices at a customer_s site that transmit data to ART_s metropolitan area network. This eliminates the high cost associated with deploying fiber-optic networks. On average it costs about $1 million to deploy new fiber-optic cable to an office building, compared to about $70,000 to connect the same office building to ART_s network using wireless technology. ART will be connecting all of its metropolitan networks over Qwest_s nationwide backbone based on a relationship the two companies forged last year. This is the first time that ART is offering its customers end-to-end network support. ART plans on taking its second-generation broadband wireless deployment overseas as well. But ART hasn_t announced when it will start building the wireless networks. The wireless service provides wireless licenses in the 26GHz and 38GHz spectrum in the U.K. and throughout Scandinavia.