The Vodafone Group doesn’t want to miss out on the next big wireless technology, no matter what it is.

The mobile phone operator, one of the world’s largest, announced on Thursday its decision join the WiMax Forum, which is busy working on standards and specifications for a new generation of ultra-fast broadband wireless communication services.

WiMax technology, in particular the new mobile variant currently under development, is viewed as a wireless Internet alternative to the cellular-based LTE (Long Term Evolution) technology supported by numerous mobile phone operators – including Vodafone.

“We are technology neutral,” said Vodafone spokesman Mark Street. “We’re interested in both WiMax and LTE. Our decision to join the forum is about being in a position to take advantage of future technology opportunities.”

As a forum member, Vodafone hopes “to play a role in shaping end-to-end specifications,” Mr Street said.

At the 3GSM World Congress earlier this year, Vodafone CEO Arun Sarin raised a few eyebrows when he told an auditorium full of mobile phone executives that the GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications) community is moving too slowly on defining an LTE standard and that the industry needs to move faster before others eat its lunch. He urged mobile phone operators to prepare for an eventual paradigm shift.

Vodafone participated in a recent LTE test, and in June, it deployed its first WiMax network in Malta.

In addition to the WiMax deployment in Malta, Vodafone is observing how partners in France and Bahrain are testing the technology, he said.