America's Network reports that sources say Ensemble has closed its doors: Ensemble has long been active in the fixed broadband wireless space. One analyst in this story suggests that the development of the 802.16 standard challenges companies that have proprietary or legacy fixed wireless gear. However, Ensemble built LMDS equipment and the LMDS spectrum has largely been used to deliver high-speed Internet access to businesses, usually in a downtown area. That's a slightly different market than WiMax will likely serve. Also, WiMax gear isn't out there yet so it's hard to say that competition from WiMax put the squeeze on Ensemble.
It's tough to make the argument that WiMax will challenge vendors that have proprietary gear because many of the vendors pursuing WiMax had proprietary solutions. But they've chosen to evolve in an effort to meet the requirements of 802.16. It's not a great business plan to decide to continue down the path of proprietary gear when a new widely supported standard is being developed that will compete with your solution.
It's unfortunate to see Ensemble go down, although it seems that some executives jumped ship a while back so perhaps they had a clue that something was amiss. In the LMDS heyday, Ensemble was considered a leader in the industry and one focused on innovative technology.