1999

BOSTON – At the end of the year there will be 875 active wireless operators worldwide, growing to 937 by the end of next year, according to The Yankee Group’s report, “Cellular/PCS Competitive Licensing Assessment and Global Forecast.” This increase …

WASHINGTON-The long awaited decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit was released on Wednesday saying that communications-not bankruptcy-law is supreme and that a bankruptcy court could not interfere with how the Federal Communications Commission allocates licenses. …

ARLINGTON, Va. – the Telecommunications Industry Association and its subsidiary, the MultiMedia Telecommunications Association, announced the findings of its jointly produced report, “2000 MultiMedia Telecommunications Market Review and Forecast.” The wireless market, which grew 17.4 percent to $57.7 billion in …

ATHENS, Greece-The National Bank of Greece and Stet Hellas, a Greek mobile phone operator, launched a Global System for Mobile communications banking application that allows customers to access banking services via their mobile phones. Customers can view account information using …

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.-According to a report just released by Strategies Unlimited, a Silicon Valley market research firm, the worldwide market for Radio Frequency semiconductor devices in cellular telephones will grow from $3.9 billion in 1999, to $7.7 billion in 2004. …

WASHINGTON-Wireless telecommunications carriers that long ago declared they were year-2000 compliant should check again with manufacturers and vendors since some supposed-compliant items have since been found to have glitches, said the President’s Y2K czar. “When you think you are done, …

At the end of each year, the RCR editorial staff looks back on the news events that made RCR headlines and decides which were the most significant, industry-impacting stories of the past 12 months. Here are our picks for 1999 …

PARSIPPANY, N.J. – Driven primarily by Internet Protocol related wholesale volume, U.S. wholesale network services revenue will grow at an average annual growth rate of 24 percent to $116 billion by 2003, up from $39 billion in 1998, according to …

SAN DIEGO-Bell Mobility launched Qualcomm Inc.’s new QCP-2760 Thin Phone in the Canadian market, Qualcomm announced. The QCP-2760 Thin Phone is a dual-band, dual-mode handset that can operate in both 1.9 GHz Code Division Multiple Access digital personal communications services …

WASHINGTON-For the wireless industry in 2000, the outlook is LOOK OUT! Wireless and the Internet have found each other. The high-tech Big Bang is not over. Creative forces are still reshaping the digital universe, but patterns are emerging. At the …

SEATTLE-Xypoint Corp. introduced a feature that will allow consumers to control whether their location is tracked when they access Internet services from their wireless phone. Xypoint said it plans to build the privacy and security feature set into all of …

INDIANAPOLIS-Brightpoint Inc. said its North American subsidiary, Brightpoint North America Inc., entered into an agreement with Nextel Communications Inc. and certain of its affiliates to be the sole authorized distributor of Nextel-branded accessories to Nextel’s indirect channels in the United …

“I now felt for the first time absolutely certain that the day would come when mankind would be able to send messages `round the wires, not only across the Atlantic, but between the furthermost ends of the earth.” Guglielmo Marconi …

PALO ALTO, Calif.-Corsair Communications Inc.’s PhonePrint technology has prevented more than 300 million fraudulent cell phone calls worldwide, the company said. “Our PhonePrint fraud prevention system is on the job every day guarding wireless customers and network operators in the …

CURITIBA, Brazil-Lucent Technologies Inc. and Inepar S/A Industria e Construcoes, a Brazilian energy and systems manufacturer, announced they formed a joint venture to supply power equipment to Brazil’s telecommunications market. Headquarters for the joint venture will be in Curitiba, Brazil. …

NEWBURY, United Kingdom-Vodafone UK and Nortel Networks said they are planning a trial early next year in London of wideband Code Division Multiple Access third-generation wireless radio and Internet Protocol network technologies. “Through this trial with Nortel Networks, we hope …

ENGLEWOOD CLIFFS, N.J.-Integrated Systems Research said its new FleetTrack automatic vehicle location system is the first to offer users automatic switching from Cellular Digital Packet Data to analog cellular service. ISR said the functionality will cut operation costs by switching …

NEW YORK-Sweden’s L.M. Ericsson has majored on the infrastructure side of provisioning to wireless carriers within the United States while playing a comparatively minor role as a wireline network supplier. However, that soon could change if company executives succeed in …

RESTON, Va.-Ztango.com Inc. introduced software solutions that enable the delivery of Internet-based services to digital wireless phones and Wireless Application Protocol-based smart phones. Ztango.com’s software delivers custom information and news, e-mail, fax and other mobile office services. It supports Global …

WebLink Wireless Inc., formerly PageMart Wireless, announced several companies have joined its Enterprise Solutions Provider Program in the last week. The most recent addition is JP Systems Inc., which said it will integrate its InfoBeam Enterprise Server messaging technology with …

BALTIMORE-In what he hopes will be the first of many such appearances, Thomas Wheeler, president of the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association, last week told 800 civic leaders here that the marrying of the computer and wireless industries can happen anywhere, …

DUBLIN, Ireland-Esat Telecom’s board of directors said the offer made by Newtel AB in a hostile takeover bid is “derisory and fundamentally undervalues the group,” in a statement released last Tuesday. The board unanimously recommends that shareholders reject the offer …

The International Telecommunication Union announced network experts who met in Geneva earlier this month agreed on six sets of specifications for IMT-2000 networks. The ITU Telecommunication Standardization Sector, under the leadership of Study Group 11, is developing IMT-2000 network-related standards …

NEW YORK-Winstar Communications Inc., New York, will receive $900 million from its sale of a 13-percent stake to a group of investors, including Microsoft Corp., the fixed wireless access carrier announced Dec. 15. Others participating in the purchase include Credit …

LONDON-ICO Global Communications said the due diligence process of Eagle River Investments L.L.C.’s investment in the company has been extended, to be completed no later than by Jan. 18. Eagle River is Craig McCaw’s investment arm. McCaw leads a group …