1999

WASHINGTON-Two telecommunications mega-mergers hit snags last week as the Federal Communications Commission said it had serious concerns about the SBC/Ameritech combination and the Virginia State Corporation Commission disapproved of the …

WASHINGTON-The wireless industry gained almost 14 million new subscribers by the end of 1998-a growth rate of nearly 25 percent in one year, said the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association last …

VIENNA, Va.-Teligent Inc. announced it now is offering its high-bandwidth, local, long distance, high-speed data and Internet services to small- and mid-size businesses in San Diego and Sacramento, Calif. Teligent’s …

HAUPPAUGE, N.Y.-Toshiba Corp. purchased newly issued shares of Audiovox Communications Corp. common stock for $5 million, giving Toshiba 5 percent of the shares outstanding, said ACC’s parent company, Audiovox Corp. …

In a surprising move, TSR Wireless L.L.C. announced April 1 it submitted a competing bid to acquire MobileMedia Communications Inc., challenging Arch Communications Group Inc.’s effort to do the same. …

WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission said it expects paging carriers to periodically review information in the Universal Licensing System to ensure it is correct. However, paging carriers are not required to …

Unwired Planet Inc. last week filed a registration with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for an initial public offering of common stock in June, and also announced the first …

GREENSBORO, N.C.-Vanguard Cellular Systems Inc. reported revenues for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31 of $102.3 million compared with revenues of $98.7 million for the same time the previous year. …

My mom is flying into Denver today to see her 3-year-old granddaughter, (and the rest of us, too, I suppose.) Luckily, there is a direct flight from the small North …

DALLAS-Paging Network Inc. announced an exclusive agreement under which C-SPAN will provide public affairs information to PageNet subscribers, including breaking coverage of House of Representatives and U.S. Senate votes. PageNet …

NEW YORK-The European Telecommunications Standard Institute’s approval and publication of a new Europe-wide narrowband specification has given the licensing of Intek Global Corp.’s proprietary linear modulation technology a major boost, …

GERMANTOWN, Md.-Hughes Network Systems announced Hughes Ispat Ltd. of India completed an in-service cutover of its wireless local loop network from an NEC NEAX61E switch to an NEC NEAX61 Sigma …

SAN RAMON, Calif.-U.S. Wireless Corp. said it has completed the pilot rollout of its RadioCamera wireless location system in Baltimore. The system is installed in active base stations throughout the …

LOS ANGELES-Technocel unveiled several new programs designed to enhance accessory sales for carriers nationwide. Nokia Mobile Phones and Technocel reached an agreement appointing Technocel an authorized distributor of Nokia-branded wireless …

DULLES, Va.-TracSat, a business unit of Orbcomm Global L.P., announced it launched full commercial service providing end-to-end asset tracking and monitoring solutions to the heavy equipment industry worldwide. “When you …

SAN JOSE, Calif.-VLSI Technology Inc. last week rejected Royal Philips Electronics’ hostile takeover bid to acquire all of the outstanding common shares of the company for $17 per share. VLSI’s …

WASHINGTON, D.C.-The Wireless Data Forum announced six new members joined the organization. Aether Technologies International L.L.C., Global Wireless Data L.L.C., ICE Wireless Group L.L.C., TeleCommunications Systems Inc., NotiCom L.L.C. and …

NEW YORK-World Access Inc. announced March 22 it completed the sale of its manufacturing operations in Alpharetta, Ga., to U.S. Assemblies in Georgia Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of The …

PARIS-With the expiration of the 15-day waiting period required under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act, Alcatel announced it will proceed with its acquisition of Xylan Corp. As previously announced, Alcatel …

NEW YORK-Because of strong demand for its debt, AT&T Corp. increased to a record-setting $8 billion the size of its global bond offering before selling the issue March 23. The …

WASHINGTON-New truth-in-billing rules under consideration at the Federal Communications Commission could be devastating to wireless carriers, which see the mandate as another instance of wireline regulation being imposed on the …

The Finnish government moved swiftly to award four third-generation mobile phone licenses. All four companies plan to use the European Telecommunications Standards Institute’s chosen 3G standard, the Universal Mobile Telecommunications …

TAMPA, Fla.-GTE Telecommunication Services Inc. announced the commercial availability of financial net settlement services for wireless carriers engaged in roaming agreements. Through its Access clearinghouse, GTE TSI now can handle …

WASHINGTON-The wireless industry scored big legal victories on the health front last week as the Supreme Court put strict limits on the admissibility of expert testimony in product liability cases …

WASHINGTON-Despite China’s making new promises to open its telecom market to competition and foreign investment, the Clinton administration is avoiding making any commitments to endorse Chinese entry into the World …