1999

The gap between large and small independent tower companies became wider last week as a pair of transactions added nearly 2,500 towers to the portfolios of two of the larger …

CHICAGO-U.S. Cellular announced the national rollout of BillTracker, an electronic billing solution that provides multi-service line and multi-account business customers with immediate access to monthly billing information, and enables them …

More and more, I find myself agreeing with FCC Commissioner Harold Furchtgott-Roth. However, even as I write that, I’m not necessarily comfortable with the claim. It generally has been my …

BERKSHIRE, England-Vodafone Group plc and AirTouch Communications Inc. completed their merger. AirTouch’s stock stopped trading on the New York Stock Exchange at the end of the day June 29, and …

SAN FRANCISCO-The Wireless Application Protocol Forum has released the latest version of its mobile Internet standard-WAP version 1.1-at its members meeting. Enhancements to the new version include: local and international …

WASHINGTON-A major dispute has erupted between the wireless industry and the Clinton administration over the crafting of U.S. policy on third-generation wireless spectrum less than a year before the World …

WASHINGTON-Congress sent the White House a bill on Thursday designed to limit liability stemming from the onset of the millennium bug. President Clinton is expected to sign the measure. The …

Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corp. completed its reorganization into five businesses and began operating under its new corporate structure July 1. The company split into three companies under the control …

HELSINKI, Finland-Nokia Corp.’s Wireless Software Solutions division introduced the Nokia WAP Browser, a Wireless Application Protocol microbrowser designed for wireless handsets and personal digital assistants. The browser is featured in …

It stands to reason that if you know how to make mobile phones work, you can shut them down-say, like at gas stations or in airplanes, theaters and hospitals. That’s …

As the paging industry continues its transformation to narrowband personal communications services and engages in high-level consolidation, some have questioned the fate of the smaller, mom-and-pop paging carriers. In an …

CHICAGO-Southwestern Bell Mobile Systems Inc., operating under the Cellular One brand name, introduced two new services to the Chicago market-Digital Edge SharePaks and Money Manager. Digital Edge SharePaks lets up …

FRAMINGHAM, Mass.-A survey conducted by International Data Corp. found penetration of personal communications services phones is growing faster than penetration of either cellular phones or pagers. According to IDC’s “1999 …

MINNEAPOLIS-PCS.partners signed a contract with Samsung Telecommunications America Inc. to provide in-warranty repair and refurbishment services on Samsung’s Code Division Multiple Access digital mobile phones, said PCS.partners. With this agreement, …

SAN ANTONIO-ATX Technologies Inc. plans to acquire Protection One Mobile Services Group in a transaction valued at about $28 million. Both companies provide telematics services. Protection One Mobile currently is …

The Gartner Group’s Dataquest reports that Interim Standard-95 Code Division Multiple Access-based handsets are the top-selling handset in the U.S. market. As such, Qualcomm Inc., powered by a lead in …

ALEXANDRIA, Va.-“Which comes first, the chicken or the egg?” asked Alan Shark, president of the American Mobile Telecommunications Association, at the group’s annual leadership conference last week. In Shark’s reference, …

Primal Systems Inc., a provider of customer management products, introduced a new product to its suite of e-business solutions, called WebCare, last week at Billing ’99 in Dallas. Designed to …

INDIANAPOLIS-Brightpoint Inc. is restructuring plan to better position the company for long-term success by eliminating or restructuring non-performing business activities and improving the company’s cost structure. Brightpoint said it believes …

CINCINNATI-Convergys Corp. said it signed an outsourcing agreement with AT&T Wireless Services Inc. to extend the current contract for inbound customer care and related services to 2006. Convergys handles many …

WESTBOROUGH, Mass.-Arch Communications Group Inc. announced the Direct Selling Association has approved it as a supplier member. The association is made up of companies that make and sell various goods …

WHIPPANY, N.J.-Bell Labs researchers say they have developed a wireless location system that is accurate to within 15 feet when users are outdoors, and to 100 feet when they are …

REDMOND, Wash.-Metawave Communications Corp. closed a $91 million round of private equity financing, the largest private equity amount raised by an equipment manufacturer during first-quarter 1999, according to the MoneyTree …

Today’s satellite-based data and messaging carriers have found the secret to their success is partnering with those they once considered their primary competitors-terrestrial-based wireless data carriers. At first, satellite data …

WASHINGTON – Nextel Communications Inc. last week met stiff opposition to efforts to secure private wireless spectrum and approval for the transfer of 900 MHz dispatch licenses from bankrupt Geotek …