Nearly 41 million people worldwide subscribed to Time Division Multiple Access-Enhanced Data for Global Evolution technology by the end of the first quarter, an increase of 87 percent from the previous year, according to the Universal Wireless Communications Consortium. UWCC said North American TDMA-EDGE subscribers increased by 98 percent, with Latin American subscribers growing 121 percent over the first quarter of 1999.
America Online Inc. launched its AOL Mobile service on Sprint PCS’ network, the result of an agreement formed between the two earlier this year. According to the agreement, AOL will have the third slot on the opening screen of Sprint’s Wireless Web site. AOL users will then have access to their e-mail, news, weather, stock quotes and other AOL content like Digital City and MovieFone.
Nextel Communications Inc. rejoined the Cellular Telecommunications Industry Association.
Nokia Corp. signed contracts with four branches of China Unicom to supply its Artus Messaging Platform and potential Wireless Application Protocol services and applications to mobile subscribers in China.
“These agreements further Nokia’s successful drive to bring WAP services to the booming Chinese market, after Nokia was the first vendor to demonstrate the use of WAP to browse the Internet in Chinese, in November,” said Malcolm Arnold, vice president of system business for Nokia Investment Co. Ltd. in China. Financial terms of the agreements were not released.
ATX Technologies Inc. said it will use IBM Corp.’s Direct Talk voice processing platform and ViaVoice speech recognition technology to deliver its telematics services. Drivers will be able to request and respond to information in a voice-driven, hands-free environment, ATX said.
Aquis Communications Group Inc. announced it has acquired the paging assets of Suburban Connect Inc., exchanging 319,518 shares of common stock in return for the company’s more than 18,000 paging units in service and infrastructure. Suburban Connect serves subscribers in the Philadelphia Metro/Southern New Jersey markets under the brand Suburban Paging.
