2001

WASHINGTON-The five largest bidders in the Federal Communications Commission’s recent re-auction of PCS licenses sent a letter last week urging the agency to make a deal with bankrupt NextWave Telecom Inc. that would have NextWave relinquishing its licenses for a …

SUNNYVALE, Calif.-The troubles of Adaptive Broadband Corp. came to an expected conclusion when the company announced it filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in San Jose, Calif. Adaptive said it planned to pursue an “orderly …

In another twist in the cellular phone legal health battle, a complaint has been filed jointly by four families in the St. Joseph Circuit Court for the State of Indiana alleging that their proximity to cellular towers, owned by defendants …

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NEW YORK-The mission of Pure Matrix Inc., a Boulder, Colo., start-up, is to make mass customization of mobile data nice and easy so customers will use it more and place greater value on its delivery and the carriers that transmit …

CLEVELAND-Sprint PCS is joining the movement to market wireless technologies to young adults with its new Cube, an easy-to-manage prepaid wireless phone. The phone, marketed to people between the ages of 14 and 24, offers voice, e-mail, Internet access and …

A billing discrepancy is to blame for a disastrous subscriber and revenue miscalculation that could potentially force Arch Wireless Inc., the nation’s largest paging and messaging company, into bankruptcy. Arch announced last week it is retracting its last-ditch-effort plan to …

Nortel Networks Corp., L.M. Ericsson and Siemens AG may be the major vendors to improve their harvests from the new balance of power that the third generation of technologies will generate in the European GSM infrastructure space, according to a …

DENVER-Instant messaging company Jabber Inc. and Antepo Inc., a mobile messaging provider, announced a partnership to bundle Antepo’s short message service and WAP gateway components with Jabber’s platform.

LONDON-Alcatel said it plans to cut 20,000 more jobs as it announced a second-quarter loss of $2.8 billion. “In uncertain markets, Alcatel’s success will hinge on operating flexibility. … Considerable streamlining is under way at Alcatel to improve flexibility and …

NEW YORK-Florida has codified into its own law a sweeping overhaul and simplification of telecommunications taxation that responds, in part, to a new federal statute that becomes effective next year. This month, the Florida Department of Revenue began accepting registration …

NEW YORK-Qwest Capital Funding Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Denver-based Qwest Communications International Inc., was pleasantly surprised last week to find it had investors willing to purchase nearly $12 billion of its debt securities. The company, which had planned …

The offer last week by a handful of wireless carriers to pay off NextWave Telecom Inc.’s debts in exchange for the company’s disputed wireless spectrum reminds me of some negotiations I have watched my four-year-old daughter try to make with …

Analysts wonder whether Motorola Inc. can reconcile its handset and semiconductor businesses in light of its announcement to sell its semiconductor technology to other manufacturers, including its rivals. “That’s where the confusion comes in,” noted Jane Zweig, chief executive officer …

Republic of Georgia Magticom said it has completed its first GPRS call within its wireless network in the Republic of Georgia with Motorola’s end-to-end solution. Motorola said it hopes to launch the services commercially to Magticom’s 140,000 mobile subscribers in …

Editor’s Note: As Leap Wireless International Inc. prepares to launch its Cricket wireless service in RCR Wireless News’ home market in Denver, we thought we would use the opportunity to take a closer look at what’s involved in launching service …

WASHINGTON-Congress’ interest in third-generation wireless and its potential impact on the military became more evident last week as congressional auditors warned a key senator against a hasty decision to move the military off of the 1700 MHz band and the …

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.-No. 2 personal digital assistant maker Handspring Inc. reported fourth quarter earnings in line with company expectations but severely impacted by the slow economy, inventory problems and pricing wars. Handspring also announced it would cut 9 percent of …

“Yo, Dog, two-way me.” It’s quickly becoming the hip new thing in hip-hop, and it’s also quickly becoming a major market segment in two-way messaging sales for WebLink Wireless Inc. Eighteen-to-24 year-old black men-what WebLink calls the “urban” crowd-make up …

The Personal Communications Industry Association announced ten new companies plan to join its Global Initiative program for help in assessing and managing m-convergence opportunities. The program provides marketing, regulatory and technical business tools through various products and services, PCIA said. …

WASHINGTON-Lawyers representing scores of brain-cancer patients are considering filing a nationwide class-action lawsuit against the mobile-phone industry and a public-interest lawsuit against several federal agencies later this year, a potentially monumental and unprecedented legal move that could prove devastating to …

SAN MATEO, Calif.-Wireless software companies AvantGo Inc. and Handango announced a partnership to sell a range of applications over the wired Internet. Thousands of handheld applications are available on the Web site, ranging from productivity to entertainment to travel software.

WASHINGTON, D.C.-The Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association announced the keynote speakers for the opening day of its Wireless I.T. & Internet 2001 show, to take place in San Diego in September. Jacob Christfort, Oracle’s chief technology officer and vice president …

Even with more than 100 million customers across numerous carriers and a handful of technology choices, wireless subscribers in the United States hold and complete a conversation of acceptable audio quality more than 95 percent of the time, according to …

WASHINGTON-Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld last week told lawmakers no decision has been reached on future military spectrum requirements, a response starkly at odds with top brass and one that comes as Rep. Chip Pickering (R-Miss.) moves closer to introducing legislation …