March 2002

LONDON—Although global computer chip sales are down sharply form a year ago, year-on-year comparisons are improving, according to World Semiconductor Trade Statistics, commenting on numbers recently released by the European …

SAN JOSE, Calif.—Multichannel multipoint distribution service equipment provider Hybrid Networks Inc. has failed to find a buyer and consequently is ceasing operations at the end of April, the company announced. …

SAN DIEGO—Leap Wireless International Inc. amended the vendor-financing agreements between its wholly owned subsidiary Cricket Communications Inc. and Ericsson, Lucent Technologies Inc. and Nortel Networks designed to provide greater flexibility …

LONDON—Moody’s Investor Service downgraded its credit rating on Deutsche Telekom and its VoiceStream Wireless Corp. subsidiary citing doubt DT would achieve its previous forecast of net debt of $43.5 billion …

NEW YORK—Wingcast L.L.C. will be the exclusive provider of telematics services for the model-year 2003 Infiniti G35 sedan, G35 coupe, M45 and Q45, the company announced. Wingcast and Infiniti will …

STOCKHOLM—Siemens Mobile Acceleration announced it has invested in Swedish start-up Mediabricks AB, which provides a platform that enables mobile operators and service providers to offer interactive broadcasting applications to Java-enabled …

CHICAGO—Mobile phone maker Motorola Inc. said it froze the pay and cancelled the bonus of chairman Christopher Galvin last year owing to the vendor’s “unsatisfactory financial performance.” The company did …

PALO ALTO, Calif.—Hewlett-Packard Co. director Walter Hewlett filed a lawsuit Thursday in Delaware Chancery Court against HP claiming that the company improperly garnered shareholder votes in favor of a merger …

BOSTON, United States—South Africa’s biggest cell-phone operator Vodacom may soon enter the Zambian cellular market by operating the fourth cellular network in the country. Official authorization has been granted for …

NEW YORK—Attempting to decrease its exposure to Argentina’s financial troubles, Verizon Communications transferred 5.5 million shares in wireless communications company CTI Holdings S.A. to a newly created trust for CTI …

LITTLE ROCK, Ark.—Alltel Corp. filed a shelf registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission enabling the company to offer up to $5 billion in the aggregate of debt securities, …

COUDERSPORT, Pa.—Adelphia Business Solutions Inc., the largest holder of 31 GHz local multipoint distribution services spectrum in the United States, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court …

NEW YORK—i3Mobile Inc., a Stamford, Conn., provider of premium wireless content, hired the Draftworldwide advertising agency to promote its new Pronto service offering voice-activated information retrieval over a variety of …

BURNABY, British Columbia—Telus Ventures announced it has invested $3 million in Telica Inc., provider of softswitch-based voice and data infrastructure products. “This investment gives Telus access to Telica’s best-of-breed technology …

SUNNYVALE, Calif.—Conductus Inc. announced it completed a $7.3 million private placement of equity to support the commercialization of its ClearSite products for the wireless market. Under the terms of the …

CARY, N.C.—UbiNetics says it has enhanced its third-generation terminal-testing solution, the CS100 Node B emulator, to help developers simulate complex test scenarios and verify their designs before testing with live …

KINGSTON, Jamaica—A fourth cellular operator is expected to enter the Jamaica market on 1 March, 2003. The Jamaican government announced plans to award a license for mobile communications, saying the …

TOKYO—Japan’s NTT DoCoMo is considering withdrawing from the PHS and beeper businesses, Keiji Tachikawa, president of NTT DoCoMo, said on Thursday. As the leading mobile carrier in Japan, NTT DoCoMo …

IRVINE, Calif.—FieldCentrix Inc. said it will work with the Microsoft Consulting Services Advanced Technology (MCSAT) group to develop its next generation of products with Microsoft’s Visual Studio .NET and the …

TORONTO—Half of Canada’s motorists would agree with an outright ban on using cell phones while driving, according to a new study. The vast majority of motorists equate the use of …

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa—Mobile network operator MTN Nigeria announced that it has exceeded the 300,000 subscriber mark. Since launching service in Lagos, Port Harcourt and Abuja in August and September 2001, …

OXFORD, United Kingdom—Having sold two third-generation (3G) licenses for 619 million euros (US$538.8 million) each last year, the French government looks unlikely to attract more than one interested party for …

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina—The Paraguayan Ministers Council’s rejection of the rebalanced tariff provoked the resignation of the country’s reformation secretary and the postponement until 30 April of the privatization of the …

NEW DELHI, India—TA Orange, the much-awaited GSM operator in Thailand, launched its commercial services on 27 March, amid confusion created by the row between DTAC and the Telecom Organization of …

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