2003

SEATTLE-Qpass Inc. and InphoMatch Inc. announced a platform for mobile operators and content partners that will allow premium short messaging service events to be delivered and charged to any subscriber’s phone bill regardless of their carrier relationship. Under the agreement, …

Intel Corp. has joined with other players to extend the scope of an alliance to accommodate wireless communications for next-generation applications. The group, known as the Innovation Alliance, includes such companies as ASUSTeK, Compal, Gigabyte, HTC, MicrosStar, Mitac, SuperMicro, Quanta …

TEWSKBURY, Mass.-U.S. Cellular said it has selected Starent Networks Corp. to provide key infrastructure for its core data network, using the Starent ST16 Intelligent Media Gateway. The air interface protocol of the network is CDMA2000 1x. “The network will offer …

DALLAS-Wireless carrier MetroPCS Inc. reported a partnership with One Global Finance Inc. to offer its MetroPCS Wired Plastic MasterCard fully integrated stored value card, which the carrier said was reloadable and can be used anywhere MasterCard is accepted. MetroPCS noted …

TEL AVIV, Israel-Nortel Networks has signed a three-year, $30 million contract to expand carrier Pelephone’s CDMA2000 1x network. The carrier targets 1.9 million subscribers. “This expansion will overlay existing network equipment and will also help Pelephone to drive new revenues …

LAGOS, Nigeria-Nortel Networks Ltd. said it has signed a contract with wireless local loop provider Multi-Links Telecom Ltd. to expand its next-generation fixed wireless data network and to deploy new CDMA2000 1x networks in Abuja and Kaduna. The dollar amount …

Longtime wireless modem maker Sierra Wireless announced a significant new business direction with the unveiling of its Voq phone-a device that marks the arrival of a new smart-phone player and another Microsoft Corp. backer. Investors seemed cheered by the bold …

DUBLIN, Ireland-Esat BT said it signed a $166.4 million deal with 3 Ireland to build and operate its third-generation radio access network. Esat BT will be responsible for building and operating all elements of the radio access network, including radio …

DALLAS-Siemens AG said it has created a new global research and development unit called Siemens Subscriber Networks, with headquarters in Dallas. The centers will be in Dallas; San Jose, Calif.; Brussels, Belgium; and Zurich, Switzerland. “Siemens Subscriber Networks is responsible …

Kyocera Wireless Corp. said it will temporarily halt shipments of several handset models following reports that a Kyocera phone apparently exploded just days after a Nebraska family purchased it. According to Nebraska TV station WOWT 6 News, an area family …

Sun Microsystems Inc. is working to address many of the complaints and concerns leveled at the company’s wireless Java technology with a series of new products, services and programs introduced at the ITU Telecom World 2003 conference. Sun’s new offerings …

Was Northrop Grumman Corp. on to something? Put another way, do Federal Communications Commission rules governing 700 MHz public-safety communications effectively lock out state-of-the-art broadband wireless solutions for first responders in the post-9/11 world? Northrop Grumman-whose petition for an additional …

WASHINGTON-Settlement talks continue in a blind woman’s complaint that Verizon Wireless and Audiovox Communications Corp. violated the disability provision of the 1996 telecom act, with lawyers expected to report back to the Federal Communications Commission by Dec. 1. In Oct. …

WASHINGTON-After weeks of speculation, it appears that GSM technology has won out over CDMA systems in Iraq. The Coalition of Provisional Authority and the Iraqi Minister of Communications Oct. 6 announced the winners of mobile-phone licenses in Iraq. Asia-Cell, the …

SYDNEY, Australia-Unwired Australia Pty. Ltd. announced it plans to deploy a metro-area non-line-of-sight, wide-area wireless broadband network in Sydney, Australia. The network deployment, which follows Unwired’s testing of a trial network in Balmain, a suburb of Sydney, will begin in …

NORTH HOLLYWOOD, Calif.-Verizon Wireless continues to expand its Get It Now data offerings, adding new content from Walt Disney and MapQuest. First, Walt Disney’s wireless business announced an expanded deal with Verizon Wireless, with plans to add content from Disney’s …

A much-awaited ruling from the Federal Communications Commission, hailed as one of the most important spectrum-reform decisions during the past decade, could impact the wireless industry even more than anticipated. The FCC’s final rules on secondary markets, which ease spectrum-leasing …

WASHINGTON D.C.-Global Crossing received Federal Communications Commission approval to transfer its assets and operations to New GX, a company formed under the laws of Bermuda, with main offices in New Jersey, to carry out Global Crossing’s Chapter 11 reorganization process. …

OVERLAND PARK, Kan.-Sprint Corp. launched its PCS Data Link high-speed wireless connectivity solution, which the company said was designed to provide mobile employees with secure, remote access to critical corporate resources and replace current CDPD and private radio networks. A …

WASHINGTON-The Wireless Consumers Alliance Oct. 3 asked the Federal Communications Commission to confirm that its 911 strongest-signal rules require an analog phone to connect to a base station within 17 seconds rather than just assign a voice channel as manufacturers …

WASHINGTON-The wireless industry, pointing to legal, legislative and regulatory precedent, told a federal appeals court that U.S. District Judge Catherine Blake was correct to dismiss on federal pre-emption grounds five class-action lawsuits seeking damages on behalf of consumers who plaintiffs …

Less than a week into what is traditionally the busiest quarter of the year, Sprint PCS rolled out a handful of modest rate plan changes bolstering the carrier’s low-end and mid-priced offerings and providing more competitive price-per-minute rates as the …

Independent testing of Verizon Wireless’ recently launched BroadbandAccess 1x EV-DO network found that while the service fell short of the multi-megabit speeds often used as marketing hype, the service consistently delivered speeds in line with what both the carrier and …

MOUNTAIN LAKES, N.J.-The percentage of consumers using mobile-phone service has markedly increased during 2003, according to research from Solomon Wolff Associates. According to the firm, 77 percent of households use wireless phone service, up from 66 percent a year ago. …

WASHINGTON-Rural wireless carriers cannot refuse to port a telephone number to another wireless carrier that does not have an interconnection agreement with them, the Federal Communications Commission ruled last week. “The FCC held that wireless-to-wireless porting does not require the …