2003

DALLAS-T-Mobile USA Inc. reported a deal with Kinko’s that will expand the carrier’s HotSpot Wi-Fi service into nearly 170 Kinko’s locations by the end of October and more than 1,100 Kinko’s locations nationwide by next April. T-Mobile USA is currently …

WASHINGTON-The California Public Utilities Commission postponed a vote set for today on a consumer bill of rights for telecom users, rescheduling it for Oct. 2. The request to hold the item-which the mobile-phone industry strongly opposes-was made by the PUC’s …

PARIS-French supplier Alcatel Corp. and South Korean mobile-phone operator SK Telecom said they will jointly develop and market mobile applications worldwide. The companies said they will focus on mobile commerce, location-based services, infotainment and gaming services. Under the terms of …

MUNICH, Germany-Siemens AG announced it won a contract with Germany’s E-Plus to expand its GSM/GPRS network. The two-year contract is worth a “two-digit million euro amount,” Siemens said. Siemens will install GSM base stations and necessary components to offer GPRS …

LONDON-Lucent Technologies Inc. said it has signed a three-year contract to assess and analyze the performance of European mobile operator MmO2’s GSM and GPRS networks in Germany, Ireland, the Isle of Mann and the United Kingdom. “It is important to …

OYSTER BAY, N.Y.-The Wi-Fi hot-spot industry will continue to grow, propelled by lower price points and standardized technology, according to market research firm ABI. ABI predicts Wi-Fi access point suppliers will see a 50-percent increase in shipments to hot spots …

WASHINGTON-The House Wednesday passed legislation permanently banning Internet access taxes and prohibiting states and localities from imposing multiple and discriminatory taxes on electronic commerce. The bill, which passed overwhelmingly on a voice vote, now moves to the Senate for consideration. …

NEW YORK-Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. held a product showcase in New York to display its advanced electronics equipment from televisions to camcorders and took the opportunity to show off two high-end new phones, including a mobile phone/miniature TV. Samsung officials …

As Hurricane Isabel bears down on the U.S. eastern seaboard, wireless carriers are confident their networks are already prepared for the worst. Unlike other recent emergencies, including Sept. 11, 2001, and the August power outage, Isabel was anticipated, giving operators …

WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission has entered into an agreement with the state of Michigan to use its 800 MHz public-safety communications system towers for a study on the impact of towers on birds. “This agreement promotes FCC Chairman Michael Powell’s …

LA JOLLA, Calif.-Openwave Systems Inc. announced its Phone Suite Version 7 (V7) product for mobile phones will now work over the Linux-based operating system, a move the company said is a nod toward the growing market for Linux-based phones. “Handset …

RESTON, Va.-Nextel Communications Inc. said it will offer $1 billion worth of 7.375-percent senior serial redeemable notes due 2015 in a public offering. The company expects to use proceeds from the offering for general corporate purposes.

NEW YORK-Swedish company Tele2 AB said its Swedish UMTS venture, Svenska UMTS-Nat, reached an agreement with a banking consortium to downsize its loan facility from nearly $1.4 billion to $872 million. The reduction was achieved through cutting infrastructure costs by …

SOMERS, N.Y.-Wireless enterprise giants IBM Corp. and Research In Motion Ltd. announced they will more tightly integrate their corporate access servers, a move the companies said would give BlackBerry users expanded access options. The companies said the new development and …

STOCKOLM, Sweden-L.M. Ericsson said it has signed a contract to embed its Bluetooth platform in the products of STMicroelectronics. The platform, which is known as Q-E1, offers such features as fast connection times, enhanced voice quality and advanced frequency hopping …

SAN MATEO, Calif.-The San Mateo, Calif., Police Department is now using Tropos Networks Inc.’s metro-scale Wi-Fi mesh network for law enforcement activities. With Tropos’ equipment, the police force has created a Wi-Fi hot zone in downtown San Mateo, giving officers …

SAN DIEGO-Qualcomm Inc. said it has worked with China Unicom to complete the first phase of a comprehensive GSM1x technology trial. The technology allows GSM carriers to deliver cdma2000 1x voice, data and other applications. “The phase-one trial was a …

SAN JOSE, Calif.-Intel Corp. said it has unveiled enhancements for its solutions for wireless notebooks, cell phones, personal digital assistants and other handhelds. The chipsets include Dothan, which is the code name for the next Intel Pentium M processor; Sonoma, …

LA JOLLA, Calif.-The threat of spam on wireless devices continues to drive new industry products, with startup DigiPortal Inc. and stalwart Nokia Corp. both announcing new anti-spam products. Although so far the issue has seen little attention in the United …

In a further promotion of its text messaging services, AT&T Wireless Services Inc. announced plans to expand its services globally to allow users to send messages to subscribers in China, Germany, Philippines, Singapore, the United Kingdom and a variety of …

BELLVUE, Wash.-Microsoft Corp said it has added the enhanced version of its 802.11g Wi-Fi solution to its suite of wireless products. The decision follows its earlier announcement not to unveil the Wi-Fi product until a standard was ratified, a step …

Wireless enterprise company Visto Corp. announced another financial transaction, this time the acquisition of the intellectual property and technology assets of wireless e-mail company Jarna Corp. of Menlo Park, Calif. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed. Visto said …

TOKYO-NTT DoCoMo Inc. said it plans to offer FOMA video-phone handsets beginning Oct. 1, allowing users to make international video phone calls and 64 kilobit per second data transmissions to the United Kingdom with technology partner Hutchison 3G U.K. The …

SINGAPORE-Five Asian companies joined the collaboration between the Singapore telecom regulator and Intel Corp. to help solve the challenges of hot-spot roaming. The initiative will work to develop standards for global seamless Wi-Fi connectivity. The companies include China Mobile; Singapore’s …

WASHINGTON-High-power, star power and political power were on hand Wednesday when actor George Clooney lent his support for the Calling for 211 Act. Clooney acknowledged that getting funding for the $200 million in annual matching grants contemplated by the act …