April 2005

CALABASAS, Calif.-The Tempe, Ariz., city council voted to award a five-year contract for a citywide wireless broadband service to MobilePro Corp., which will use Strix Systems’ wireless mesh network equipment …

WASHINGTON-Kevin Martin made his first staff appointments at his first meeting as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, but did not name someone to head the agency’s Wireless Telecommunications Bureau. …

SAN FRANCISCO-Airmedia Inc., which provides entertainment applications for wireless carriers, said it received a round of institutional financing from Sierra Ventures. The company said it will use proceeds to expand …

WASHINGTON-New FCC Chairman Kevin Martin wants access to 911 when using Voice over Internet Protocol to be an agenda item at the Federal Communications Commission meeting in May, Martin told …

NATICK, Mass.-Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystems architecture is creating opportunities for several players, according to new research from Venture Development Corp. Several vendors are vying to increase their control of the …

HONG KONG-Chinese wireless company Tom Online Inc. announced plans to sell 18 percent of its holdings in Indiagames Ltd. to Cisco Systems Inc. and Macromedia Inc. The two California-based companies …

Regional telecommunications provider CenturyTel Inc. said that network coverage issues have delayed its plans to begin offering wireless services using Cingular Wireless L.L.C.’s network under a mobile virtual network operator …

HOUSTON-Crown Castle International Corp. reported a net loss for the first quarter of $128.8 million, including $82.6 million in losses for early retirement of debt. That compares with a net …

Following is a list of debt and credit upgrades and downgrades for wireless companies by financial and investment firms this week. Merrill Lynch upgraded its rating on Freescale Semiconductor from …

SINGAPORE-Contract electronics manufacturer Flextronics posted shrinking revenues but a higher net income in its fourth quarter, news that helped send its stock up around 4 percent to around $11 per …

Nextel Partners Inc. posted strong first-quarter results led by company-record 99,400 net customer additions, compared with the 88,800 customers the carrier signed up during the first quarter of 2004. Nextel …

SAN RAMON, Calif.-The WiMedia Alliance said Microsoft Corp. has joined its effort to push standardization and adoption of ultra-wideband technology for high-speed wireless connectivity. The industry association, which recently joined …

LITTLE ROCK, Ark.-Alltel Corp. said it will begin a new consumer-centric brand advertising campaign May 1 built around customer satisfaction. The campaign will highlight new wireless initiatives, including an automatic …

SANTA CRUZ, Calif.-More than half of wireless developers said they would consider changing programming languages or tools to mobilize applications more easily, according to new research from Evans Data Corp. …

NORCROSS, Ga.-Wireless subscribers fed up with making wireless calls on their porch due to poor in-home coverage now have a way to fix the problem themselves. Norcross, Ga.-based Wireless Extenders …

Verizon Communications Inc. said it will phase out its payphone-based Wi-Fi hot-spot service in New York City during the next two months in favor of its rapidly expanding CDMA2000 1x …

BEIJING-China Mobile’s 220 million subscribers will be able to access content from MTV networks under an agreement announced Thursday. Beginning May 1, subscribers of China’s largest wireless carrier can download …

CHICAGO-PCTel Inc. said it signed a contract with NTT DoCoMo Inc. to develop and customize client software for converged handsets from Motorola Inc. According to the deal, PCTel will port …

Microsoft Corp.’s revenues rose 5 percent in its third quarter, while its net income sprang from $1.32 billion in the same quarter last year to a major $2.56 billion. The …

BELLEVUE, Wash.-Wireless Services Corp. said it added JP Mobile’s SureWave wireless e-mail solution to its portfolio. “Wireless e-mail is a popular application to drive usage and increase revenues,” said Rich …

NEW YORK-No. 2 mobile-phone maker Motorola may rely more heavily on RF Micro Devices Inc. for its mobile phone chips as the company works to trim its supply chain. Investment …

Online wireless retailer and mobile virtual network operator InPhonic Inc. reported that its MVNO activities, which currently include its Liberty Wireless and Viva Liberty offerings, generated $9.6 million in service …

LONDON-Arttu Harkki, who set the Guinness World Record for texting in 2001, helped PalmOne Inc. launch its Treo 650 smart phone in the U.K. market by attempting to break the …

SAN FRANCISCO-The number of mobile subscribers in China is expected to grow to 580 million by the end of 2010, according to a new report form Visiongain. The study, “The …

TORONTO-Rogers Wireless Inc. together with Visto Corp. launched MyMail, a wireless service that provides instant two-way push-email, calendar and contacts to a customer’s wireless device. Users who have a valid …