2005

The following list includes ratings changes and financial information for wireless companies announced this week by investment-banking and financial-services firms. Carriers Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services raised its ratings on …

BOSTON-Motorola Inc.’s Razr phone and Danger Inc.’s Sidekick II will find their way into more Christmas stockings this year than other devices. The Razr and the Sidekick II top holiday …

RESTON, Va.-Sprint Nextel Corp. said it will acquire another of its CDMA affiliates, this time picking up Enterprise Communications for about $98 million including the assumption of debt. The move …

ANAHEIM, Calif.-NextPhase Wireless Inc. said it expanded its pre-WiMAX network into California’s Riverside and San Bernardino counties. The company, which designs and operates its own networks, acquired Blazen Wireless earlier …

WASHINGTON-The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said driver cell phone use jumped to 6 percent in 2005. NHSTSA, whose data was compiled from the National Occupant Protection Use Survey, said …

GREENSBORO, N.C.-RF Micro Devices Inc. said it plans to expand its Chinese assembly operations to increase internal assembly capacity by about 50 percent. The company said by increasing its internal …

A new study commissioned by the Wi-Fi Alliance not surprisingly found that Wi-Fi users do in fact enjoy the convenience of Wi-Fi technology. Survey.com conducted the survey, which tallied 1,000 …

WASHINGTON-Public safety should consider partnerships with commercial wireless, said Timothy Donahue, executive chairman of Sprint Nextel Corp. and NRIC VII chairman. Acting as chairman of the Federal Communications Commission’s Network …

Cingular unveils CingularVideo with HBO shows NEW YORK-Cingular Wireless L.L.C. announced today that it will launch a streaming video service, CingularVideo, in January, and that the service will feature two …

LONDON-Mobile game-maker I-play said it plans to publish a second wireless version of the PC classic Boulder Dash. I-Play unveiled an exclusive global deal with First Star Software, which launched …

CHICAGO-Fitch Ratings released a new report on the wireless industry in which it said large North American wireless operators will maintain stable credit profiles in the coming year. Regional Bell …

Amid holiday howls over the use of “Merry Christmas” instead of more all-inclusive seasonal greetings, Virgin Mobile USA L.L.C. is blithely tripping its own way by pushing its “Chrismahanukwanzakah” marketing …

CINCINNATI-Cingular Wireless L.L.C. extended its contract with Convergys Corp. The deal calls for Convergys to manage and support billing for Cingular’s customers on its Customer Assistance Resource Environment billing system. …

TOKYO-Japanese telecom giant NTT DoCoMo Inc. announced plans to acquire a 10-percent stake in South Korean operator KT Freetel Co. Ltd. DoCoMo said it will invest $561 million in KTF …

AMSTERDAM, The Netherlands-Royal Philips Electronics, Europe’s largest consumer-electronics producer and its third-largest chipmaker, said it plans to sell or spin off its semiconductor unit into a separate company. The company …

SAN MATEO, Calif.-Mobile entertainment publisher Glu Mobile said it plans to offer PopCap Games’ Insaniquarium Deluxe game to mobile-phone users. The PC version of the popular game has been downloaded …

BELLEVUE, Wash.-T-Mobile USA Inc. has begun selling Motorola Inc.’s sleek Pebl device on its Web site for $300 with a service plan. The gadget features Bluetooth, an integrated digital camera …

REDWOOD SHORES, Calif.-The wave of litigation in the mobile e-mail space continued as Visto Corp. filed a patent-infringement suit against Microsoft Corp. Visto claims the software giant violated three patents …

ATLANTA-Cingular Wireless L.L.C. said it plans to shut down two former AT&T Wireless Services Inc. location-based services in 2006 as it continues to integrate AWS’ network. The carrier said it …

By Alice Z. Cuneo SAN FRANCISCO-T-Mobile USA Inc. paid a $135,000 fine to settle a deceptive-advertising claim brought by New York’s Department of Consumer Affairs. This summer, the department took …

WASHINGTON-The high-tech community is urging Congress to complete work on the DTV Transition Act of 2005, which has been included in a larger budget reconciliation bill, before Congress goes home …

LOS ANGELES-MTV Networks will invest $50 million in Amp’d Mobile Inc. and will work with the mobile virtual network operator to offer both repurposed and exclusive, made-for-mobile content from MTV, …

WASHINGTON-Securities industry regulator NASD is warning investors to be cautious about text messages they receive on their mobile phones that claim to provide hot stock tips. A new version of …

TORONTO-Verizon Communications Inc. said it is testing Nortel Networks Ltd.’s Internet Protocol Multimedia Subsystems solution. Nortel said the carrier is looking for IMS-compliant solutions in order to converge voice, video …

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.-AirTight Networks, a security provider for Wi-Fi networks, said it closed on a second round of financing worth $12 million. The round raises the total amount of capital …