March 2006

WASHINGTON—Online wireless retailer InPhonic Inc. unveiled a business unit targeting small business users. The company launched Wirefly.biz, an Internet storefront hawking products and rate plans designed for home office workers and small businesses. The site carries offerings from Cingular Wireless …

CAMBRIDGE, England—Mini-base station developer Ip.access Ltd. picked up $8.5 million in funds to develop in-building third-generation access points for homes and small businesses. Scottish Equity Partners led the round, joined by Intel Capital and Rothschild Gestion. The company said it …

LONDON—I-play removed the word “acting” from David Gosen’s title, installing the 2-year employee as the company’s new chief executive officer. Gosen, who started with I-play in 2004 as chief operating officer, had been acting CEO since Brian Greasley stepped down …

BEDMINSTER, N.J.-Verizon Wireless inked a major retail distribution deal for its wireless service, agreeing to sell its INpulse offering through 2,300 Wal-Mart Stores Inc. locations nationwide. The news marks a potentially substantial opportunity for Verizon as Wal-Mart dominates the market …

ALPHARETTA, Ga.-Verizon Wireless inked a two-year deal to provide wireless voice and data services for Chick-fil-A Inc. As part of the deal, the Georgia-based fast-food chain has purchased 1,000 handsets, Verizon Wireless said, including Plam Inc.’s Treos and personal digital …

BURNABY, British Columbia-Unity Wireless Corp. said it closed a $2.2 million three-year debt financing by institutional investors. The company, which develops wireless subsystems and coverage solutions, said it plans to use proceeds from the transaction for general corporate purposes. The …

DALLAS-Texas Instruments Inc. honed its financial estimates for the first quarter, projecting a narrower range of solid sales, from $3.22 billion to $3.35 billion, compared with its earlier projection of $3.11 billion to $3.38 billion. TI also estimated earnings per …

WATERLOO, Ontario-Research In Motion Ltd. announced it purchased Ascendent Systems, which sells products that extend desk phone connectivity to wireless handsets in a campus environment. RIM said the purchase would complement its current enterprise offerings. Terms of the agreement were …

DENVER-Although monitoring and control-enhancing technology hasn’t garnered many headlines in the past, ZigBee-enabled products are likely to burst into prime-time later this year with both consumer and commercial applications, predicted Bob Heile, chairman of the ZigBee Alliance, during last week’s …

What a long, strange trip it’s been. Almost two years ago, I renewed my cell-phone contract with what was then AT&T Wireless Services Inc. I was happy to do so-in fact, that was when my wife and I “cut the …

HANNOVER, Germany-Opera Software ASA scored a major win, inking a deal to pre-load its Java-based mobile browser on T-Mobile International phones in Europe. The deal calls for a custom, branded version of Opera Mini with “T-Mobile’s look and feel” to …

PALO ALTO, Calif.-M-commerce software developer Obopay said it has snared $10 million in Series A venture funding. Obopay, which was founded last year, plans to offer a mobile payment service in coming months that would allow users to make purchases …

WASHINGTON-A federal court in Colorado told state regulators there that they cannot require Alltel Corp. to file rate statements and agree to certain service-quality standards in order to receive eligible telecommunications carrier status-a necessary designation to receive universal-service subsidies. “The …

Nortel Networks Ltd. plans to restate its financial results-again-as well as push back filing its 2005 annual report to the end of April. The bookkeeping-challenged Canadian equipment vendor also reported preliminary fourth-quarter results, posting a stunning $2.2 billion net loss …

WASHINGTON-The lawyer for a 20-year-old Michigan man charged with criminally negligent homicide in connection with a fatal car crash initially attributed to driver cell-phone use claims politicians want to make a high-profile example of his client to boost chances of …

SAN DIEGO-Leap Wireless International Inc. joined several wireless operators in announcing financial restatements-though the company said it expects the adjustments would result in improved financials. Leap said it plans to restate results for the final five months of 2004 after …

IRVINE, Calif.—Mobile information service provider AskMeNow is betting on mobile gambling, announcing an effort to acquire Australian betting firm Karrell Pty Ltd. AskMeNow, a subsidiary of Ocean West Holding Corp., said it plans to spend about $29 million in stock …

Cingular Wireless L.L.C. and T-Mobile USA Inc. halted retail sales of Motorola Inc.’s best-selling Razr handset, after the vendor informed the carriers that a component glitch was cutting off calls as if the flip phone was closed. T-Mobile USA halted …

WASHINGTON-When the government broke up Ma Bell more than 20 years ago, it did so because it did not want one company controlling computer-to-computer communication-at the time the stuff of science fiction. As Ma Bell is nearly reborn in the …

SAN FRANCISCO-Intel Corp. says its WiMAX cards for laptops will be available sometime in the second half of this year, not in 2007 as was previously announced. The announcement was made by Sean Maloney, vice president of Intel’s mobility group …

Lucent Technologies Inc. is swimming in new contracts, announcing seven deals valued at more than $300 million at the CeBIT 2006 trade show. “Our customers’ competitive landscape continues to undergo tremendous change as the boundaries between the telecom, media and …

The market outlook for CDMA handsets may be described as a tale of two contrasting regions. And therein lies a few wireless lessons about the difference in how profits are made in emerging and mature markets. The emerging market is …

AT&T Inc.’s planned acquisition of BellSouth Corp. could be great for consumers, but the news isn’t so great for telecom equipment vendors, already suffering from declining profits. “In our view, carrier consolidation is a net negative for equipment vendors,” stated …

SCHAUMBURG, Ill.-Motorola Inc. hedged the value of the 37.6 million shares of Sprint Nextel Corp. stock it owns, which represent about 1.25 percent of Sprint Nextel’s stock. Hedging allows Motorola to maintain the stock’s current value and participate in a …

HANNOVER, Germany-Pantech Group spotlighted a variety of upscale handsets at the CeBIT trade show in Hannover, Germany, in an effort to further establish itself as a new player in European and global markets. The company, one of the largest handset …