August 2006

OVERLAND PARK, Kan.—Sprint Nextel Corp. continues to pursue mobile music lovers with a new streaming multimedia service offering more than 50 channels of content. Sprint Radio features music, music videos, news, weather, sports and financial information from providers including NPR, …

FORT MYERS, Fla.—NeoMedia Technologies Inc. hit a speed bump in its aggressive bid to become a player in the worldwide mobile-marketing space. The company said its $4.5 million deal to acquire Connecticut-based HipCricket Inc. fell through after the two companies …

REDWOOD SHORES, Calif.—Hudson Entertainment said it has partnered with The Orchard in a publishing deal that aims to offer mobile content from Delicious Vinyl to mobile phones. The companies said the agreement includes the rights to master ringtones for artists …

BURBANK, Calif.—Warner Music Group Corp. subsidiary Rhino Entertainment said it will provide music-based content for HBO Mobile. Rhino, which develops and promotes content from WMG’s catalog, plans to deliver ringtones and ring-back tones to support HBO’s mobile content services to …

CHANDLER, Ariz.—Space Data Corp. landed a $49 million contract to supply the U.S. Air Force with its communication system that sends radio-equipped industrial balloons filled with hydrogen or helium to between 12 miles and 62 miles above sea level. Space …

WESTCHESTER, Ill.—Since ditching merger negotiations and a takeover bid a few weeks ago, Andrew Corp. has been busy buying back 2.4 million shares of its common stock at an average price of $9.10 per share. “We believe the share repurchase …

WASHINGTON—Bidding continues to slow in the advanced wireless services spectrum auction with only 91 new bids being entered in round 67, though the number of bids was up slightly from the 83 bids placed in rounds 65 and 66. The …

Hello! And welcome to our Thursday column, Worst of the Week. There’s a lot of nutty stuff that goes on in this industry, so this column is a chance for us at RCR Wireless News to rant and rave about …

RESTON, Va.—Sprint Nextel Corp. settled a patent-infringement lawsuit against two Voice Over Internet Protocol providers that have now entered into licensing agreements with Sprint Nextel. Sprint Nextel had sued tglo.com Inc. (formerly VoiceGlo Holdings Inc.) and Theglobe.com Inc. in October …

DENVER—Qwest Communications International Inc. said it plans to launch Sanyo Electronics Co. Ltd.’s Katana handset to its customers nationwide, beginning tomorrow. The Katana, or model 6600, is a thin, clamshell phone that more than nods at Motorola Inc.’s Razr. “Katana,” …

WASHINGTON—The California State Assembly passed legislation prohibiting driver use of handheld cell phones in the nation’s most populous state, likely paving the way for the bill’s passage by the legislature later today or tomorrow. The measure, authored by Sen. Joe …

SANTA CLARA, Calif.—Fixed-mobile convergence technology developer Azaire Networks Inc. picked up $21 million during a third round of funding led by Investor Growth Capital, and new investors in the company. Existing investors Convergence Partners, Rustic Canyon Partners and Woodside Fund …

WASHINGTON—NextWave Telecom Inc. continues to elbow other companies for spectrum in the advanced wireless services spectrum, holding 144 high bids on spectrum through its AWS Wireless Inc. bidding subsidiary worth about $121 million at the end of round 61. Click …

DETROIT—A new driving-directions option from General Motors’ OnStar telematics service will be standard for one year on more than 2 million GM vehicles starting with the 2007 model year. After the first year, customers can renew the Turn-by-Turn Navigation service …

SUNNYVALE, Calif.—Yahoo Inc. launched an expanded Go for Mobile service, extending its software to devices running Microsoft Corp.’s Windows Mobile operating system. According to a company spokesperson, the Go for Mobile software had previously been available in the United States …

METHUEN, Mass.—SiGe Semiconductor raised $19.5 million in an expansion round of financing led by venture-capital and private-equity firms, the company announced. SiGe Semiconductor makes radio frequency modules that are integrated into GSM-, GPRS- and EDGE-enabled mobile handsets, Bluetooth-enabled devices, GPS …

WESTLAKE, Ohio—Mobile virtual network operator Beyond Wireless Inc. announced new distribution points for its JOLT Mobile and JOLT PCS products. The company said the products are available in Toys R Us stores and will soon be available in 100 Kerr …

BRISTOL, Conn.—Mobile ESPN L.L.C. reported plans to offer college football fans the chance to watch up to 25 live games each month during the season from their Mobile ESPN wireless phones. The mobile virtual network operator announced that it will …

AUSTIN, Texas—In a break from its tradition of certifying products only after a standard has been approved, the Wi-Fi Alliance says it plans to “pre-certify” the interoperability of pre-802.11n products in the first half of 2007, before the IEEE ratifies …

LOS ANGELES—A 23-year-old hacker who gained access to T-Mobile USA Inc.’s network and accessed the personal information of about 400 customers has been sentenced to a year of home detention, the Associated Press reported. Nicholas Lee Jacobsen also must pay …

OVERLAND PARK, Kan.—Sprint Nextel Corp. and Novatel Wireless Inc. announced the first CDMA2000 1x EV-DO Revision A card for laptops. Sprint Nextel noted the card will support “a mobile DSL experience” with higher uplink and downlink speeds when the carrier …

ATLANTA—Samsung Electronics Co. and Cingular Wireless L.L.C. today announced the handset vendor’s first HSDPA phone for Cingular’s 3G network-in-progress. The Samsung SGH-zx20, an exclusive for Cingular, is a silver-and-black, clamshell-style handset that sells for $100 with a two-year contract (and …

SAN DIEGO—Leap Wireless International Inc. said it completed a public offering of 6.4 million shares of common stock for $42 per share. The sale included 840,000 shares of common stock sold as part of an over-allotment option granted to the …

WASHINGTON—In a sign that the auction is drawing nearer to conclusion, the Federal Communications Commission increased the number of bidding rounds per day from 4 to 6. The auction has garnered nearly $13.6 billion in bids following round 58, though …

Nextlink Wireless Inc. announced it’s expanding its wireless broadband reach into Atlanta, Chicago and Houston and said it plans to continue aggressively leveraging its spectrum holdings in the United States’ 75 largest markets. Earlier this year, Nextlink launched broadband access …