2006

WASHINGTON—After sitting on the issue for almost two years, the Federal Communications Commission voted to allow Qualcomm Inc. to operate its MediaFLO mobile TV offering in markets where TV broadcasters are currently using the 700 MHz spectrum Qualcomm plans to …

WASHINGTON—The Federal Communications Commission postponed until Friday a vote on AT&T Inc.’s $69 billion acquisition of BellSouth Corp., but harsh criticism by the agency’s two Democrats, consumer groups and a key House lawmaker over the Justice Department’s no-strings-attached approval of …

CHICAGO—U.S. Cellular Corp. said it received $95.1 million from the sale of its stake in regional operator Midwest Wireless Holdings to Alltel Corp. U.S. Cellular said it also expects to receive an additional $10.5 million soon in connection with the …

BEDFORD, Mass.—Two top executives at Boston Communications Group Inc. have bowed out of their positions in connection with an internal review of stock-option grants, as has the company’s general counsel. BCGI’s chief financial officer, Karen Walker, left the company, while …

ALAMEDA, Calif.—UTStarcom Inc. said it is exploring “strategic alternatives” and has retained Merill Lynch & Co. as its financial adviser. The announcement could mean that UTStarcom is openly seeking to sell itself or merge with another company. “Our board of …

BOCA RATON, Fla.—Global Tower Partners may be the next tower company to get swallowed up as the industry’s giants fight over who will be king of the mountain. Global Tower Partners is owned by Blackstone Group LP, and, according to …

BOSTON—The WiMAX ecosystem is getting fatter by the day, as Nokia Corp. joined the list of tier-one vendors launching WiMAX portfolios at the WiMAX World trade show in Boston. Nokia unveiled its modular Flexi WiMAX base station, which the company …

PARIS—Alcatel Inc. snapped up a global framework agreement to supply Vodafone Group plc with network equipment and services worldwide. Though Alcatel didn’t divulge how much the agreement means in terms of revenues, the deal could be worth billions considering Vodafone …

WASHINGTON—The Justice Department’s unconditional approval of the $67 billion merger of AT&T Inc. and BellSouth Corp. ignited a firestorm of protest from consumer groups and the Federal Communications Commission’s two Democrats, setting the stage for a showdown at the FCC …

LOS ANGELES—Mobile virtual network operator Amp’d Mobile Inc. continued to expand its offerings with the introduction of several family plans, which the MVNO is selling as “shared” plans. Interestingly, the plans are far more aggressive—and offer far more minutes—than the …

STOCKHOLM, Sweden—Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications L.P., at five years old, is pursuing two trends in the rapidly changing mobile handset market—a worldwide thirst for music and imaging—and is profiting handsomely in its chosen markets. The partnership between the Japanese consumer …

DEL MAR, Calif.—Great Call Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. announced the launch of a new mobile virtual network operator called Jitterbug, named after the dance craze that originated in the 1930s and popularized by band leader Cab Calloway. The …

BELLEVUE, Wash.—InfoSpace Inc. said it plans to lay off about 250 employees as part of a restructuring plan. The move follows news late last month that Cingular Wireless L.L.C. plans to develop direct licensing relationships with major record labels next …

WASHINGTON—The Federal Trade Commission issued a guide of sorts for municipalities considering wireless broadband, offering city planners and policymakers a list of the pros and cons of various approaches to the issue. The report essentially outlines a decision tree for …

SAN DIEGO—An administrative law judge with the International Trade Commission handed down a split decision in the acrimonious patent dispute between chipmakers Qualcomm Inc. and Broadcom Corp., ruling that Qualcomm did infringe on one of Broadcom’s patents but not on …

OVERLAND PARK, Kan.—Qualcomm Inc.’s highly anticipated MediaFLO mobile TV service is gaining momentum as Sprint Nextel Corp. confirmed it is conducting trials using the network technology and could soon join initial launch carrier Verizon Wireless in offering the service to …

CHICAGO—U.S. Cellular Corp. announced improved service revenues and operating income, as well as a jump in its customer base. Although the numbers were mostly positive, investors seemed somewhat ambivalent as the carrier’s stock remained relatively unchanged at about $58 per …

NEW YORK—Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services assigned its B- corporate credit rating to MetroPCS Communications Inc. and its CCC rating to MetroPCS Wireless Inc.’s $1.1 billion of senior unsecured notes due 2014. S&P said the company’s outlook is stable. The …

SAN DIEGO, Calif.—Leap Wireless International Inc. saw a big jump in customer additions during the third quarter, gaining 161,000 new subscribers and reporting a 73-percent improvement in gross additions. Leap had gained just 23,000 net new customers in last year’s …

NEW DELHI—Reports are streaming out of India indicating that Motorola Inc. and ZTE Corp. have been eliminated from the bidding process for state-owned Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd.’s multibillion-dollar contract to build a GSM network that can handle 62 million subscribers. …

WASHINGTON—One of the three Republicans of the five-member, GOP-controlled Federal Communications Commission has decided not to participate in the agency’s vote on the proposed $67 billion merger between AT&T Inc. and BellSouth Corp. because of a conflict of interest. The …

BOSTON—Nortel Networks Ltd. introduced its mobile WiMAX portfolio at the WiMAX World trade show and is hawking its new offering as 4G mobile broadband technology. The company says its MIMO-powered WiMAX solution can deliver broadband content for one-tenth the cost …

NEW YORK—Content provider Mobile Streams said it built an off-deck WAP portal to provide content from Showtime Networks Inc. The company said it will offer video clips from various Showtime programs. The portal initially will offer video clips and wallpapers …

RESTON, Va.—In the second departure of a high-ranking leader within the past two months, Sprint Nextel Corp. announced that Chairman Tim Donahue is retiring from the company’s board of directors. Meanwhile, several investment companies have downgraded their rating of Sprint …

SAN FRANCISCO—AirPlay said it secured $14 million in its second round of venture financing. Qualcomm Inc., Motorola Inc., JK&B Capital, Onset Ventures and Redpoint Ventures participated in the funding round. JK&B led the round, and Ali Shadman, a general partner …