2006

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 to rant and rave about whatever rubs …

MENLO PARK, Calif.—Zannel Inc., which sells a mobile media platform, said it raised $6 million in its first round of financing. US Venture Partners and Palomar Ventures led the round. The company said its platform has delivered more than 100 …

PURCHASE, N.Y.—MasterCard Worldwide customers can find nearby ATMs with their mobile phones thanks to a new application from Mobile 365. Under the new service, Mobile users can dial an 800 number and enter their location information to receive a text …

WASHINGTON—The Federal Communications Commission tapped cell-phone association CTIA and wireless infrastructure trade group PCIA as clearinghouses for moving existing 2.1 GHz licensees to new frequencies to make room for new advanced wireless services operators. “PCIA is pleased that the commission …

BOSTON—Boston University said it is adding an experimental course in its College of Communications that teaches students esthetics and production methods for making films designed specifically for mobile phones and handheld devices. The course will be led by director Jan …

BOSTON—Wireless enterprise data services in North America will generate more than $10 billion each year by 2010, according to a new study from research firm Strategy Analytics Inc. The company said the market will serve more than 41 million users …

WASHINGTON—In the ongoing battle over whether national carriers should have to provide automatic roaming access to smaller operators, SouthernLINC Wireless is pleading its case as an iDEN operator with only one potential national roaming partner: Sprint Nextel Corp. SouthernLINC filed …

SAN DIEGO—A squabble over documents in the heated legal battle between chipmakers Qualcomm Inc. and Broadcom Corp. serves to highlight the contentious nature of the companies’ fight, as both players took completely different stances over a relatively minor courtroom event. …

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.—Customer spending on wireless services continues to increase, according to the latest survey by J.D. Power and Associates—and consumers’ expectations of their wireless carriers will continue to rise along with their spending. The firm’s latest customer satisfaction survey …

SUNNYVALE, Calif.—Following Google Inc.’s lead, Yahoo Inc. said it expanded its sponsored-search offering to wireless phones in the United States and United Kingdom. The Internet giant announced the beta launch of a service that returns sponsored, clickable links with search …

NAPLES, Fla.—Neighborhood America is looking to take its success building online communities to wireless. The company announced the acquisition of Movo Mobile, a fellow Florida-based developer that provides mobile marketing technology. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. While Neighborhood …

SAN DIEGO—Just a few days after the Mobile ESPN flameout, an executive from the mobile virtual network operator was named chief executive of Soapbox Mobile, a mobile marketing solutions company. Vladimir Edelman has been named chief executive officer of Soapbox. …

WASHINGTON—ADT Security Services Inc. is expected to ask the Federal Communications Commission later today to extend the end of cellular analog service requirements until 2010. The company said that equipment and security technicians are not available to make the current …

CAMBRIDGE, Mass.—Mobile search startup JumpTap Inc. snared $22 million in a financing round as it welcomed new investor Valhalla Partners. Valhalla led the round, and existing investors General Catalyst Partners, BCE Capital and Redpoint Ventures also participated. JumpTap, which offers …

VANCOUVER, British Columbia—Canadian operator Telus Mobility launched two handset-based Global Positioning System services developed by Networks In Motion. Telus said its new Navigator and Kid Find services are now available using the carrier’s CDMA2000 1x coverage area in British Columbia, …

SANTA MONICA, Calif.—Mobile virtual network operator Helio L.L.C. is moving beyond the phone to offer a CDMA2000 1x EV-DO laptop card that will allow users to “switch between a nationwide 3G network, private and free Wi-Fi signals and a worldwide …

WASHINGTON—Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) vetoed legislation to allow California wireless and wireline telecom subscribers to contest unauthorized billing charges, including those arising from the theft or loss of mobile phones. Schwarzenegger’s veto is a big victory for the mobile phone …

MARINA DEL RAY, Calif.—Wi-Fi hardware manufacturer 5G Wireless Communications Inc. is now in the travel and hospitality wireless service provider business, thanks to its acquisition of Ivado’s timeshare deployment contracts. 5G Wireless said its new services division will focus on …

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.—Openwave Systems Inc. announced the acquisition of SoloMio Corp., a Texas-based provider of integrated subscriber call management services. Terms of the all-cash deal were not disclosed. Key to the deal is SoloMio’s Smart Call platform, which supports both …

SAN DIEGO—A U.S. District Court judge ruled yesterday that Broadcom Corp. can develop and sell third-generation chipsets. Rival Qualcomm Inc. had pushed for a preliminary injunction to stop Broadcom from making the chipsets, accusing Broadcom of misappropriating trade secrets. Broadcom …

CHICAGO—About two years after its acquisition of AT&T Wireless Services Inc., Cingular Wireless L.L.C. announced it has finished the work of integrating AWS’ GSM network. Cingular has invested heavily in its network in recent years. The company put $7.5 billion …

WASHINGTON—Motient Corp. named a new management team, continuing moves to separate two affiliated mobile satellite service companies into two independent publicly traded entities and possibly to better position the Lincolnshire, Ill. firm to be acquired. Robert Brumley was named president …

WASHINGTON—As Congress broke for midterm elections, the wireless industry won a few battles, but for the most part failed to get legislation it supported passed. It’s not clear how industry felt about anti-pretexting legislation. The bills got bogged down in …

PORTLAND, Ore.—Digital commerce software developer Vesta Corp. acquired Beijing-based mobile top-up company Unimobile in an effort to tap the Chinese prepaid wireless market. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Unimobile, which was founded in 2000, distributes “recharge cards” for …

SAN DIEGO—Leap Wireless International Inc. launched its Cricket wireless service in the Kansas City metropolitan area. The company said customers in the Kansas City region will have a calling area covering 1,407 square miles in parts of Missouri and Kansas. …