2006

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 …

WOBURN, Mass.—Wireless semiconductor manufacturer Skyworks Solutions Inc. said it is ceasing its baseband operations and will lay off 425 employees. Skyworks’ baseband business developed reference designs, including digital signal processors and software functionality, for third-tier handset suppliers. The company said …

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 …

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 …

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 …

LONDON—Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications L.P. is the latest handset manufacturer to move onto the retail playground, announcing plans to build a branded store in London’s upscale Kensington High Street district. The store, which is slated for a late November opening, …

OVERLAND PARK, Kan.—Sprint Nextel Corp. announced it will soon begin selling three of Motorola Inc.’s popular slim phones, a move those in the industry had long expected. The announcement boosts Motorola’s position in the United States and gives Sprint Nextel …

ESPOO, Finland-Nokia Corp. said it has developed an HSDPA connectivity module for notebook computers. The module will be included with Intel Corp.’s next-generation Centrino Duo mobile technology platform, said Nokia. “This collaboration is good news for notebook users as cellular …

Michael Foley, executive director of the Bluetooth SIG, answered a few questions for RCR Wireless News via e-mail regarding the factory raid in China. RCR: To what degree is this raid an ongoing effort on behalf of the Bluetooth SIG? …

BELLEVUE, Wash.-With the quiet addition of its new t719 flip phone, which offers BlackBerry Connect service and an e-mail-friendly keypad, Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. now supplies just over one-third of T-Mobile USA Inc.’s handset portfolio. The t719 uses the same …

WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission told Congress that there is effective competition in the wireless industry, noting a penetration rate of 71 percent and that nearly everyone between the ages of 20 to 49 has a mobile phone. Nevertheless, one commissioner …

One of the worst-kept secrets in the wireless industry today is T-Mobile USA Inc.’s much-discussed-by everyone but them, that is-plan to launch services that allow subscribers with dual-mode handsets to move seamlessly between cellular and Wi-Fi networks. U.S. trials of …

SAN DIEGO-Digital Orchid is looking to expand its portfolio and global footprint with the acquisition of mobile game publisher Blue Tech. Blue Tech is a 2-year-old vendor based in Madrid, Spain, and is the parent company of Java developer Kato …

NEW YORK-A new mobile virtual network operator targeting Chinese-Americans officially launched, offering cheap international calls to Asia and a Razr phone with menus in Chinese. Red Pocket Mobile soft-launched about two weeks ago, according to Max Smetannikov, vice president of …

WASHINGTON-A federal appeals court has ruled that the Federal Communications Commission has the authority to require wireless carriers and tower owners to abide by the National Historic Preservation Act, including accepting the definition of eligible properties. The ruling by the …

OTTAWA, Ill.-B&B Electronics, which provides automation and communications products, said it acquired Advanced Embedded Systems, a Phoenix-based company that develops industrial-focused wireless products. AES is expected to become part of B&B Electronics’ engineering and technical group. B&B Engineering said the …

NEW YORK-Jamster International bulked up its content portfolio in North America with a deal to offer ringtones, graphics and mobile games from the Walt Disney Internet Group. Disney and its third-party content licensing arm Starwave Mobile already use VeriSign Inc.’s …

DUBLIN, Ireland-Those waiting anxiously for a .mobi domain needn’t wait any longer. The company behind the controversial, mobile-exclusive top-level domain opened registration, allowing the general public to register wireless Internet sites with the suffix. Mobile Top Level Domain Ltd., which …

NEW YORK-Fatherhood was the inspiration for creating and naming mobile virtual network operator Kajeet Inc., and the market will test whether those fathers really do know best when it comes to offering a wireless service that will appeal to kids. …

The Bluetooth Special Interest Group isn’t going to take it anymore-a at least that’s the message heard around the world as the group announced it orchestrated a successful raid in a Shenzhen, China, factory suspected of infringing on the Bluetooth …

HTC Corp. is looking to capitalize on trends?and possibly buck them-as it works to deliver smart phones in the United States and around the world. With 80 percent of the global Windows Mobile business, the Taiwanese smart-phone vendor has grown …

LONDON-Best Buy International will team with U.K. wireless retail giant Carphone Warehouse Group to open stand-alone cell phone stores in the United States. In a prepared statement, the firms said a trial of Best Buy Mobile stores in New York …

The great Washington wireless mystery continues. Last week, the Federal Communications Commission officially launched its Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau. Kenneth Moran was named acting chief of a new unit that has been in the works in the year …

Xero Mobile Inc. found a buyer, inking a deal to sell “substantially all of its assets and liabilities” to little-known Advanced Mobile Communications Inc. The mobile virtual network operator?which has yet to launch service?said it will receive an undisclosed amount …

Here’s what got the RCR Wireless News editorial staff talking at the water cooler last week: Mobile ESPN is out of the game. Who knew ESPN stood for Eliminate Service Plan Now? Although it wasn’t entirely unexpected, it’s still surprising …