January 2007

Regional carrier and Sprint Nextel Corp. CDMA affiliate Shenandoah Telecommunications Co. announced it scored 11,909 net retail customer additions in the fourth quarter and 30,528 net retail customers for the year. The fourth-quarter numbers represent a 82.8 percent increase compared …

Openwave Systems Inc. said it has yet to reach a settlement in its proxy contest with Harbinger Capital Partners.The mobile software developer said Monday it extended a board seat to James Zucco, one of two director nominees proposed by dissident …

Verizon Wireless won a preliminary injunction against a Texas wireless reseller that it claims reneged on its agreement to be an exclusive Verizon Wireless dealer. Meanwhile, the dealer claims that Verizon Wireless lured it away from a successful relationship with …

Mobile content company Nellymoser Inc. tapped Susanne Bowen to replace founder John Puterbaugh as CEO.Bowen most recently served as CEO of Webhire Inc., a Boston-based talent-management software firm, and has held senior executive positions with Workscape, Entex Information Services and …

WASHINGTON-A stay has been lifted in the mobile phone industry’s challenge to a Kentucky wireless tax. A federal court has blocked the tax from being enforced.Industry’s suit and the tax itself have been on hold since December 2005 when the …

Amp’d Mobile Inc. is taking to the hardwood with content from the NBA, CSTV Networks and basketball magazines “Dime” and “Bounce.”The mobile virtual network operator said it will deliver a live video stream of NBA TV including live broadcasts of …

The Bush administration’s top telecommunications policy advisor said a report will be released early this year detailing the federal government’s use of spectrum, information largely kept out of the public’s eye even at a time when public and private entities …

Mobile marketing startup Millenial Media emerged from stealth mode with $6.3 million in its wallet.Bessemer Venture Partners, Columbia Capital and Acta Wireless participated in the first round of funding for Millenial Media, which was founded by former Verizon Wireless executive …

Wireless subscribers still covet broad network coverage-and will switch carriers to get it, according to a new survey of mobile users by comScore Networks. About 27 percent of survey respondents who had switched to a new carrier cited “better coverage” …

Cellphone association CTIA announced it hired Jay Driscoll as its new director of government affairs. Driscoll previously worked as the legislative director for the Independent Telephone and Telecommunications Alliance.“With his experience, background and demeanor, Jay will quickly become a valuable …

IceBreaker Inc. is hoping to lure would-be lovers with an anonymous matchmaking application for cellphones.The company launched “Crush or Flush,” a downloadable offering that allows users to create profiles, browse images of other members and chat with mutual crushes. The …

Online retailer InPhonic Inc. and US Airways have partnered in a new Dividend Miles Wireless program that will allow US Airways Dividend Miles members to earn thousands of miles through their wireless purchases.The new program will point members to an …

A tight embrace might keep a customer from wandering elsewhere, which helps explain Sprint Nextel Corp.’s official release of two dual-mode, CDMA/iDEN phones designed to please iDEN customers who are bedeviling the beleaguered carrier by taking their business elsewhere.Branded as …

Online movie rental giant Netflix Inc. announced plans to roll out a new feature that will allow subscribers to stream movies and television series to their personal computers. The company eventually plans to expand the service to support any Internet-capable …

Sprint Nextel Corp. announced a new senior vice president of strategy as the company tries to turn around and its recent poor performance.Jack Dziak, who has worked for MCI Communications and Accenture, and was most recently senior vice president of …

Comedy Central’s “The Daily Show” is far and away the television program that consumers are most interested in watching on mobile telephones. During the second quarter of 2006, the Comedy Central show was the most popular show for mobile video …

LAS VEGAS-The only thing holding up the explosion of the mobile phone content and advertising business continues to be the lack of interested viewers, panelists bemoaned at the second annual NATPE Mobile conference here. Under 10%Currently, 20 percent of all …

The global mobile gambling market shows promise despite recent legislation in the United States against Internet gambling, according to new numbers from Juniper Research. The firm predicts the global market for all forms of mobile gambling, including casinos, lotteries and …

After a brief delay, New Wave Mobile Inc. has closed on its acquisition of WagerPhone Inc., which provides a customizable platform for lotteries that offers new and alternative distribution channels. The deal, which was expected to close Dec. 19, was …

Wrestling franchise Total Nonstop Action (TNA) Wrestling signed an exclusive mobile content deal with New Motion Inc., an agreement that includes multimedia integration with Spike TV’s TNA iMPACT pay-per-view and live events.The deal includes exclusive North American rights for New …

Mobifusion, a developer, publisher and distributor of mobile applications, has expanded its reach into reference content for mobile devices and smartphones with its now completed acquisition of Town Compass. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.Mobifusion has now combined all …

ST. LOUIS-Alltel Corp. announced extended its content-billing deal with Amdocs Inc.Terms of the multi-year contract were not disclosed. Amdocs’ Qpass Digital Commerce platform allows Alltel subscribers to browse and purchase content such as ringtones, messaging and games. Amdocs purchased Qpass …

T-Mobile USA Inc. offered data this week purporting to demonstrate the consumer appeal of the Research In Motion Ltd. BlackBerry Pearl. The tidbits suggest that the Pearl-designed to appeal to consumers, yet equipped for enterprise use through IT-based controls over …

Editor’s Note: Welcome our Monday feature, Analyst Angle. We’ve collected a group of the industry’s leading analysts to give their outlook on the hot topics in the wireless industry. In the coming weeks look for columns from Strategy Analytics’ Chris …

Verizon Wireless plans to join its compatriots in raising the price of per-message texting, bumping the rate for sending and receiving messages from 10 cents apiece to 15 cents for postpaid subscribers.Sprint Nextel Corp. made similar changes to its messaging …