2008

(Wireless News Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) The number of US hospitals has decreased by 20 percent in the last 30 years, from over 7,000 in 1975 to 5,747 in 2007.

Microsoft wants to turn your car into a Windows machine (please, no “crash” jokes) with in-dash infotainment and diagnostic systems.

Traditional Web sites are often lost in translation on mobile phones. So developers are hoping to bridge the disconnect between wireless phones and the Internet by building a “middle Web.”The emergence of Apple Inc.’s iPhone has spawned a flurry of …

ON MANY LEVELS, politics alone appear to weigh heavily against the government approving a merger that would propel German telecommunications giant Deutsche Telekom AG to the top of the U.S. cellphone-carrier ranking through an acquisition of Sprint Nextel Corp.But perhaps …

WHAT’S THAT SAYING? Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me?After their previous union was aborted last year, Sprint Nextel Corp. and Clearwire Corp. decided last week to try to merge their WiMAX businesses again, this …

A new star is rising in mobile television and it’s all premised on the fact that people don’t want to pay for video on their cellphones. A few standout companies have blazed a path to free mobile content for consumers, …

Apple Inc.’s foray into the global handset industry is a work-in-progress, judging by last week’s events, just as its initial, domestic rollout was marked by adroit tactical shifts.A sudden avalanche of international market rollouts for the iPhone announced last week …

When people think of domestic iDEN carriers, the most common name mentioned is Sprint Nextel Corp., which serves more than 13 million customers on its Motorola Inc.-designed network. But that shouldn’t be where the conversion ends; Atlanta-based SouthernLINC Wireless operates …

Armed only with more promises to revive the badly flagging company, Motorola Inc.’s CEO Greg Brown and fellow board members took a verbal beating from their shareholders at last week’s annual shareholder meeting in Rosemont, Ill., according to news reports.Yet …

Inspired messagesThe Pope will send inspirational text messages to mobile phones during Catholic World Youth day this summer in Australia, according to a report from Agence France-Presse. “We wanted to make WYD08 a unique experience by using new ways to …

Imagine that a group of disparate warriors needs to cross a field laden with land mines. If they can agree on an approach that keeps all of them intact, they all survive to seek their fortunes. But if one or …

Big news: RCR Wireless News has redesigned its daily e-mail newsletter beginning today. The new and improved e-mail will still continue to bring you the hard-hitting news you expect from us, but we’ve added more features.You probably have noticed how …

If nothing else, the legacy of FCC Chairman Kevin Martin will be one in which aggressive advocacy of public-safety policy reigned to the point of sometimes seeming to conflict with fervent free-market principles.Public safety and national security is legally inherent …

If we didn’t live in a capitalist society, we’d be all for using Sprint Nextel’s iDEN network for public safety. Just look at the benefits. First, you save Sprint Nextel with some business that won’t churn for another carrier; then …

Mobile messaging revenues are expected to grow to $212 billion by 2013, according to new predictions from ABI Research.The growth will be driven by increasing popularity of short message service, strong mobile e-mail uptake in developed regions, messaging adoption in …

A new report from Juniper Research predicts WiMAX growth will begin to take off in the period between 2009 and 2011, growing to more than 47 million subscribers worldwide by 2013.The report predicts WiMAX will find a strong foothold as …

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. – Like many other forms of entertainment, watching mobile TV wastes time – at least to some. For the executives running mobile entertainment companies that routinely talk about the medium as such, there’s an apparent sense of pride …

The 700 MHz auction ended two months ago, but you’d never know it.Few things rarely are settled in official Washington. The Federal Communications Commission this week plans to launch a rulemaking to consider changes to the D Block. The national …

Analyst firm Berg Insight predicts 186 million machines will be connected to wireless networks by 2012, up from 37.5 million connections last year.Vehicle telematics applications likely will lead the machine-to-machine cellular market in most markets and account for more than …

Mowser has found a buyer.The technology behind the Web-to-mobile transcoding service that flat-lined three weeks ago was picked up by DotMobi, the Irish consortium behind the mobile-exclusive top-level domain. DotMobi said it will integrate Mowser’s technology into both enterprise- and …

Leap Wireless International Inc., which sells unlimited wireless phone service under the Cricket brand, reported an unaudited $18.1 million loss in the first quarter, a 25% improvement from the $24.2 million it lost in the same period a year prior.Leap …

Nokia Corp. isn’t the only player looking to offer devices that come with music.The Finnish manufacturer raised eyebrows late last year when it teamed with Universal Music Group International to unveil Comes With Music, an ambitious program that will package …

A sequential dip in shipments by Motorola Inc. and Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications between the fourth quarter and the first quarter spelled t-r-a-c-t-i-o-n for numerous second-tier handset makers, particularly in emerging markets. The opportunity for greater volumes among those outside …

Quietly, Professional Bull Riders has begun targeting rodeo fans – yes, rodeo fans – through their phones.The Pueblo, Colo.-based association several weeks ago launched a comprehensive wireless Web site, allowing fans to access news, standings, and rider profiles and blogs …