The Week in Review

Welcome to our Friday feature, Week in Review. Every Friday, RCR Wireless News runs through the major events of the past week, outlining what happened and speculating on what to look for in the coming weeks, months and years. Check below for news about carriers, handset makers, content companies, infrastructure vendors and more.
Carriers
–Disney is shuttering its MVNO effort at the end of the year, marking the latest major <a href=flameout in a market that was once white-hot with promise. Now the question becomes: Who’s next?
Handsets
–Apple appears to be taking aim at software <a href=that unlocks its iPhone device. The news could serve to strengthen the carrier’s relationships with operator partners keen to maintain their exclusivity on the gadget.
Content
–EchoStar <a href=announced a deal to purchase Sling Media, which offers software that allows smartphone users to watch their cable TV over wireless connections. The move gives Sling Media significant backing, which could worry wireless carriers that are reluctant to have TV programs traveling over their networks.
–MySpace launched an <a href=ad-supported mobile site that is free to cellphone users. The move yet again highlights the potential of the mobile advertising arena, as well as the heft that major Internet destinations could wield over wireless.
Infrastructure
–The WiMAX World USA trade show <a href=wrapped up in Chicago with industry touting the technology’s benefits. However, it remains to be seen whether WiMAX will supplant interest in 4G technologies like LTE and UMB.
Other
–FCC Chairman Kevin Martin <a href=is considering revisions to the 700 MHz open-access stipulations, a move that has serious implications for the upcoming auction. All eyes will be on the issue as the January start date for the auction nears.
–Verizon Wireless <a href=quickly reversed a decision that would have banned abortion activists from sending text messages through the carrier’s network. The issue is likely to come up again and again in the ongoing net neutrality debate.
COMING IN MONDAY’S ISSUE OF RCR WIRELESS NEWS
–In the coming weeks, third-quarter financial results are due soon from the nation’s major players, numbers that should offer evidence on the health and direction of the industry. Phil Carson reports.
–Clearwire’s Scott Richardson gets into an in-depth discussion of WiMAX, video and the future of mobile with reporter Matt Kapko.
–Many of the world’s top handset makers are refreshing their marketing efforts by hiring executives from mega-corporations like Nike Inc. and PepsiCo. Phil Carson reports.