WASHINGTON-Even as wireless carriers won the right to stop collecting a 3-percent federal excise tax, they may be caught in the middle of a paperwork nightmare as customers try to collect government refunds. Already, Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel Corp. said they would no...
While big-name media conglomerates scramble to find ways to leverage the "third screen," a handful of wireless companies are slowly gaining traction by offering content from hometown TV newscasts. Local Solutions Network, an Atlanta-based mobile content delivery company, has quietly inked deals with local...
Zingy is hoping to find some stability in the direct-to-consumer market. The New York-based mobile content provider launched an Internet storefront targeting 13- to 21-year-olds with both a la carte and subscription pricing models for ringtones, images, games and applications. Zingy said it will...
Consumer-side mobile virtual network operators that still want to get in on the game could be out of luck, but there are opportunities ahead on the business side and in serving the machine-to-machine space. John Caddell, vice president and general manager of mobile virtual...
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates-Phone junkies have been speculating for months about i-mate's forthcoming slim Smartflip handset ever since photos of the device were posted on the Internet earlier this year. Now the company has offered a more concrete glimpse of the handset in its...
The news that India's government plans to delay the launch of 3G services in that country is probably grabbing attention in the executive suites of the world's most ambitious handset vendors; India's market potential is enormous and among the fastest growing on the planet....
HIGHLAND PARK, Ill.-Yuvee Inc. introduced a new cell-phone keypad interface called NeoKeys that it says simplifies commands and text and number entry and eliminates use of the upper screen for navigation. The keypad eliminates hard labeling on the keys and provides dynamic displays above...
LOS ANGELES-The Independent Film & Television Alliance released a revised wireless guide in advance of the 2006 Cannes Film Festival to keep its membership educated about evolving digital rights management issues. The group said the guide provides direction on business, financial, legal and technological...
INDEPENDENCE, Ohio—Regional operator Revol Wireless has introduced a new suite of data applications to its users that includes ringtones, games, 411 directory assistance and Web browsing. Privately held Revol offers service in five Ohio cities and Indianapolis, Ind. with no contract for $47 per...
NEW YORK-Zingy is hoping to find some stability in the direct-to-consumer market. The New York-based mobile content provider launched an Internet storefront targeting 13- to 21-year-olds with both a la carte and subscription pricing models for ringtones, images, games and applications. Zingy said it...
LONDON—Infonetics Research found that the global market for radio access network gear dropped 22 percent to $7.4 billion in the first quarter due to huge declines in CDMA EV-DO and GSM/GPRS/EDGE equipment revenue. However, the report indicates that sales of W-CDMA/UMTS RAN equipment rose...
RESTON, Va.—Broadband wireless provider Nextlink Wireless said Robert Beran is the company’s new chief executive officer. As part of the post, Beran also becomes a senior vice president at Nextlink’s parent company, XO Holdings. Beran is a 20-year veteran of the technology and telecommunications...
WASHINGTON—It took nearly a month but the Federal Communications Commission’s auction of 800 MHz spectrum is over after 144 rounds. Winning bids totaled $38.3 million for the two licenses to offer air-to-ground services. Early on, AC BidCo L.L.C., an affiliate of AirCell Inc., won...
BEIJING—Motorola Inc. said it tapped PacificNet iMobile to power its online storefront for wireless users in China. PacificNet will operate the site, dubbed MotoShop, and will provide distribution and logistics support, delivering goods door-to-door in the 40 Chinese cities in which it has distribution...
The following list includes ratings changes and financial information for wireless companies announced this week by investment-banking and financial-services firms. Click here for wireless ratings from past weeks from RCR Wireless News.CarrierRBC Capital Markets started coverage on Dobson Communications with a sector perform rating...
The following list details this week's infrastructure awards for the cellular, Wi-Fi and WiMAX industries. The contracts are broken down by transmission technology, country and vendor. The value of the contract is included when available. Click here for additional infrastructure awards from RCR Wireless...
NEW YORK—AT&T Inc., CBS Corp. and H.J. Heinz Co. are among the 10 corporations with the worst credit outlooks among U.S. investment-grade bond issues, according to a report released today by Gimme Credit, a fixed-income research company. Engaging in acquisitions or battling with activist...
SAN DIEGO—Qualcomm Inc. refuted claims made in a Korean newspaper that certain Korean manufacturers’ royalty obligations will expire in 2006 for sales within Korea and in 2008 for sales outside Korea. Qualcomm said The Korea Times apparently is reporting details of an old agreement...
WASHINGTON—A leading industry group blasted a Department of Homeland Security draft report that highlighted potential privacy problems with radio frequency identification technology and downplayed the value of the wireless technology. "RFID technology may have a small benefit in terms of speeding identification processes, but...
WASHINGTON—The Federal Communications Commission as early as today is expected to issue a new ruling addressing controversial changes to small business bidding rules ahead of the scheduled Aug. 9 start of the advanced wireless services auction, according to sources. Sources said a move by...
BOCA RATON, Fla.—Global Tower Partners expanded its footprint in the Western United States with an agreement to buy 78 towers from Chinook Wireless Communications, a carrier holding 1900 MHz licenses in eight basic trading areas covering more than 1 million people across Montana and...
SAN DIEGO—Qualcomm Inc. said it plans to extend Microsoft Corp.’s "Live Anywhere" technology onto its BREW platform in an effort to provide a "unified gaming universe." The chipmaker used its BREW 2006 Conference to showcase an integrated gaming offering across Microsoft’s Xbox Live, MSN...
OVERLAND PARK, Kan.—Sprint Nextel Corp. will sell Mobile ESPN L.L.C. service in hundreds of its retail stores, a move that adds weight to the sports-focused MVNO’s distribution network. According to the two companies, Sprint Nextel had originally committed to provide Mobile ESPN space in...
DENVER—Cellular customers of Qwest Communications International Inc. who are seeking directory assistance no longer have to rely on memory or a quick scribble to recall the number that they’re looking for. The regional telecommunications provider has begun offering a text-messaging 411 option to its...
