WASHINGTON-California state Sen. Martha Escutia (D) last Friday vowed to pursue a law creating a bill of rights for telecom consumers similar to the one utility regulators approved in 2004, but that was overhauled last week. "Six years of effort and this was the...
GOLDEN, Colo.-RCR Wireless News is pleased to announce it has hired Phil Carson as a reporter covering the wireless handset beat, including the chipset industry. Carson has worked as a reporter and editor since 1986, including stints in the wireless industry, science and technology,...
Yahoo Inc. filed a lawsuit against Mforma Group Inc., claiming the mobile game-maker is stealing company secrets as it hires seven former Yahoo employees. The Internet giant is suing both Mforma and the former workers, saying it will seek an injunction in a California...
Tower circles are buzzing with speculation as to who will walk off with AAT Communications Corp. and its 1,900 or so towers, in effect pushing aside fourth-quarter results from Crown Castle International Corp. and American Tower Corp. that provided few surprises in the tower...
BONN, Germany—Vodafone Group plc shares surged more than 9 percent on the London Stock Exchange Friday after the company confirmed reports that it is in talks to sell its Japanese operations to broadband Internet provider Softbank. "Vodafone has been struggling with its Japanese unit...
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. CellularMalta: Nortel Networks said it is providing EDGE technology to...
The following list includes ratings changes and financial information for wireless companies announced this week by investment-banking and financial-services firms. CarriersPrudential Equity Group lowered its subscriber net adds forecast for UbiquiTel Inc., and consequently its EPS forecast for the company’s fiscal 2006. Prudential’s new EPS...
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.—Pyramid Research issued a cautious view of the young mobile virtual network operator market in its latest report, "MVNOs and MVNEs: Analyzing the Viability of Virtual Mobile Players." The firm said MVNOs face a variety of challenges and the segment’s financials may not...
ATLANTA—Cingular Wireless L.L.C. and Qpass extended an agreement for Qpass to provide its mobile-commerce platform to the carrier, according to the companies. Qpass is a mobile-commerce solutions company that sells technology that enables the downloading and billing of content. Essentially, Qpass’ offerings allow mobile...
SARASOTA, Fla.—Global Signal Inc. blamed its fourth-quarter net loss of $18.8 million on costs it incurred while integrating and financing the tower sites it acquired from Sprint in May. In 2004, the company posted fourth-quarter net losses of $4.1 million. "2005 was a transformational...
SCHAUMBURG, Ill.—Motorola Inc. says it’s combining its Networks and Government & Enterprise Mobility Solutions business units into one entity for the sake of cost savings and efficiency. The company named Greg Brown, current president of Motorola’s Government & Enterprise Mobility Solutions, to lead the...
LOD, Israel—Radio-frequency component maker Celldor Ltd. acquired Telrad Connegy, said the companies. The deal is strictly a financial investment for Celldor, said the companies, and there are no plans to combine the two businesses.Telrad Connegy provides business telecommunications solutions. Its AdvanceIP product supports TDM...
WASHINGTON—A federal court has ordered a Florida firm to immediately halt "unlocking" TracFone Wireless Inc. pre-paid cell phones. Unlocked phones can be used on cellular networks other than those affiliated with the prepaid wireless provider. TracFone, the nation’s largest pre-paid cell phone company, and...
BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd. and patent-holding company NTP Inc. announced they ended their long-running legal quarrel under an agreement that calls for RIM to make a one-time payment to NTP of $612.5 million. The amount is only slightly more than the $450...
LOS ANGELES—Amp’d Mobile Inc. is offering three months of unlimited calling minutes to subscribers who sign up for its $15 per month Amp’d Live 20-channel video plan. The mobile virtual network operator, which launched online in mid-December, usually offers unlimited calling only with its...
WASHINGTON—California state Sen. Martha Escutia (D) today said she plans to redouble efforts to pass a law creating a consumer telecom bill of rights similar to the one utility regulators approved in 2004, but dramatically altered yesterday. "Six years of effort and this was...
WASHINGTON—Iraq today officially launched the first mobile phone license tender under the new government, a competition intended to result in four national wireless carriers. "After decades of oppression under the Saddam, Iraqis are keen to express themselves via all forms of telecommunication. Mobile phones,...
WASHINGTON—The California Public Utilities Commission today voted to replace the existing bill of rights for telecom consumers with one far less regulatory and highly dependent on state enforcement. "This decision is a prime example of the commission’s desire to use the power of market...
MUMBAI, India—Mauj Telecom, a mobile entertainment company based in India, said it raised $10 million in venture funding. The financing round included investments from WestBridge Capital Partners, Intel Capital and Sequoia Capital. Mauj’s services focus on mobile music, gaming, mobile-commerce and mobile messaging.
EINDHOVEN, Netherlands—In the parallel 3G universe occupied by China, the world’s largest mobile-phone market, the cart apparently comes before the horse. The first video phone destined for the country’s TD-SCDMA technology—a dual-mode Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. handset with guts by Royal Philips Electronics and...
ESPOO, Finland—Frank Nuovo, the designer who helped Nokia Corp. attain the world’s largest market share of the mobile handset business, will turn over his primary duties to a new design team, the company announced today. Nuovo has worked for Nokia for 16 years, and...
WASHINGTON—Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin has yet to convince his colleagues to reorganize the FCC with a new homeland security and public-safety bureau, thus was unable to ask Congress to approve his plan during his annual appearance before the House Appropriations commerce subcommittee....
BONN, Germany—T-Mobile USA Inc. posted the best overall performance last year among parent company T-Mobile International’s subsidiaries, helping to drive solid gains in parent company Deutsche Telekom AG’s full-year profit for 2005. DT also posted its largest dividend. However, DT’s fourth quarter profits plunged...
SAN FRANCISCO—VeriSign Inc.’s mobile content business is "looking like a disaster," according to a report released this week by American Technology Research analyst Albert Lin. Lin downgraded VeriSign to a sell rating, citing a flattening in revenues from ringtones, which account for as much...
