LOS ANGELES-MTV Networks will invest $50 million in Amp'd Mobile Inc. and will work with the mobile virtual network operator to offer both repurposed and exclusive, made-for-mobile content from MTV, VH1 and Comedy Central. "When we began this company, partnering with MTV Networks was...
WASHINGTON-Securities industry regulator NASD is warning investors to be cautious about text messages they receive on their mobile phones that claim to provide hot stock tips. A new version of a "pump-and-dump" scheme has emerged in the mobile environment, the agency said. Such schemes...
BELLEVUE, Wash-T-Mobile USA Inc. has pulled job postings with anti-union language from its Web site, after protests from Switzerland-based international union group UNI. T-Mobile USA spokesman Peter Dobrow said that the language of the ads was "a poor choice of words" and confirmed that...
Dwango Wireless is hoping a change in name helps bring about a change in fortune. After losing $15 million so far this year, the content provider is rebranding this week as Dijji Corp. The move was necessitated by the company's separation agreement with Japanese...
By Alice Z. CuneoSAN FRANCISCO-In an effort to harness mobile phone TV as a major branded entertainment medium, Jeep is launching its own mobile phone channel with MobiTV.The content is available to about 500,000 subscribers using Cingular Wireless L.L.C., Sprint Nextel Corp., Alltel Corp....
LONDON-Vodafone won an auction to purchase Turkey's second largest wireless operator Telsim for $4.55 billion. "With a larger population than every European country except Germany, and penetration level of approximately 53 percent, the Turkish market represents a major growth opportunity," said Arun Sarin,...
NEW YORK-Direct-to-consumer wireless content provider Thumbplay Inc. said it raised $7.5 million in second-round funding to go along with an undisclosed amount of first round funding. Thumbplay said it will use the new funds to expand its content business.SoftBank Capital led the latest round,...
STOCKHOLM, Sweden-L.M. Ericsson is defending the actions of its employees after the Swedish National Economic Crimes Bureau expanded on the tax evasion charges it filed against Ericsson employees. SNECB filed charges against current and former Ericsson employees earlier this year, but recently added additional...
HOLMDEL, N.J.-Voice over Internet Protocol company Vonage Holdings Corp. released a Wi-Fi telephone it will sell for around $80 with a service plan. The UTStarcom Inc.-sourced phone will allow Vonage users to place VoIP calls from any publicly available hotspot."With the rapid increase of...
BOULDER, Colo.-SpectraLink Corp., which provides workplace wireless telephone services, said it plans to acquire Kirk Telecom, a Denmark-based company that provides on-site wireless communications products.Terms of the definitive agreement call for SpectraLink to pay $61.3 million in cash to acquire all of Kirk's stock....
PARIS-French media services company Thomson reported plans to acquire Thales' Broadcast & Multimedia business unit in a move Thomson said will put it in the mobile TV space. The company said it plans to offer cellular carriers a complete set of mobile TV solutions,...
NEW YORK-Soon-to-launch mobile virtual network operator Amp'd Mobile Inc. announced it will offer TV clips from CBS and UPN, news that comes on the heels of several similar deals between wireless carriers and media outlets.The agreement calls for the two television networks to provide...
WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission should not discriminate against Voice over Internet Protocol providers when there are more than 100 counties that do not even have wireline 911, Sen. John Sununu (R-N.H.) told FCC Commissioner Michael Copps Tuesday morning. Copps was appearing before the Senate...
NEW YORK-Siemens AG's equipment is not part of Cingular Wireless L.L.C.'s 16-city UMTS/HSDPA rollout, according to UBS Investment Research, which stands as a blow to the equipment provider. Further, Siemens' absence brings into question the company's future with Cingular. UBS said Cingular deployed radio...
LONDON-Staellium U.K. Ltd. launched a text messaging product sure to please all those amateur spies out there. The company's StealthText service allows users to send text messages that "self destruct," or automatically erase themselves after 40 seconds. The service is reminiscent of the 1960s/1970s...
RA'ANANA, Israel-Emblaze Ltd. announced it acquired a stake in European handset distribution company Global Telecoms Distribution plc. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.Emblaze, which designs mobile phones, said the move will help it gain access to the European carrier market. The company said...
REDWOOD SHORES, Calif.-Enterprise broadband service provider iPass Inc. reported plans to purchase Wi-Fi hot spot service aggregator GoRemote Internet Communications Inc. for $76.5 million in cash. While iPass serves roaming mobile broadband users, such as salespeople and business travelers, GoRemote has focused on remote...
Alltel Corp. will forge ahead as a wireless-only business, the company announced. Alltel is spinning off its wireline business into a $9.1 billion merger with Texas-based Valor Communications Group Inc. The new wireline company will be located in central Arkansas and will focus on...
BEDMINSTER, N.J.-Verizon Wireless has forced two telemarketing firms to stop making illegal sales pitches to the wireless carrier's customers. As part of court-approved settlements, Verizon won permanent injunctions against Intelligent Alternatives of San Diego, Calif., and Resort Marketing Trends of Coral Springs, Fla., which...
WASHINGTON-One week after the 9/11 Commission gave the federal government an "F" in public-safety interoperability, Wayne County, Mich., said it chose a software solution from Codespear L.L.C. to solve its public-safety interoperability problems. Codespear said that once installed, its software-only solution enables any device...
WASHINGTON-California Public Utilities Commission President Michael Peevey is poised to take control of the deregulatory telecom bill-of-rights plan championed by Commissioner Susan Kennedy, who is set to leave the agency at year's end to become chief of staff to GOP Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Kennedy,...
WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission should "declare victory" on the deployment of enhanced 911 service, even if many carriers do not have 95 percent of their customers using a location-capable handset. That was the advice from Richard Barth, corporate vice president of homeland-security strategy for...
BellSouth Corp. denied that it withdrew an offer to donate a building to house the displaced New Orleans Police Department. At the same time, the carrier also announced plans to expand its Wireless Broadband Service to Hurricane Katrina-ravaged New Orleans, and Gulfport and Biloxi,...
After 12 official drafts, the IEEE finally approved the 684-page proposal from the 802.16 Task Group, designating the mobile WiMAX standard as 802.16e-2005. The WiMAX Forum is set to begin trials and certification testing in early 2006, with certified products scheduled to hit the...
