European consumers are more interested in location-based services than they are in watching mobile TV, according to new figures from Canalys.The U.K.-based market research firm said 51% of users in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom expressed some interest in watching video...
Mobile video service MyCorner is the latest player on the user-generated content field, launching an ad-supported service that allows users to share clips with their mobile phones.The Fremont, Calif.-based startup said the new service requires no application download and works on Internet-enabled phones by...
A digital rights advocacy group criticized a Bush administration legislative proposal to crackdown on intellectual property infringement, a move that comes as the music industry begins to move away from copyright restrictions and as content emerges as a key strategic component of mobile-phone carriers'...
Hello! And welcome to our Thursday column, Worst of the Week. There's a lot of nutty stuff that goes on in this industry, so this column is a chance for us at RCR Wireless News to rant and rave about whatever rubs us the...
Digital entertainment company New Motion Inc. said its first-quarter sales nearly doubled.Net sales increased 83% to $5.6 million, from $4 million during the first quarter last year.The company's net loss was $372,000.New Motion said its sales growth reflects a larger consumer base, increasing average...
Motorola Inc. is shifting its marketing strategy away from its mobile devices such as the Razr or Pebl to one more squarely focused on the consumer.Casey Keller, in one of his first interviews since being named chief marketing officer last October, said Motorola believes...
Struggling cellphone maker Motorola Inc. is expected to slash more jobs in addition to the 3,500 layoffs it announced earlier this year, several analysts said.In a Tuesday lunch meeting with analysts in New York, Motorola CFO Thomas Meredith indicated the company "would announce additional...
Frontline Wireless L.L.C. rejected Cyren Call Communications Corp.'s view that first responders should join forces with a top mobile phone carrier if federal regulators approve new 700 MHz rules for a national public-safety broadband network that the private sector would build and share with...
The Federal Communications Commission agreed to reserve a large chunk of frequencies for TerreStar Networks Inc., a firm that plans to provide wireless service throughout North America using a hybrid satellite-terrestrial cellular network. The news essentially gives TerreStar direct ownership of spectrum covering all...
Major League Baseball is teaming with Scotland's Mobiqa to turn mobile phones into tickets to the ballpark.The companies unveiled Tickets@Phone, an application that allows fans to buy a ticket online and have it delivered to a phone in the form of a readable barcode....
Flat-rate carrier MetroPCS Communications Inc. came close to doubling its net subscriber figures for the first quarter of 2007 and boosted its service revenues by 60%, according to its quarterly results.The company said it gained more than 454,000 net users in the quarter, up...
RealNetworks Inc. expanded its mobile entertainment business with the $9 million acquisition of Sony NetServices.A joint venture between Sony DADC and Sony Europe, Sony NetServices targets carriers in eight European markets with white-label music services. The company's technology powers on-demand music and video offerings...
Mobile-phone carriers blasted a new Federal Communications Commission proposal to cap wireless universal service support in rural areas.The FCC plan is a stop-gap attempt to limit a ballooning high-cost component of the universal service fund-one accounting for about $4 billion of the $7 billion...
The Mobile Entertainment Forum announced a record number of applications for this year's Meffys awards, marking a 50% increase from last year. Music-focused applications attracted the most entries, followed closely by gaming and then TV and video.The Meffys, which are in their fourth year,...
Location-based application developer uLocate Communications Inc. pocketed $11 million in a funding round led by Venrock. Existing investors GrandBanks Capital and Kodiak Venture Partners joined the round, and Venrock partner Mike Tyrrell joined uLocate's board under terms of the deal. The Framingham, Mass.-based firm...
Verizon Wireless said it is now offering its customers access to ESPN MVP content.ESPN MVP gives Verizon Wireless' Vcast subscribers access to content such as SportsCenter video highlights, game score alerts, breaking sports news updates, ESPN Gamecast, and news on players, teams and leagues....
Buongiorno S.p.A. expanded its mobile marketing business with the acquisition of U.K.-based Flytxt Inc.The Italian content behemoth said it will spend $5.4 million for the 7-year-old Flytxt, which powers text-to-win campaigns and other mobile marketing efforts. Flytxt's operations will be integrated with Buongiorno's technology...
U.S. Cellular Corp. had a solid first quarter, with net customer additions in line with its results for the first quarter of 2006 and sequentially stronger than its performance in the fourth quarter of last year.The carrier recorded 86,000 net new customer activations in...
NextWave Wireless Inc., which has been on an acquisition bent this year and remains a steady force in the industry, announced a 98% increase in revenues over the year-ago period in financial results for the first quarter of 2007.The company raked in $7.7 million...
Nuance Communications Inc. continued to help thin the speech-recognition herd, snapping up VoiceSignal Technologies Inc. in a deal valued at nearly $300 million.Nuance said it will fork over 5.8 million Nuance shares as well as $204 million in cash for privately held VoiceSignal, a...
Amp'd Mobile Inc. jacked up its handset prices across the board on all five of its proffered models.For instance, the Motorola Inc. Q soared to $220 (from $100), two models of Razrs went to $70 and $80, respectively (from $50 and $60), and the...
Handset pricing gyrations ran the gamut last week, as all of the nation's tier-one carriers tinkered with the cost of their handset portfolios.--AT&T Mobility slashed in half the price on four Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. handsets last week, ranging from the low-end C417, priced...
Mobile subscribers' options for video and TV programming continue to bloom as spring takes hold. The latest: The Disney-ABC Television Group announced a new channel at Sprint Nextel Corp. for its news and entertainment video programming from ABC Entertainment, ABC News and Disney Channel.The...
Verizon Wireless and mFoundry announced they are working together on a banking and financial services solution.According to mFoundry Inc., Verizon Wireless will support its Spotlight Financial Platform, which allows its customers to access and manage their financial information. The company said its Spotlight solution...
