Mobile and Wireless Industry Reports

A new, pro-market advocacy group has formed to focus on business, technological and social aspects of mobile communications.The Mobile Future Coalition debuted yesterday at CTIA Wireless 2008. “American consumers have been well-served by the robust competition in the wireless market,” …

Not sure if it’s the desert air or some form of dementia brought on by a lack of food and a surplus of drink, but this year’s CTIA Wireless makes last year’s event seem sort of Mickey Mouse. A quick …

If you can get Dan Hesse, CEO of Sprint Nextel Corp., to extoll the virtues of your jointly developed handset during the opening day’s keynote address, you’re well-positioned to make hay.Thus the new Samsung Instinct – which looked similar to …

Mobile gaming continues to languish, plagued by a lack of innovation, overpriced titles and the constraints of tiny screens and 12-key pads. But game makers are hoping that Apple Inc.’s iPhone changes all that. Perhaps no other space in mobile …

The wireless industry faces major challenges in designing networks capable of carrying bandwidth-consuming multimedia content and reliably delivering to consumers in the future, according to company executives. Industry experts said wireless infrastructure buildout has become more complex than it has …

Well, April Fool’s Day came and went without much notice during the CTIA Wireless 2008 show. I find this disheartening; the CTIA show presents the perfect venue for companies both large and small to cause general havoc and mayhem in …

NBC Universal’s digital team has big plans this summer for its coverage of the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing — a colossal event and content-filled waterfall — that it hopes might increase awareness and whet the appetite for mobile television, …

The nation’s biggest wireless show kicks into high gear, as Sprint Nextel announces its handset plans. Dan Hesse, Sprint’s CEO, releases the carrier’s iPhone response, designed by Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. Samsung’s new sleek, black Instinct device features a touchscreen, …

Gambling continues to be a vice mostly pushed to the sidelines. It pops up with a vengeance in places like Las Vegas and on Indian reservations, but there are plenty of outlets waiting with open arms for those who want …

Change has never been easy for the cell-phone industry. And it’s perfectly understandable. With the kind of wild success and wealth creation during its first three decades, cellular chieftains who collectively service more than 250 million subscribers have a history …

As the wireless industry gears up for the nation’s biggest wireless show, CTIA’s John Walls discusses the trade group’s objectives for this year and beyond. Walls, VP of public affairs for CTIA, said a major topic this year will be …

Editor’s Note: Welcome to a special CTIA Show Daily edition of our weekly online feature, Analyst Angle. Every Monday at www.RCRWirelessNews.com you can find columns from the industry’s leading analysts, including NPD Group’s Ross Rubin, Enderle Group’s Rob Enderle and …

A portrait of success for a handset vendor might contain these elements: Offer a unique product that captures the consumer’s imagination (mindshare!) and suits their wallet and watch global sales ignite like a wildfire (market share!). The mainstream media does …

The controversy over whether the Federal Communications Commission should regulate short code-related text messaging has opened a floodgate of weighty policy questions – from network management to consumer protection to free speech – that could make resolution of the matter …

MetroPCS Communications Inc. launched service in Las Vegas and unveiled two new handsets.The Dallas-based carrier launched its flat-rate, unlimited service and announced plans to operate roughly six dozen retail locations in the greater Las Vegas area. MetroPCS also said it …

AT&T Mobility and MediaFLO USA Inc. announced they will launch their long-awaited mobile TV service in May, but the details of the offering still remain somewhat unclear.Neither company pointed to a specific date for launch, nor what content would be …

AT&T Mobility is taking on Verizon Wireless and its “best coverage” quality claims, a move some observers of the telecom industry say is overdue. “I’m surprised it’s taken them so long,” Jeff Kagan, an independent telecom analyst, said of the …

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — A wireless carrier’s job is not to police copyright infringement or other illegal activity that occurs over its network, Dick Lynch, executive VP and CTO of Verizon Wireless, said here at the Tech Policy Summit.“Our philosophy, a …

The following list includes venture capital and other investments into wireless companies announced during the past week. The value of the investment is included when available. Bubble Motion: Sequoia Capital US and Sequoia Capital India participated in a $14 million …

It seems AT&T Mobility and MediaFLO USA Inc. didn’t want to risk getting lost in the glare of next week’s CTIA Wireless 2008 trade show; the companies rushed out news this afternoon that AT&T Mobile TV with FLO will be …

HOLLYWOOD, Calif. — With results from the Federal Communications Commission’s 700 MHz auction now public, Commissioner Robert McDowell said one thing stands out: large, deep-pocketed companies squeezed smaller (and in some cases newer) players out of the process — despite …

Regional wireless operator Alltel Corp. posted a strong showing in J.D. Power and Associates latest rankings of wireless call quality, taking the sole or partial top spot in three of the report’s six regions. Alltel just nipped past Verizon Wireless, …

The TV white spaces debate — already highly controversial and politicized, but largely limited to potential unlicensed Wi-Fi use — just got messier.The mobile-phone industry recommended to the Federal Communications Commission that most vacant broadcast channels be auctioned for area-wide …

A new kind of wireless carrier is emerging, making use of licensed spectrum and picocell technology to provide businesses with small-scale networks tailored to their needs and designed to improve the bottom line. Bellevue, Wash.-based Strata8 Networks Inc. calls itself …

Leap Wireless International Inc. is kicking off the second quarter with the launch of two new phones that will work on the spectrum the carrier purchased during the Federal Communications Commission’s Auction 66, held in 2006. Leap and its designated-entity …