Mobile News – RCR Wireless News

WASHINGTON-An 11th-hour effort to pass the wireless enhanced 911 funding bill was struggling against a senatorial objection that stopped the frenetic activity to get the bill passed. Still, supporters remained hopeful the bill would be considered before Congress leaves town …

MUNICH-Siemens AG raised Flash-OFDM technology to a prime spot on the wireless radar with its decision to adopt it as an important part of its offering. Flarion Technologies Inc. is the proprietor of Flash-OFDM. This decision sets the stage for …

ATLANTA-Sprint PCS affiliate AirGate PCS Inc. said it has agreed to sell $175 million first-priority senior secured floating rate notes due 2011 at par value. The notes will bear interest at a rate equal to three-month LIBOR plus 3.75-percent reset …

BELLEVUE, Wash.-T-Mobile USA Inc. launched the Sony Ericsson GC79 PC card providing access to the carrier’s GPRS and 802.11b-based Wi-Fi data networks from a single device. The tri-band device operates on 900 GSM/GPRS networks and sells for $200. “This GPRS …

Google has launched a beta test of a service that allows mobile users to access the Google database from handsets using short message service. Google SMS delivers local business and residential listings via Google Local and price comparisons through Froogle.com. …

OTTAWA-VeriSign Inc. has licensed Bridgewater Systems’ authentication, authorization and accounting and mediation capabilities, according to a strategic agreement between the companies. VeriSign will use the technology in its Wireless Data Roaming Service, which enables data roaming for next-generation offerings. The …

As infrastructure vendors strive to simplify their products for carriers, companies such as Hewlett-Packard Co., Sun Microsystems Inc. and IBM Corp. are positioning themselves to provide network equipment vendors with core infrastructure platforms. HP made such a move last week …

WASHINGTON and DALLAS-Even as several entities signed a nationwide agreement meant to streamline tower sitings, tribal lands are exempt from the rules, thus leading some critics to say the pact isn’t streamlined enough. The Federal Communications Commission, the Advisory Council …

AT&T Wireless Services Inc. continues to roll out advanced devices and services despite an impending acquisition by Cingular Wireless L.L.C., which could be completed by the end of the year. AWS’ trend of new offerings could force Cingular to make …

J.D. Power and Associates reported that T-Mobile USA Inc. ranked highest in overall retail sales customer satisfaction among the nation’s seven largest wireless operators, according to the firm’s 2004 Wireless Retail Sales Satisfaction Study. The study, which included responses from …

WASHINGTON-Handset distributor Brightstar Corp. canceled its planned initial public offering last Wednesday, citing “market conditions and certain other factors,” according to regulatory filing. In August, Brightstar had filed for a $115 million public stock offering. The Miami-based wholesaler distributes handsets …

Expanding on the continued need for roaming between divergent Wi-Fi networks, Nomadix Corp. launched its NIS Roaming service connectivity solution that the company said aggregates devices running the company’s NSE service engine to create a managed roaming footprint for subscribers. …

Sprint Corp. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Gary Forsee said last week that the company’s highly anticipated sale of its more than 6,200 wireless towers could be completed by the end of this year, and that the company was moving …

BOSTON-Peer-to-peer multimedia messaging service will generate more revenue for wireless operators than P2P short message service by 2008, according to a study from the Yankee Group. The survey concluded that P2P MMS soon will be a lucrative offering for mobile …

OYSTER BAY, N.Y.-Microsoft Corp. could overtake Symbian Ltd. in mobile-phone operating system market share by 2009, according to research from ABI Research. The group believes that by 2009, mobile phones with Symbian operating systems could make up less than 50 …

WASHINGTON-The House of Representatives said Friday the transition to digital TV should end Dec. 31, 2006. “It is the sense of Congress that the Communications Act should be amended to eliminate the 85-percent penetration test and to require broadcasters to …

Depending on your perspective, mobile instant messaging either has taken off like a rocket or is still idling on the launching pad. Like many other applications, IM has been a hot topic in wireless circles for years. And as with …

WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission clarified some issues in its plan to solve public-safety interference in the 800 MHz band, but did not deal with any of the issues raised by Nextel Communications Inc. The most substantive change the FCC made …

CINCINNATI—Lottery.com has teamed with Games Inc. to launch a text-messaging application that distributes nationwide state lottery results to mobile devices, the companies announced. The service, which is free to mobile users who agree to accept a tagline advertisement with each …

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.—The Mobile Marketing Association formed an anti-spam committee, marking the organization’s work to keep wireless content and applications spam-free. The committee is charged with researching the merits of a national preference and privacy database. It hopes to create …

NEWTONVILLE, Mass.—A slim majority of mobile-phone users aren’t interested in watching television broadcasts on their handsets, according to a report released Monday. The survey indicates 46 percent of U.S. cell-phone users are at least “somewhat” interested in watching television or …

Four years after leaving Microsoft to start their own business, Pete Mansour and Chad Schwitters are coming to market. The co-founders of Sproqit, a mobile software developer, plan to unveil software that allows people using handheld wireless devices to remotely …

WASHINGTON—Mark Crosby, who left the Industrial Telecommunications Association in February 2001 to become president of Access Spectrum L.L.C., has returned as ITA’s president and chief executive officer. Laura Smith is no longer with the organization. “Mark’s passion for pursuing and …

WASHINGTON—After complaining that a subsidiary of Nextel Communications Inc. was trying to gobble up the remaining available spectrum in the 900 MHz band, the Industrial Telecommunications Association is asking the government to lift a freeze put on 900 MHz band …

WASHINGTON—Nextel Communications Inc. has requested an extension of time to comply with certain provisions of the telecom consumer bill of rights approved by the California Public Utilities Commission in May. The compliance extension sought by Nextel involves various rule subparts …