Mobile News – RCR Wireless News

WASHINGTON-Motient Corp. and SkyTerra Communications Inc. signed agreements to consolidate ownership and control of mobile satellite service assets, whose value is tied to plans to build and operate next-generation hybrid satellite-terrestrial communications networks covering the United States and Canada. As …

OKLAHOMA CITY-Dobson Communications Corp.’s subsidiary American Cellular Corp. said it agreed to purchase Highland Cellular L.L.C. for $95 million. Highland provides wireless service to approximately 51,000 customers in parts of West Virginia and Virginia, markets south of existing Dobson operations. …

Qualcomm Inc. may be closer to snaring a European deal for its MediaFlo mobile TV offering through a new agreement with digital TV platform operator British Sky Broadcasting Inc. The two companies agreed to test MediaFlo this summer in the …

Now that Qualcomm Inc. has signed a new royalty-bearing patent agreement giving Soma Networks Inc. license to develop, manufacture and sell subscriber units, modem cards and infrastructure equipment based on Qualcomm’s OFDM and OFDMA technology, the wireless industry is buzzing …

SAN MATEO, Calif.-Digital Chocolate Inc. scored dual MVNO agreements, announcing deals to offer its games from the decks of mobile virtual network operators Amp’d Mobile Inc. and Helio L.L.C. Each operator plans to carry about two dozen titles from the …

T-Mobile USA Inc. posted a strong first quarter, beating analysts’ expectations in gaining just over 1 million new customers and lowering its customer churn rate while improving its revenues and income. The carrier posted1.04 million net customer additions, which was …

GREAT FALLS, Mont.-Nokia Corp. announced it won a contract with MTPCS L.L.C., otherwise known as Chinook Wireless, to build a GSM/GPRS/EDGE network throughout Montana. Though financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed, Nokia said the 5-year deal includes equipment, …

The IEEE 802.11n working group earlier this month voted down draft 1.0 of the proposed standard for higher throughput improvements, sparking debate about whether the vote was a dramatic defeat or an expected speed bump. Draft 1.0 of the measure …

WASHINGTON-Law enforcement and first-responder groups asked key Senate lawmakers to consider a private-sector plan to designate a block of spectrum in the 700 MHz band for a national wireless broadband public-safety network, one that would be shared with commercial wireless …

WASHINGTON-T-Mobile USA Inc. and Verizon Wireless said they did not participate in a data-mining operation run by the National Security Agency that collects phone records and looks for trends that would indicate terrorist activities. The NSA phone-records operation, first reported …

WASHINGTON-A U.S. appeals court in Atlanta is scheduled to hear oral argument this week in a key case that turns on whether a common billing practice by mobile-phone carriers is pre-empted by federal law. After the Federal Communications Commission last …

WASHINGTON-Unison Spectrum L.L.C. and Space Data Spectrum Holdings L.L.C. posted the highest bids at the end of round eight in the government’s air-to-ground auction of in-flight broadband services spectrum. The Federal Communications Commission is auctioning four megahertz of spectrum in …

PISCATAWAY, N.J.-So you’ve been thinking about launching a mobile virtual network operator service for multi-cultural ethnic groups in the United States that features prepaid and postpaid plans, and affordable international calling? After all, America is a melting pot of immigrants …

SAN FRANCISCO-More than one-quarter of all European mobile subscribers replace their handsets every year, and 60 percent replace after two years, according to San Francisco-based Telephia’s first-quarter report on the subject. Purchase rates are highest at the 12-, 24- and …

PLAINFIELD, Ind.-Brightpoint Inc. reported that its net income more than tripled during the first quarter from $2.9 million last year to $8.9 million this year. The company also announced plans for a 6-to-5 stock split at the end of this …

Two recent studies reflect that while consumers are snapping up camera phones-and snapping pictures-they are not sending them wirelessly and, therefore, carriers are missing out on a potentially vast revenue source. This is particularly true of major public events, such …

PALM SPRINGS, Calif.-Data holds the promise of new services and new revenues, and speakers at last week’s Rural Cellular Association conference emphasized the importance of those revenues-and the importance of small carriers not falling behind as national operators turn to …

Shares of Speedus Corp. shot upward after the wireless broadband company said it was targeting Verizon Wireless with two patent-infringement lawsuits. Speedus said it filed two lawsuits against the nation’s No. 2 operator over technologies used for mobile video and …

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif.-Wireless broadband developer Alvarion Ltd. and information-technology vendor IBM Corp. announced plans to jointly develop and deliver Internet Protocol-based wireless networks to municipalities and public safety agencies. The companies said they have been piloting their wireless network offerings …

LOS ANGELES-Like fans at a rock concert shouting to be heard above the din, game publishers are trying just about anything to rise above overcrowded carrier decks and present their wares-and their names-to consumers. Multi-layered decks have long been a …

WASHINGTON-As the battle for network neutrality heats up on Capitol Hill, wireless largely has been ignored, even though the nation’s two largest carriers prohibit customers from using bandwidth-hogging services and the fourth-largest carrier can only provide a confusing explanation as …

They’re talking, again. Business as usual. Optimism, according to the two parties, should replace the suddenly cloudy horizon. Never mind the thunderbolts that Qualcomm Inc. hurled at Nokia Corp. during the chipset vendor’s investor day earlier this month in New …

DETROIT-WiMAX and other fixed wireless technologies will be getting increased attention at AT&T Inc., according to Edward Whitacre, chief executive officer of the company. Whitacre, delivering a keynote address to the Detroit Economic Club, outlined new initiatives designed to enhance …

Small and mid-size carriers posted mixed results last week, with most losing customers but improving their revenues and bucking the industry trend of sliding average revenue per user. However, some carriers managed to beat analysts’ expectations. UbiquiTel Inc. reported a …

Helio L.L.C. made its long-awaited debut in the wireless marketplace last week with two high-end handsets linked to social networking site MySpace.com and plans to have its services available through 1,000 retail locations by the end of the month. Helio’s …