Mobile News – RCR Wireless News

WASHINGTON-Requiring network neutrality would thwart investment in high-speed networks, Wall Street analysts warned lawmakers. Network neutrality generally refers to the ability to run any lawful application or connect any lawful device to the communications network. For content providers, it means …

The newest player on the crowded mobile search playground is one of the most vocal. Promptu-known until this week as Agile TV-officially joined the world of wireless, delivering a voice-recognition offering designed to allow users to discover, purchase and download …

WASHINGTON-Minnesota Attorney General Mike Hatch has petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to review a federal appeals court decision striking down a state law that would have required cell-phone carriers to notify subscribers of-and sometimes get permission for-changes to wireless contracts. …

BERWYN, Pa.-Wireless location technology developer TruePosition Inc. said it is moving forward with its lawsuit against Andrew Corp., alleging the company’s products infringe on its patents for dealing with the location of cell phones using the wireless network control channel. …

WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission is seeking comment on whether broadband services can be used in the 700 MHz public-safety band. Twenty-four megahertz of spectrum is becoming available with the transition to digital TV. When the 700 MHz band plan was …

AMSTERDAM-Half of all malfunctioning products returned to stores are in working order, but customers can’t figure out how to operate the devices, according to a study reported by Reuters. Though product complaints and returns are often caused by poor design, …

Inmarsat plc intends to join the mobile satellite services sector’s handheld voice market, which it sees as a potential outgrowth of its existing, maritime customer base that could use excess capacity on its recently completed constellation of next-generation satellites. The …

MUNICH, Germany-BenQ Corp. reported a larger-than-expected net loss of $185.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2005, which the company attributed to revamping its product portfolio. The company also recorded a $30.8 million write-off of low-end Siemens handsets it inherited …

Razr availability through Cingular Wireless L.L.C. and T-Mobile USA Inc. may be unpredictable until the end of March, according to equity research firm Bear Stearns. That’s when the firm expects Motorola Inc. to fix and return Razr batches that were …

WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission Friday created its long anticipated Public Safety and Homeland Security Bureau, which is set to take over various functions and issues from seven other entities within the commission. “Many of the problems we saw during Hurricane …

Standardization for faster Wi-Fi technology continues to make progress. The IEEE group working on the 802.11n standard recently voted 82-12 in favor of the standard’s first draft proposal. The tentative approval began a 40-day period during which members can offer …

Verizon Wireless ranked at the top of a dozen North American mobile operators in a survey that examined value metrics such as subscriber growth, average revenue per user, churn and subscriber acquisition costs. Meanwhile, Cingular Wireless L.L.C. accounted for more …

WASHINGTON-Six senators are asking the Bush administration to develop guidelines for a new public-safety interoperable communications grant program to allow for the use of Internet Protocol-based technologies instead of the wholesale replacement of current equipment. “The administration should seriously consider …

It was a week of mixed results for regional carriers, as numbers trickled in from a handful of operators-some of which had delayed their reporting or had to restate prior earnings. Leap Wireless International Inc. had a slightly weaker-than-expected fourth …

LITTLE ROCK, Ark.-Alltel Corp. announced it purchased the remaining 50-percent interests in 10 partnerships with Palmetto MobileNet L.P. that it did not already own. The partnerships cover about 2 million potential customers in North and South Carolina. Alltel did not …

IRVINE, Calif.-More people preferred comedies and adventure movies over Academy Award-winning best picture “Crash” when searching for movie information over mobile devices. Go2 Movies announced the top most-searched movies in 2005. “Wedding Crashers” came in at No. 1, while “Crash” …

Mobile virtual network operator Cool Mobile has big plans for this year, starting off today by expanding its cool.Prepaid handset lineup to six Motorola Inc. devices and aiming to offer hybrid and postpaid service plans by the end of the …

Cingular Wireless L.L.C. rolled out a new pricing plan-without its signature Rollover feature-in a move to counter a similar plan offered by T-Mobile USA Inc. Cingular’s Nation 1000 plan for $40 per month includes nationwide long distance and roaming, but …

SBA Communications Corp., the nation’s fifth-largest tower company, is offering $1 billion to acquire AAT Communications Corp., the nation’s sixth-largest tower company. SBA said it will pick up AAT’s 1,855 owned tower sites along with an additional 250 revenue-producing managed …

WASHINGTON-Congressional auditors said the deployment of wireless enhanced 911 services continues to progress, but that some states could take five more years and others may not ever fully implement the emergency location service. “Significant progress has been made toward implementing …

WATERLOO, Ontario-Research In Motion Ltd. announced it purchased Ascendent Systems, which sells products that extend desk phone connectivity to wireless handsets in a campus environment. RIM said the purchase would complement its current enterprise offerings. Terms of the agreement were …

DENVER-Although monitoring and control-enhancing technology hasn’t garnered many headlines in the past, ZigBee-enabled products are likely to burst into prime-time later this year with both consumer and commercial applications, predicted Bob Heile, chairman of the ZigBee Alliance, during last week’s …

Nortel Networks Ltd. plans to restate its financial results-again-as well as push back filing its 2005 annual report to the end of April. The bookkeeping-challenged Canadian equipment vendor also reported preliminary fourth-quarter results, posting a stunning $2.2 billion net loss …

PALO ALTO, Calif.-M-commerce software developer Obopay said it has snared $10 million in Series A venture funding. Obopay, which was founded last year, plans to offer a mobile payment service in coming months that would allow users to make purchases …

WASHINGTON-A federal court in Colorado told state regulators there that they cannot require Alltel Corp. to file rate statements and agree to certain service-quality standards in order to receive eligible telecommunications carrier status-a necessary designation to receive universal-service subsidies. “The …