Mobile News – RCR Wireless News

WASHINGTON-A San Diego courtroom is expected to be the scene this week for a jury trial of a now-defunct company trying to get redress from the nation’s largest wireless carrier. Sonic TSM Inc. is accusing Cingular Wireless L.L.C. of allegedly …

WASHINGTON-The California Public Utilities Commission is set to vote this month on a measure that would create a first-in-the-nation Telecommunications Consumer Fraud Unit. The fraud unit proposal is part of the new version of the controversial Consumer Bill of Rights. …

After collecting and reviewing 26 industry proposals and nearly 300 public comments during a round of information requests for a citywide Wi-Fi network, San Francisco issued an official Request for Proposal for the project Dec. 22. In a statement, the …

SUNNYVALE, Calif.-One month after announcing its restructuring, value-added service provider Mobiltek Corp. said it sold its subsidiary, Mobiltek Corp. California, to SinoConnect Ltd., a Hong Kong-based telecom system integration company. Mobiltek said it sold the subsidiary-along with the business’ nine …

LOS ANGELES-Good News Holdings L.L.C. and faith-based research firm The Barna Group Ltd. launched a portal offering wireless content including ringtones, Bible verses and video clips. The companies unveiled FaithMobile, a Web site featuring content from providers Promise Keepers, Extraordinary …

SAN DIEGO-Qualcomm Inc. will team with KDDI Corp. to explore broadcasting wireless video programming to subscribers of the Japanese operator. The companies will establish MediaFlo Japan Planning Inc., a joint venture to examine licensing spectrum necessary to build a MediaFlo …

KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa.-InterDigital Communications Corp. scored another court victory as a New York judge confirmed a ruling that calls for Nokia Corp. to pay InterDigital around $250 million for patent licensing and technology development. The ruling stems from a …

WASHINGTON-Lynch Interactive Corp. again vehemently denied any wrongdoing in its activities with mobile-phone auctions. The company performed bidding and auction administrative services for a variety of bidders in recent years. The activities and associations of Lynch’s chairman, Mario Gabelli, were …

WASHINGTON-The Electronic Frontier Foundation blasted a federal judge’s decision to give the Department of Justice access to cell-phone location information. The ruling appears to be within the scope of the digital wiretap law, but comes amid revelations that President Bush …

WASHINGTON-More than two-thirds of the nation’s population has access to enhanced 911 service, largely because it is being deployed in urban areas faster than in rural communities, according to figures posted earlier this month by the National Emergency Number Association. …

WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission told Congress that it plans to begin examining whether some of the 24 megahertz of spectrum public safety is set to receive as part of the transition to digital TV could be used for a nationwide …

SPOKANE, Wash.-Wi-Fi antenna supplier Vivato Inc. decided to close its doors, leaving several municipal Wi-Fi networks up in the air, or at least not sure how to maintain, replace and troubleshoot the company’s equipment. Municipalities using Vivato’s Wi-Fi equipment include …

Global Signal Inc. announced that David Grain is stepping down from his position as president of the nation’s third-largest tower company. The company said its chairman and chief executive, Wesley Edens, will take on the president’s title also. “We appreciate …

WASHINGTON-The Senate late Wednesday confirmed the nominations of Deborah Taylor Tate and Michael Copps to the Federal Communications Commission. The confirmations had been in doubt due to unrelated procedural issues up until the time they were pushed through. The White …

Shares of Research In Motion Ltd. jumped Thursday morning after the company reported strong third-quarter sales of its BlackBerry devices. RIM reported $560 million in revenue during the period, up 53 percent from last year’s third-quarter revenue of $366 million. …

WASHINGTON-Sprint Nextel Corp. and Clearwire Corp. have sought Federal Communications Commission approval of a deal involving the swap of hundreds of broadband radio service channels in the 2.5 GHz band. In documents filed with the FCC and made public last …

WASHINGTON-A government-industry meeting last week on protecting military radar from new 5 GHz Wi-Fi operations appears to have confirmed progress-but not completion-of testing analyses of dynamic frequency selection technology to be embedded in new unlicensed wireless Internet products as early …

After receiving clearance from Marconi Corp.’s shareholders and from the European Commission, L.M. Ericsson says it’s ready to complete its $2.24 billion acquisition of Marconi’s key telecom assets, setting up the convergence of Ericsson’s wireless and wireline offerings. In October, …

MUNICH-Siemens AG said it has sold Siemens Accelerations to an undisclosed investor for an undisclosed amount. The company explained that Siemens Acceleration was an early-stage investment boutique for startup companies and was a subsidiary of Siemens Communications. The subsidiary was …

After just 18 months on the job, Nortel Networks Ltd. announced that its chief marketing officer, Clent Richardson, plans to leave the company March 1. Nortel has not named a replacement and said only that Richardson’s decision was based on …

PARIS-Alcatel Corp. signed a three-year extension to an OEM deal with Tekelec that will allow the infrastructure provider to continue deploying its 8000 Media Gateway as part of its Mobile Next Generation Network solution. The pair explained that the Tekelec …

CHICAGO-The American Stock Exchange accepted plans by U.S. Cellular Corp. and its parent company, Telephone and Data Systems Inc., to regain compliance with AMEX listing standards. The companies received an extension until Jan. 17 to file their third-quarter 2005 financial …

WASHINGTON-The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decision to scrap Minnesota’s wireless consumer protection law could come into play as truth-in-billing litigation moves into a serious phase in January at a U.S. appeals court in Atlanta. Mobile-phone carriers, federal and …

Editor’s note: At the end of each year, the RCR Wireless News editorial staff looks back on the news events that made headlines and decides which were the most significant, industry-impacting stories during the past 12 months. While our list …

WASHINGTON-National Telecommunications and Information Administration head Michael Gallagher is expected to leave the agency early next year, an agency spokesman said. Gallagher was confirmed to the post in November 2004 after serving as NTIA deputy administration since August 2003. NTIA, …