NEW YORK-Pacific Bell Mobile Services announced Sept. 18 an agreement to purchase $50 million worth of PCS-1900 handsets from Mitsubishi Wireless Communications Inc.
The new phones will operate on PacBell’s personal communications services network, which is under construction in California and Nevada. The wireless carrier has selected Global System for Mobile communications technology.
“Our rates won’t be announced until we unveil our services in San Diego on Nov. 1,” said Linda Bonniksen, a spokesman for PacBell.
Under terms of the two-year agreement, Mitsubishi Wireless plans to start delivering the new PCS phones by the second quarter of 1997. Co-branded by both companies, the handsets will be sold as an off-the-shelf product through retail outlets like consumer electronics and drug stores and warehouse clubs. The retail price hasn’t yet been determined, Bonniksen said.
“Consumers will be much more demanding than business customers, so we must put a sharper focus on the user interface to make sure it’s more intuitive, especially for advanced new wireless services (like short-text messaging),” said Terrence Valeski, vice president for marketing and business development, Pac Bell Mobile.
The company, headquartered in Pleasanton, Calif., is the wireless communications subsidiary of Pacific Bell. Its parent is Pacific Telesis Group, San Francisco, a diversified telecommunications company.
Mitsubishi Wireless Communications is a joint venture between Mitsubishi Electric Corp., a consumer electronics company, and Mitsubishi Corp., a trading company. Mitsubishi Wireless assembles and manufactures cellular phones and fax machines and PCS products at its facility in Braselton, Ga.
“This agreement complements both companies, which are dedicated to providing consumers with quality wireless communications products and services,” said Katsuhiko Ueda, president and chief executive officer of Mitsubishi Wireless.
