GTE Telecommunications Services Inc. has signed a contract for its wireless prepaid calling service with Cellular One of Wisconsin and Northern Illinois, which will offer the service to more than 1 million consumers in a 31-county area in the two states. Cellular One’s offering will require no up-front capital investment because the company will use GTE TSI’s service bureau deployment option, which calls for GTE TSI to own and maintain all of the hardware and software needed to make the service available.
Northern Telecom Inc. and Microcell Solutions Inc. signed an 18-month supply agreement for Microcell to distribute Nortel’s new PCS 1911 handsets in Canada. The agreement will allow Nortel to take advantage of Microcell’s national distribution channels in releasing its new multipurpose telephone. The PCS 1911 supports data, voice mail and messaging services, featuring a display screen, Caller ID and a patented acoustic design.
Motorola Inc.’s Cellular Infrastructure Group provided Code Division Multiple Access infrastructure for Southwestco Wireless L.P.’s launch of digital cellular service in Albuquerque. Southwestco provides service under the Cellular One brand name. Motorola said it now has provided CDMA equipment for 22 networks worldwide.
Allen Telecom Inc., which owns nearly 1 million shares of RF Micro Devices Inc. common stock, outlined the terms of its investment in RF Micro Devices after the company completed an initial public offering last week. As part of the IPO, Allen Telecom, along with other pre-IPO investors and management in RF Micro Devices, agreed to a six-month lockup provision. As a result, Allen Telecom said it will not report the difference between market value and cost as profit during its second quarter.
Dallas-based BearCom Inc. said it acquired Mobitel Communications & Electronics Inc. of Houston. Terms of the acquisition were not announced. Mobitel provides two-way radio equipment sales, rentals and service. Including the Houston market, BearCom now operates in 26 offices in the United States. The company also has an office in Sydney, Australia.
USCI Inc.’s wholly owned subsidiary, Ameritel Communications Inc., is expanding its cellular service offering in 21 markets. The company buys cellular and paging airtime at wholesale rates, and retails it to customers. Ameritel’s new markets include San Francisco and Sacramento, Calif., Houston and Atlanta. The company already provides services in Denver, Salt Lake City, Nashville and Memphis, Tenn., and Phoenix. Once the expansion is completed in July, Ameritel will have a presence in 103 metropolitan statistical areas and rural statistical areas with a total population of more than 55 million people, the company said.
