January 1999

WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission’s 1998 review of its regulations, with an eye toward eliminating those that were unnecessary, was insufficient, said FCC Commissioner Harold Furchtgott-Roth. “The official 1998 review had …

WASHINGTON-The wireless industry last month urged the Federal Communications Commission to look at options other than local number portability to conserve telephone numbers. The ever-increasing exhaust of numbers has caused …

NEW YORK-“In its 93rd month of expansion, the U.S. economy may be more vulnerable going into 1999 than at any time since 1994 when the Federal Reserve (Board) last tightened …

WASHINGTON-Wireless policies initiated by William Kennard, chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, during his first year finally will be put in place by the end of the century, predicts the …

GREENSBORO, N.C.-RF Micro Devices Inc. announced it filed a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission relating to a proposed public offering of 1.75 million shares of common stock …

ESPOO, Finland-Tecnomen, a designer and manufacturer of service and wide-area paging systems, reported it joined the Wireless Application Protocol Forum to strengthen its position as a leading supplier of unified …

Unified messaging is becoming a buzzword in the wireless industry, as the prospect of managing several communications options from one chosen device becomes more popular. Unified messaging allows users to …

LAKE CHARLES, La.-US Unwired, a wireless communications provider in Louisiana and east Texas, announced it is expanding coverage to include all of Southwest Louisiana and will begin offering Sprint Spectrum …

NEW YORK-As 1999 debuts, wireless companies seeking to raise money should be encouraged by news the venture capital market is flush with cash and ripe for picking. “On the private-equity …

Will ’99 be the year wireless becomes airborne? Iridium, hoping to further entice business travelers to trust and use the Iridium name, spent $65 million in December to buy Claircom …

LOUISVILLE, Colo.-The Federal Communications Commission has ruled that a prohibition on cellular phone use in airplanes should not apply to a new air-to-ground wireless phone system designed by AirCell Inc. …

IRVINE, Calif.-AirTouch Cellular announced its new, all-in-one phone and service product, the AirTouch PrePaid Phone In a Box, is now available at hundreds of locations throughout Southern California, including AirTouch …

SANTA MONICA, Calif.-After 16 rounds of bidding, Radiodigital was awarded one regional and the only nationwide 220 MHz license in Mexico, according to Angellcom. Mexico’s wireless bureau, Cofetel, agreed to …

The State Department late last month urged the European Commission to allow U.S. third-generation wireless equipment and service providers a fair opportunity to compete in Europe. In a letter sent …

Three Granger Telecom employees and an independent contractor were killed in Chechnya, the breakaway republic of Russia located north of Georgia. Granger Telecom employees Darren Hickey, Rudolph Petschi and Stan …

SEOUL, South Korea-Despite the financial crisis in Asia, the wireless telephony market has performed better than expected in South Korea. The number of cellular and PCS subscribers in the country …

OXFORD, United Kingdom-Independent mobile dealers feel threatened in many countries in Europe. Those that have not been swallowed up by the national retail chains or taken over by a cellular …

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa-Competition in the South African wireless telecommunications sector is likely to be fierce this year, with two new cellular operators scheduled to enter the arena. This will delve …

SINGAPORE-Singapore Telecommunications Ltd. announced it will purchase up to a 20-percent stake in Thailand’s Advanced Information Service, a cellular subsidiary of Shinawatra Computer and Communications, for approximately US$353.4 million. “For …

Finnish minister of communications Matti Aura resigned following the dismissal of Pekka Vennamo, chief executive of Sonera. Vennamo was fired by the Sonera board on 4 January for failing to …

OXFORD, United Kingdom-The European paging industry entered 1998 with the loud disclaimer that it had, at long last, found its high-growth niche in mobile communications. With reports they had managed …

LONDON-The Middle East wireless sector continues to show positive signs, with several major contracts awarded and plenty of healthy GSM (Global System for Mobile communications) activity over the past year. …

GENEVA-Stop in for a lunchtime croque monsieur at any of the bistros that line the Boulevard St. Germain in Paris, and you’ll hear a new sound mingling with the clink …

The introduction of digital phone technology has changed dramatically the landscape of wireless communications across the globe and put the heat on the global paging industry. Paging’s old advantages of …

Finland continues to lead the world in take-up of mobile services. The Ministry of Transport and Communications released a statement in late December estimating that for the first time the …