July 2000

OWINGS MILLS, Md.-Aether Systems Inc. announced it has invested $5.6 million in VeriStar Corp., which has developed a service that allows customers to make payments by using pre-registered biometric identification, …

Network engineering consultant Belenos Inc. raised $20 million in second-round venture financing, led by Investcorp Ventures Technology Fund I L.P. and First Union Capital Partners. Investcorp, a private equity fund …

WEST POINT, Ga.-Personal communications services provider Powertel Inc. posted increased revenue and subscriber additions for the second quarter ended June 30, compared with the second quarter of 1999. Total revenue …

The mainstream media’s honeymoon with WAP technology ended long ago, but the relationship has deteriorated so much lately that the entire affair seems ready for marriage counseling. One reason for …

CALGARY, Alberta-Cell-Loc Inc.’s TimesThree and SUMedia.com Inc. unveiled e-couponing as a component of the L411 service that TimesThree demonstrated at its wireless location network launch in Calgary, Alberta. When available, …

WASHINGTON-Several instant messaging companies, telecom carriers and Internet service and content providers have formed an organization dedicated to achieving true instant messaging interoperability among competing platforms. The IMUnified coalition said …

WASHINGTON-A coalition of government agencies including the Coast Guard, the Federal Highway Administration and the Air Force are in the process of building a system that will increase the accuracy …

DUBLIN, Ireland-Ireland’s telecom regulator said it will award Universal Mobile Telecommunications System licenses through a comparative selection process, or “beauty contest,” instead of an auction. In addition, the regulator indicated …

Qualcomm Inc.’s transformation is complete. The CDMA innovator last week announced it intends to spin off its chipset and software business, leaving the company as primarily one that collects royalties …

SAN DIEGO-Intellectual property provider ARM and PacketVideo Corp. announced a collaboration to integrate PacketVideo’s wireless video decode software with ARM’s microprocessor core in an attempt to help accelerate the deployment …

HONG KONG-MagiNet Corp. and Lucent Technologies Inc. formed an alliance to bring wireless Internet access to laptop users, the companies said. The companies will combine MagiNet’s Laptop Connect broadband wireless …

MCLEAN, Va.-Nextlink Communications Inc. reported revenues for the second quarter ended June 30 of $140.6 million, a 132-percent increase from the revenues reported for the same period last year. The …

BEIJING-Lucent Technologies Inc. signed a Global System for Mobile communications expansion contract with Liaoning Unicom, a subsidiary of China Unicom, in Shenyang to boost the capacity of its network to …

WASHINGTON-The high-flying mobile-phone industry-poised to pick up its 100 millionth subscriber this week-could soon find itself in the throes of a major consumer backlash. Complaints about mobile-phone service-including dropped calls, …

In a Dallas factory once used for making bombs during World War II, Stick Networks Inc. is building a new class of wireless Internet services it hopes will prove just …

To its credit, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is taking the driver distraction problem seriously. Last Tuesday’s all-day conference at the Department of Transportation was educational and enlightening, providing …

TOKYO-Qualcomm Inc. unveiled a digital chipset and system software solution that it said facilitates development of Code Division Multiple Access handheld devices suitable for wireless Internet services and applications. The …

Metrocall Inc. finally made its long-awaited acquisition play by submitting a competing proposal to buy Paging Network Inc., hoping to edge out current PageNet suitor Arch Communications Group Inc. in …

REDMOND, Wash.-AT&T Wireless Group will launch fixed wireless service in four more markets in the coming months and is partnering with vendors to cope with its aggressive deployment strategy during …

JACKSONVILLE, N.C.-Sprint Corp. launched a personal communications services network in Jacksonville and Roanoke Rapids, N.C., as part of the company’s expansion into the coastal regions of North Carolina, South Carolina …

SUNNYVALE, Calif.-Adaptive Broadband Corp. said it completed the sale of its Microwave Data Systems division to Moseley Associates Inc. for $38.6 million in cash. Adaptive Broadband announced in January it …

Component shortages and a widespread shift to entry-level phones impacted second-quarter earnings from L.M. Ericsson. The company’s stock fell 11 percent on the news and was trading around $20.13 at …

WASHINGTON-A congressional subcommittee and the wireless industry put pressure on the Federal Communications Commission to delay the upcoming 700 MHz auction, while private wireless wants the agency to go ahead …

Forget watching the TV show “Survivor.” After all, how many times can you watch people eat bugs and rats without getting queasy? Instead, take care of your voyeuristic tendencies with …

LAKE CHARLES, La.-Sprint PCS Network Partner US Unwired Inc. launched personal communications service in nine southeast markets, including Anniston, Mobile and five counties in the Birmingham, Ala., area; Hot Springs …