2001

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa-Various African countries have begun the task of liberalizing their telecommunications markets with the various governments seeking to court offers from foreign strategic equity partners. However, for the …

HELSINKI, Finland-Scandinavia has long been the most fertile and concentrated spawning ground for technology innovation in Europe. The torchbearers for this culture have been led by global names such as …

NEW YORK-Vivendi Universal has worldwide ambitions, particularly in the area of wireless technology and interactive television, and equally important, it possesses a balance sheet to support its plans, said Jean …

TORONTO-As the handset manufacturing business gets tougher because of declining demand, more phone makers are looking at joint ventures as their economic salvation and perhaps their best strategy to catch …

HELSINKI, Finland-For a market with a well-deserved reputation as the most dynamic and innovative of Europe’s telecom sectors, one could easily think that traditional Scandinavian confidence is in a state …

Mobile users in the United Kingdom have been put on alert. A scam is doing the rounds. Text messages are being broadcast to thousands of mobiles stating they should ring …

Qualcomm has been looking for a European opening for its CDMA technology for some time. But so far, the technology has been effectively shut out in the region, other than …

Audiovox Communications Audiovox Communications introduced the Maestro, a Pocket PC that uses Microsoft Windows Powered Pocket PC 2002 software. The product features 32 MB of SDRAM and 32 MB of …

Adoption of mobile data in Asia will require restructuring the industry’s poor and declining economics. Throughout Asia, many markets are saddled with too many competitors investing furiously to meet pent-up …

GENEVA-As the second-round auction for U.K. broadband wireless licenses continues, license holders across the Continent will be praying the lackluster response to date represents nothing more than a further hiccup …

NEW DELHI, India-The Thai cellular market witnessed rapid growth and intense competition during 2001. Subscriber numbers reached a landmark, crossing fixed-line subscriber numbers much earlier than expected. Tariffs are decreasing, …

TOKYO-NTT DoCoMo, the leading mobile carrier in Japan, on 1 October launched the world’s first third-generation (3G) mobile service in the Tokyo metropolitan area, receiving mixed reviews from market analysts. …

LONDON—Marconi and Somera Communications announced a strategic partnership to deliver configuration of Marconi’s power solution combined with Somera’s OneSource services for rural carriers across the United States. “Through our supply …

LONDON—Vodafone Group said its average revenue per user (ARPU) has begun to stabilize based on its end-September financial figures. The operator said its total inactive customer base in its controlled …

LONDON—Motorola Inc. says it has revised its view of when it expects third-generation mobile services to attract mass-market acceptance in Europe to 2004 instead of 2003 in line with analyst …

BUCHAREST, Romania—According Gulf News, a United Arab Emirates (UAE) newspaper, Thuraya’s services will be available in 30 countries, including Pakistan, Sudan, Libya, Egypt, Syria, Algeria, Tunisia, Iran, Greece, Bangladesh, Sri …

TORONTO—Facing tough times, Microcell Telecommunications has laid off 5 percent of its work force. The Montreal-based carrier of the Fido brand wireless service gave the pink slip to about 200 …

NEW YORK—Millicom International Cellular (MIC) said it will complete the final distribution of its shares to the former shareholders of Millicom Incorporated pursuant to the 1993 merger terms between MIC …

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WOODBURY, New York, United States—Comverse said Guangdong Mobile Communications selected it to expand its Intelligent Short Message Service Center. The new agreement increases Guangdong Mobile’s capacity to serve 14 million …

TOKYO—Fujitsu, a leading communications vender in Japan, announced it is expecting to have a 310 billion yen (US$2.5 billion) net loss for fiscal year (FY) 2001, ending March 2002, due …

TOKYO—Matsushita Communication Industrial, the leading mobile handset vender in Japan, announced that it is expecting to have a 40 billion yen (US$325 million) operational loss for fiscal year (FY) 2001 …

ATLANTA—Cingular Wireless rolled out its Wireless Internet Express General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) service in a number of markets in the Southeast and in Las Vegas, following the initial introduction …

STOCKHOLM, Sweden—Swedish vendor Ericsson posted a loss of US$377 million in its third-quarter earnings reports just as it announced that its chairman, Lars Ramqvist, would leave the company. Ramqvist will …

OXFORD, United Kingdom—The grand plans by Royal Philips Electronics to become a worldwide player in the cell-phone market have all but disappeared with the announcement that China Electronics Corporation (CEC) …