JAPAN
Japanese electronics giant Sony Corp. has decided to upgrade its cellular phone handset operations into a full division with emphasis on mobile computing products. Sony also wants to delve into broadband access.
Matsushita Communications Industrial Co. Ltd. has signed a CDMA patent licensing agreement with InterDigital Technology Corp. covering wireless terminals, infrastructure products and test products. Under the deal, ITC will receive an initial multimillion-dollar royalty payment from Matsushita.
Illinois Superconductor Corp. (ISCO) International, which supplies interference-management solutions, reported it has received orders from two Japanese wireless equipment suppliers for three new prototype superconducting front-end systems. According to ISCO, the new systems are designed to meet requirements for third-generation networks expected to be developed in Japan for commercial service later this year.
UNITED KINGDOM
Netonomy, a provider of self-service solutions, announced that Vodafone Corporate selected its MyNetonomy service to further enhance its existing corporate customer extranet facility, Vodafone Corporate Online. Vodafone will use the service to expand its self-service portal for its corporate customers. The facility will give Vodafone corporate subscribers faster service and a wider range of features and options than is currently available, Netonomy said.
Vodafone Group plc closed its acquisition of a 25-percent stake in Swisscom Mobile. The agreement was first announced last year. Vodafone satisfied the first tranche of the consideration by issuing about 422 million new Vodafone shares and paying about $14.4 million in cash. The shares have now been sold in the market. Swisscom Mobile has no economic or other interest in the shares.
