Leap Wireless International Inc. completed its acquisition of personal communications services operating licenses covering 2.8 million pops from CIVS IV License Sub I L.L.C., a joint venture between Cook Inlet Region Inc. and Voice-Stream Wireless Corp. Leap also completed its previously announced acquisition of PCS operating licenses covering 5.2 million pops from CenturyTel Inc. Leap said it now owns or has the rights to licenses covering 72.6 million pops.
Dobson Cellular Systems introduced its Safety Talk service, featuring voice-activated dialing and a phone directory with up to 50 phone numbers, in select service areas. “The addition of Safety Talk to our portfolio of value-enhancing services will be a time-saver for our subscribers, as well as a safety enhancement for cellular phone callers who need to make calls while driving,” said Ed Evans, president and chief operating officer of Dobson. The service, using voice- recognition technology from Preferred Voice Inc., is available for $3 per month.
Handspring Inc. announced it will continue using Palm Inc.’s operating system for its personal digital assistants, a sign that the Palm OS could continue to dominate the PDA market. Handspring licensed the operating system through 2009. “We are excited about our efforts to expand the Palm OS, making mobile and wireless handhelds pervasive across consumer, business and education solutions,” said Alan Kessler, general manager for Palm’s platform solutions group.
Cingular Interactive will purchase $25 million in equipment and software from Ericsson to expand capacity of its existing Mobitex network. The deal supports several initiatives under Cingular Interactive’s Operation Platinum Standard, a $50 million program to build overall network capacity as well as to grow coverage in major metro areas to address projected subscriber growth. The carrier ended 2000 with more than 570,000 subscribers, up from 200,000 in 1999. Mobitex is a dedicated digital mobile data network using packet switching, allowing customers to be charged for the number of packets transmitted, not connection time.
