February 2002

TOKYO—FileMaker Mobile, which allows instant database publishing on i-mode smart phones, was introduced in Japan. FileMaker includes a Mobile Groupware solution, which includes a scheduler, meeting room reservation planner, bulletin …

BEIJING—China Mobile is not satisfied with the slow adoption of its General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) services. At the end of 2001, only 1.5 million of its 145 million mobile-phone …

TAIPEI, Taiwan—Taiwan awarded five third-generation (3G) licenses following a 19-day auction that saw bid totals much higher than analysts had expected. Total bids in Asia’s first 3G auction reached T$48.9 …

TOKYO—J-Phone, the third-largest mobile carrier in Japan, announced it will launch a new e-mail service with motion pictures. According to J-Phone, which is now a Vodafone Group company, using the …

JAKARTA, Indonesia—Indonesian Bank Restructuring Agency (BPPN) decided to sell the assets of Pacific Satellite Nusantara (PSN) and its subsidiary Asian Cellular Satellite (ACeS) to AAA Securities for US$206 million. The …

WATERLOO, Ontario, Canada—The adage, “keep your friends close, but your enemies even closer,” seems to fit the new business relationship Research In Motion (RIM) and Glenayre Electronics announced this week. …

SAN JOSE, California, United States—As expected, Palm released a trial version of its new operating system (OS), the Palm OS 5, which the company said will support wide area networks, …

NEW YORK—NII Holdings, formerly known as Nextel International, reportedly missed its latest US$41 million interest payments scheduled for last Friday on its 12.75-percent senior serial redeemable notes due 2010, according …

LONDON—A group of international antenna manufacturers has formed the Antenna Interface Standards Group (AISG) with an objective of introducing open standards for base station antennas with remotely adjustable tilt. The …

DENVER, United States—WebLink Wireless found its white knight. The paging and messaging carrier said last week it scored a deal with Sun Capital Acquisition, which buys cash-strapped companies and then …

GREENSBORO, North Carolina, United States—Circuit manufacturer RF Micro Devices said it has begun production shipments to a major European handset manufacturer. The company said it expects the shipments to hit …

REDWOOD CITY, California, United States—Openwave Systems and Telef

Finland—Messaging vendor Tecnomen said Austrian mobile operator Mobilkom Austria has begun live trials of its Multimedia Messaging Service Center to help the operator evaluate multimedia services over GSM/General Packet Radio …

SINGAPORE—VeriSign announced it will sell its WebNum wireless Web access system to Southeast Asian wireless users through its Asian affiliate TrustAsia. VeriSign’s WebNum service allows users to browse wireless Internet …

BEIJING—Nokia expects its handset sales in China to grow by 10 percent to 15 percent this year, the China Daily reported. Motorola leads the market, but Nokia is closing in. …

TOKYO—Three Japanese carriers and three industry associations are going to set up an organization to evaluate mobile Internet content on 28 February. The organization, called Mobile Content Evaluation System Association, …

BELLEVUE, Wash.—Service assurance product supplier WatchMark reported a strategic system integration partnership with European systems integrator AU-Systems to distribute WatchMark’s performance management and network visualization products to AU-System’s customers in …

CHARLESTON, W.Va.—Nextel Partners Inc. launched wireless service in Charleston, Huntington, Parkersburg, Clarksburg, Morgantown, Fairmont and the greater Central West Virginia region. In conjunction with the launch, Nextel Partners donated 10 …

HELSINKI, Finland—Sonera, the Helsinki-based telecom company, has abandoned its fixed monthly connection charge for its consumer General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) offering in a move designed to increase use of …

BOCA RATON, Fla.-SBA Communications Corp. is going to reduce capital expenditures and new tower development activities in 2002, and suspend any material new investment for additional towers, the company said. …

HELSINKI, Finland—Nokia Corp. said it will integrate Macromedia Inc.’s Flash Player into its Mediaterminal, which combines digital video broadcast, full Internet access, personal video recorder technology and gaming. The Macromedia …

NEWTON, Mass.—MoreMagic Software announced it scored $9 million in its second round of funding, which was led by Vision Capital and Battery Ventures. “These additional funds will be used to …

SAN FRANCISCO—Java-based wireless application server software provider Aligo Inc. announced it added Applied Systems Analysis & Processing Inc. and Caribou Lake Software to its Mobile Application Systems Integrators group. Applied …

EINDHOVEN, The Netherlands—Royal Philips Electronics said it has successfully concluded a trial of its solution for the delivery of multimedia content and applications over wireless networks using Verizon Wireless’ Express …

SAN JOSE—SiRF Technology and NEC Electronics announced a licensing agreement that will integrate SiRF’s SiRFstarII GPS technology into NEC’s integrated circuits for the automotive marketplace. The companies said that the …