May 2002

TOKYO—KDDI, the second-largest operator in Japan, announced that in cooperation with SK Telecom in Korea it launched an image data transmission service between users of the two operators. It is …

OXFORD, United Kingdom—Having conducted a public “discussion” about its relative financial obligations, France Telecom has now admitted to conducting secret negotiations with Mobilcom’s four main lenders about solving some of …

WHEATON, Md.—The Shosteck Group believes the replacement rate for handsets will increase from its low point this year, but will remain below peak levels experienced in 1999 and 2000. According …

WATERLOO, Ontario, Canada—BlackBerry maker Research In Motion (RIM) announced a partnership with Australian carrier Telstra Mobile to sell wireless e-mail and voice-capable BlackBerrys to the carrier’s corporate customers. Telstra is …

PARIS—Alcatel said it was awarded a contract from Kenya’s KenCell for local multipoint distribution service (LMDS) equipment. Alcatel will provide the mobile backhaul for KenCell’s GSM 900 MHz mobile network. …

EMERYVILLE, Calif.—Geoworks Corp. announced dismal fourth quarter results, showing a 39-percent drop in revenue compared with the previous quarter due to the company’s new business focus, and Geoworks also hinted …

NASHUA, N.H.—Octave Communications said Vodafone New Zealand is performing market and technical trials with its instant group conversation platform, Octave Improv. “Our trials indicate that there is strong demand for …

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina—The agreement to restructure NII Holdings’ US$2.7 billion debt distances Nextel Communications from its Latin American subsidiaries and mainly impacts M

TORONTO—Wireless carriers Telus Mobility and Rogers Wireless Communications plan to charge new cell-phone users by the minute instead of by the second. This change in billing is expected to help …

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina—The numbers of cellular phones in Colombia will have 10 digits as of 1 June in accordance with new Ministry of Communications regulations. Therefore, three digits will be …

JOHANNESBURG, South Africa—Vodacom Congo announced that it has built an 88-base station GSM mobile cellular network in Africa’s fourth-largest country in less than three months. The network is composed of …

SANTA CLARA, Calif.-Just after the close of trading on Wall Street, Palm Inc. dropped its revenue expectations for the quarter by about $70 million and said it would not turn …

OXFORD, United Kingdom—While the newly formed Sony Ericsson expects to sell its first third-generation (3G) handset in Europe later this year, Jan Wareby, its executive vice president, has cautioned potential …

STOCKHOLM, Sweden—Columbitech announced that Kongsberg Finans, the financial division of Norwegian technology and defense contractor Kongsberg Group, has bought the Columbitech Wireless Suite to ensure security on its corporate IT …

RESTON, Va.—Wireless data carrier Motient Corp., proving that it’s still a viable company after recently emerging from a Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring, announced Fox Filmed Entertainment deployed an initial batch …

REDWOOD CITY, California, United States—A wave of consolidation hit the wireless data industry as two major companies announced acquisitions to expand the scope of their products and the extent of …

SILVER SPRING, Md.—International Mobile Communications Inc. (IMC), provider of WorldCell international cellular service, has purchased wireless infrastructure equipment for TELOS Technology to enable IMC to build a wireless network in …

COLUMBUS, Ohio—Applied Innovation Inc. announced Jack Petro will serve as its vice president of engineering. “Jack will be a great leader for our engineering and R&D efforts and a very …

IRVINE, Calif.—Wireless infrastructure services provider VelociTel Inc. announced it has acquired JM Consulting Group Inc. “At a time when wireless carriers are starting to ramp up their network rollouts, the …

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia—Incumbent operator DiGi.com decided against bidding for a third-generation license in Malaysia, but five groups did submit bids for one of the country’s three licenses on offer. The …

MURRAY HILL, N.J.—Lucent Technologies said it has equipped more than 25,000 base stations worldwide to support third-generation cdma2000 technology. “This significant milestone underscores our ability to rapidly deploy 3G cdma2000 …

CLINTON, Miss.—WorldCom will reportedly exit the U.S. wireless resale business during the coming months. The San Francisco Chronicle said it obtained a letter from WorldCom’s general counsel to several key …

TOKYO and DENVER, United States—Toshiba, a leading vendor in Japan, announced that it is going to launch Toshiba-branded mobile handsets in the U.S. market in 2003. As a first step …

FRAMINGHAM, Mass.—Although the market for wireless enterprise products and services seems to be lagging, and companies selling wireless infrastructure to businesses have been struggling, research and analyst firm IDC predicts …

MOUNTIAN VIEW, Calif.—Xora Inc. announced it has been chosen by ParTech Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of PAR Technology Corp., a supplier of point-of-sale systems to the quick service restaurant …