L.M. Ericsson said it has signed separate deals with operators in the United States, Switzerland and Nigeria. With operator Econet Wireless Nigeria, the vendor signed a $110 million GSM expansion contract to cover such cities as Lagos, Port Harcourt, Abuja and Kaduna. With Alltel Corp., Ericsson said it integrated, hosted and managed the carrier’s Axcess picture-messaging service throughout its CDMA coverage area. Alltel said it has brought the services to market because of the vendor’s services. Ericsson also said Orange Communications S.A. of Switzerland has chosen it to provide field services for half of its GSM network.
CellStar Corp. added Shanghai DBTEL Industry Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of DBTEL Inc., to its list of suppliers. CellStar said Chinese handset manufacturer DBTEL is its first significant local supplier in the country. CellStar said it sold approximately 100,000 DBTEL handsets in the fourth quarter of 2003.
FTS Wireless Inc., which operates retail wireless locations that market and sell next-generation wireless products and services and operates Wi-Fi hot spots, signed a binding letter of intent to acquire the assets of Tampa, Fla.-based wireless distributor Wireless Unlimited Inc. FTS a few weeks ago announced plans to acquire its sixth retail location by purchasing the assets of Florida-based All Clear Wireless Inc. The company has closed four acquisitions in the last 12 months.
Third-generation mobile communications technology supplier UbiNetics announced it has completed a $26 million investment led by international venture capital company 3i. “The investment further emphasizes the positive change in the wireless industry toward 3G, and it clearly signals a change in mood in the investment community towards this technology,” said Bjorn Krylander, chief executive officer of UbiNetics. “It will provide us with the financial strength to complete a strong robust technology platform for 3G and expand our presence in the key markets where our customers operate.”
