April 2005

MUNICH-Siemens announced a partnership with printer company Canon to allow Siemens camera-phone users to print their images to Canon printers. The partnership falls under the Mobile Imaging Printing Consortium, a …

Alltel Corp. said it has completed the purchase of former AT&T Wireless Services Inc. properties from Cingular Wireless. The sale was part of government-mandated divestitures by Cingular following its $41 …

LUXEMBOURG-Internet telephony provider Skype expanded its premium offerings, launching voicemail and phone access services Friday for users in eight countries including the United States. The Voice over Internet Protocol company …

Handset vendors Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. and Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications both suffered notable declines in their its first-quarter financial results. The mixed results appeared to vex investors, who sent …

TORONTO-Nortel Networks Corp. said it expects to file 2004 audited financial statements for itself and its subsidiary, Nortel Networks Ltd., by the end of this month. The company is required …

GREENSBORO, N.C.-Wireless chipset vendor RF Micro Devices Inc. lowered its profit forecasts due to efforts to reduce the company’s inventories. The company also blamed greater-than-expected development expenses for its Polaris …

WASHINGTON-The mobile-phone industry, decrying increasing taxes, has sent out a call to arms to the nation’s 182 million wireless subscribers on Tax Day 2005. CTIA, the national cell-phone trade group, …

LUBBOCK, Texas-Sprint PCS’ largest network affiliate Alamosa Holdings Inc. said it has opened its 100th Sprint-branded dealer location with the launch of the newest location in Coos Bay, Ore., on …

WASHINGTON-A bi-partisan bill to end the digital TV transition on Dec. 31, 2006, and give spectrum to public safety was re-introduced Thursday after failing to pass in the last Congress. …

WASHINGTON-The Senate Homeland-Security Committee Wednesday passed legislation to streamline the first-responder grant program, setting up an almost certain clash with the House of Representatives over minimal state funding. Many senators, …

LONDON-Mobile software developer Amplefuture unveiled a new offering that allows music providers to market and deliver tunes directly to wireless users. Amplefuture said it will market Pocket Player to companies …

ARLINGTON, Va.-The Telecommunications Industry Association’s board of directors elected eight new members at its meeting April 11 in Cambridge, Md. New board members are Michael Thurk, group vice president-enterprise at …

SAN DIEGO-An engineering professor and a graduate student at the University of California at San Diego have developed software that makes Wi-Fi roaming easier by reducing the hand-off time between …

OLATHE, Ky.-RELM Wireless Corp.’s board of directors is exploring strategic alternatives for the company and has retained Jefferies Quarterdeck as its financial adviser. RELM designs and manufactures land mobile radios …

TEMPE, Ariz.-New research shows that in wireless, it’s out with the old and in with the new. According to a study from research and consulting firm Forward Concepts, handsets running …

TAMPA, Fla.-Wireless retailer and hot-spot operator FTS Wireless Inc. said it expects its gross wireless activations to grow by at least 50 percent during the second quarter. “In the first …

FRAMINGHAM, Mass.-Although the wireless industry is showing strong forward momentum this year, an eventual slowdown is expected as subscriber penetration surpasses 75 percent of the U.S. population, according to a …

TORONTO-Rogers Wireless and MobiTV producer Idetic Inc. said the carrier will launch a wireless television service for its subscribers by June. Rogers Mobile Television, which looks to be the first …

The following wireless companies’ ratings were changed by financial services companies this week. Standard & Poor’s Ratings Service raised its corporate credit and senior unsecured debt ratings on Agilent Technologies …

WASHINGTON-CTIA said it has formed a working group to combat wireless-handset viruses. “While electronic viruses-like human viruses-can never be completely eliminated, the industry is proactively taking steps to protect the …

WASHINGTON-A bill to provide $250 million in federal grants to Historically Black Colleges; tribal colleges; and Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian and Hispanic-serving institutions for technology upgrades and communications infrastructure was …

LONDON-Technology company ROK Player and music portal Ministry of Sound announced plans to release a multimedia memory card (MMC) for handsets that can hold 20 songs with corresponding music videos. …

TROWBRIDGE, United Kingdom-Virgin Mobile U.K. will offer adult images of models from the London strip club Stringfellows, the carrier said Thursday. The offering will include images of both men and …

ARLINGTON, Va.-The Consumer Electronics Association, which represents more than 2,000 corporate members, said it has created the Wireless Product Specialist Study Guide designed to aid the wireless retail community in …

BOSTON-New research shows the handset industry shipped a total of 257 million camera phones worldwide last year, comprising 38 percent of the total handset market. The numbers are way up …