2006

New competitors will threaten the established portable navigation device vendors, said ABI Research.    The enormous market expansion and related price war in the consumer navigation market is no longer …

MARLBOROUGH, Mass.—Another company joined the mobile payment playground as Cyphermint Inc. unveiled an Internet-based system for completing transactions using a cell phone. The firm launched PayCash Mobile, a cross-platform offering …

BERN, Switzerland—Swisscom Mobile subsidiary Sicap, which provides mobile applications and network products for GSM operators, said it acquired Swapcom in a deal Sicap said strengthens its position in the mobile …

MILAN, Italy—Two European content firms are buying their way into the U.S. market. Italy’s Dada Mobile Inc. said it will spend $7 million to acquire Upoc Networks Inc., a New …

SEATTLE—Increasing ownership of camera phones is fueling uptake of photo-messaging in the United States and Europe, according to the latest figures from M:Metrics. The survey found that photo-messaging among U.S. …

CHICAGO—U.S. Cellular Corp. turned on network coverage in underground portions of the Chicago Transit Authority’s train system, and is the only carrier to currently offer service in the 11.4-mile subway …

SAN DIEGO—Qualcomm Inc. announced a joint venture with Vietnamese handset vendor IQLinks to produce CDMA450 handsets in the Southeast Asian nation. The JV, to be known as IQLinks Joint Venture …

RESTON, Va.—Both Sprint Nextel Corp. and its affiliates Horizon Personal Communications Inc. and Bright Personal Communications Services L.L.C. are claiming victory in a lawsuit that pitted them against one another …

The Symbian operating system, championed by Nokia Corp. in its smart phones, currently has a majority of OS market share, a state of affairs likely to continue for the foreseeable …

WASHINGTON-While the network-neutrality issue holds up telecommunications reform, fissures in the telecom industry between big and little carriers are forming. Generally large carriers-both wireline and wireless-oppose any attempts to legislate …

SHENZHEN, China-Chinese telecom equipment manufacturer ZTE Corp. launched a dual-mode TD-SCDMA/GSM handset. The U350 model features dual standby capability, which allows users to put a call in one mode on …

Polar opposite pictures of the second quarter emerged last week from Verizon Wireless and Sprint Nextel Corp. as the industry’s No. 2 and No. 3 operators reported financial results. Verizon …

ATLANTA-T-Mobile USA Inc. has tweaked its pricing options with a promotional “back to school” plan for families that includes 1,000 anytime minutes for $50 per month. The plan does not …

DENVER-Qwest Communications International Inc. has quietly launched Sprint Nextel Corp.’s full-track music download service for Qwest wireless customers. The mobile virtual network operator is carrying the Sprint Music Store, which …

Dear Editor, I was compelled to respond to Mike Dano’s article, “Worst of the Week: Push-To-Silence-PTT,” on RCRNews.com July 27, in which he writes “the thing about walkie-talkie cell phones: …

CHICAGO-Online travel company Orbitz launched a service allowing customers to find hotel rooms, view travel itineraries and check the status of flights from mobile phones. The off-deck offering is free …

HICKORY, N.C.—CommScope Inc. has shaken up ADC Telecommunications Inc.’s bid to buy Andrew Corp. with a $9.50 per share proposal valued at about $1.7 billion in cash, including the assumption …

WASHINGTON—A federal appeals court may be reconsidering its ruling that Congress’ digital-wiretap act applies to Voice over Internet Protocol and broadband Internet services. The court has asked the Federal Communications …

   LOS ANGELES—Helio L.L.C. is appealing to its 102,600 MySpace friends by offering to drop its standard two-year contract requirement. However, the carrier is not offering discounts on its phones. …

   SAN DIEGO—Can a magazine brand help sell mobile phones and, presumably, vice versa? That question could be answered soon as the Elle Magazine partnership with Alcatel to produce the …

BOSTON—American Tower Corp., the nation’s largest tower company, released limited second-quarter results—but said it will probably restate its past earnings as a result of its investigation of stock option-granting practices. …

MILAN, Italy—Content aggregator Buongiorno USA Inc. is looking to expand its presence in North America with plans to spend as much as $27 million to acquire application developer Rocket Mobile. …

REDWOOD CITY, Calif.—Openwave Systems Inc. reported substantially improved net loss figures during its fourth quarter, but revenues declined. For the quarter, Openwave reported revenues of $91.1 million, down 9 percent …

OKLAHOMA CITY—Dobson Cellular Systems Inc. has completed its purchase of assets from four wireless companies in Kodiak and Nome, Alaska. Dobson Cellular Systems is a subsidiary of Dobson Communications Corp. …

MINNETONKA, Minn.—Digi International Inc. said it will buy MaxStream Inc. a privately held firm based in Lindon, Utah, that works in the wireless device networking space. The acquisition is characterized …