Sprint Nextel sells Mobitex network

Sprint Nextel Corp. announced it sold its Mobitex subsidiary, Velocita Wireless L.P., to United Wireless Holdings Inc. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Velocita Wireless operates a nationwide Mobitex wireless data network covering 93% of the U.S. business population. The slow-speed network supports data communications including e-mail, machine-to-machine, telematics, point-of-sale, and telemetry applications, and counts around 200,000 customers, according to the Woodbridge, N.J.-based company.
Interestingly, Velocita appears to have lost more than half of its customers over the past two years; the company counted more than 400,000 subscribers when Sprint Nextel acquired the company in 2005. Sprint Nextel purchased the company to begin using its 900 MHz spectrum to supplement coverage of the iDEN network the No. 3 carrier acquired with Nextel Communications Inc.
Per terms of the newly announced sale, Velocita Wireless will lease certain FCC spectrum channels from various Sprint Nextel Corp. affiliates.
“This acquisition reinforces the position of Mobitex networks in the world. Mobitex has unique properties which make it a desirable choice for applications such as machine-to-machine communication, telemetry and credit-card authorization. We will be investing in the network to provide even better services to the existing customers and target markets,” United Wireless President Andrew Fitton said.