The Week in Review

Welcome to our new Friday feature, Week in Review. Every Friday, RCR Wireless News will run through the major events of the past week, outlining what happened and speculating on what to look for in the coming weeks, months and years. Check below for news about carriers, handset makers, content companies, infrastructure vendors and more.
Carriers
–Qwest named Edward Mueller as its new CEO. Mueller will replace Richard Notebaert, who oversaw Qwest’s first year of operational profitability in 2006. It remains to be seen whether Mueller will be able to stem the losses to the carrier’s dwindling wireless customer base.
Handsets
–Nokia offered to replace up to 46 million faulty cellphone batteries. The announcement follows a number of similar announcements from various cellphone makers over the years, and offers evidence that batteries and battery makers continue to trouble the world’s handset manufacturers.
–All of the nation’s major carriers will shortly begin selling Motorola’s Razr2 handset, the followup to Moto’s super-slim, super-popular Razr. The refreshed Razr2 also carries much of Motorola’s hopes for a rebound in the handset industry. Thus, observers will be scrutinizing the progress of the Razr2 as its floods the marketplace in the coming months.
Content
–Verizon Wireless updated its mobile Web home page, news that comes as revenues from the carrier’s data services continue to grow. Whether the refresh will serve to sustain Verizon Wireless’ data growth remains to be seen.
Infrastructure
–Sprint Nextel offered details on its forthcoming WiMAX service, which the carrier said will be branded Xohm (pronounced Zoam). Now that the carrier has set its financial targets for WiMAX, the industry will be keenly watching Xohm’s progress.
Other
–Qualcomm continues to get buffeted from all directions as the company’s legal counsel resigned and Nokia filed a complaint against Qualcomm with the International Trade Commission. Qualcomm recently said it has reworked its legal strategy, though it is unclear if the move has come too late in the game.
COMING IN MONDAY’S ISSUE OF RCR WIRELESS NEWS
–Hollywood and the wireless industry are meeting to try to push the mobile entertainment space. But there is some friction as these two industries navigate new waters. Matt Kapko reports.
–Nokia’s N95 series is being watched closely to see if consumers are willing to pay for a high-end phone and to see if Nokia can circumvent carriers in the U.S. market to reach its target audience.
–User-generated content is all the buzz, but professionally composed sites, like funnyordie.com, may be where the future lies. Reporter Colin Gibbs digs in.