Partnerships: Argela chooses Picochip technology; AT&T, Elster team on Smart Grid; and more

Telecom solutions company Argela selected Picochip as the core technology supplier for its femtocell developments. Argela will use Picochip’s femtocell technology in products including a residential femtocell with home-zone applications as well as femtocell solutions for enterprise, metro and rural deployments.
AT&T and Elster, which provides metering technology and Smart Grid solutions, announced an agreement that calls for the companies to develop a comprehensive end-to-end solution for utilities. The combined offering will allow utilities to integrate distribution area networking from AT&T’s wireless network with Elster’s EnergyAxis advanced metering infrastructure solution. The solution allows utilities to collect consumption and usage information from end users and aggregate and transport the information over AT&T’s network.
The Bahamas Telecommunications Company Ltd. launched a commercial Wi-Fi mesh network with advanced billing with the help of Aptilo Networks, which provided billing and charging solutions. Alcatel-Lucent performed systems integration tasks for the network launch. The network is targeted at major tourist destinations like Atlantis and Paradise Island.
Convergys Corp. said Cincinnati Bell has deployed its Intelligent Credits Solution to help it manage customer credits. The solution is based on the Convergys Dynamic Decisioning platform and will provide a policy-based credit program for the company.
ADC Telecom said its distributed antenna systems solutions are supporting Verizon Wireless‘ LTE rollouts. The company said its products are deployed in areas where Verizon is currently deploying LTE service, including the New Meadowlands Stadium and Denver International Airport.
Vringo said it signed an agreement with EMI Music to offer video content from EMI artists on mobile phones as video ringtones. The ringtones will be available as premium content to U.K. users, where the company is planning to launch soon with Orange. Vringo also announced a partnership with Zed, a digital entertainment distributor, that calls for Vringo to grant a license to distribute the Vringo video ringtone platform application to Zed’s customers. The deal also calls for Zed to create new video content to coincide with the Vringo/Orange launch.
India’s Reliance Communications is launching a new mobile data portal powered by Motricity. The R World portal will complement the carrier’s 3G network launch. The portal uses Motricity’s mCore platform and Mobile as a Service solution.
Tango Telecom, which provides policy control, real-time charging and advanced messaging solutions, deployed its Tango Telecom Data Charging & Policy Control Platform with a leading African operator. The platform allows for innovative pricing options like pay-per-use vouchers and tiered pricing and also allows carriers to manage free introductory access to premium content.
Haitian wireless operator Voila and Unibank launched the T-Cash service, which provides banking and mobile-commerce services through mobile phones. The companies noted there are very few banks per capita in Haiti, but more than 85% of the country’s households have a mobile phone. The service will allow the ‘underbanked’ population to conduct money transfers, pay bills, access payroll services and use mobile commerce services.
Geotab Inc. said it is using T-Mobile USA‘s network to extend the reach of its GPS vehicle tracking and fleet management solution. The company said it is using T-Mobile’s SIM cards in its G05 GPS vehicle tracking units to allow for real-time data management.
Cisco and BMC Software announced a strategic alliance that calls for the companies to develop and market solutions for large multitenant cloud computing infrastructures. The companies said the agreement calls for both companies to align their produce development roadmaps and technology architectures to develop a suite of solutions that automate delivery of cloud services. As part of the agreement, the pair introduced a new cloud solution called the Integrated Cloud Delivery Platform targeted at service providers and large-scale private cloud computing environments.
Digi International introduced commercial-grade integrated 4G routers that have been certified by Sprint and Clearwire. The Digi Connect WAN 4G and ConnectPort X4 4G provide connectivity via 4G networks to remote sites, devices and device/sensor networks, said the company.