Editor’s Note: The RCR Wireless News Time Machine is a way to take advantage of our extensive history in covering the wireless space to fire up the DeLorean and take a trip back in time to re-visit some of the more interesting headlines from this week in history. Enjoy the ride!
MetroPCS tops bidding in Week 1 of auction
The Federal Communications Commission’s attempt to auction 242 spectrum licenses in the 1.9 GHz spectrum band as part of Auction 58 got off to a modest start last week with just more than $1.4 billion in bids placed for 201 of the licenses after 11 rounds. Five of the original 35 bidding entities had already dropped out of the bidding by the end of the week, while 41 licenses had not received any bids. Despite a questionable financial position, regional wireless operator MetroPCS Inc.’s bidding partner Royal Street Communications L.L.C. was the leading financial bidder with $384.8 million in total high bids for licenses covering five markets. … Read More
Industry to tackle ratings system for mobile content
The wireless industry plans to meet this week to begin work on a wireless content ratings system similar to other entertainment industries. “We are going to do something. Hopefully by the end of the year, the industry will have adopted a voluntary rating system. We are all in agreement that it is necessary. The feeling is, it is certainly not a problem at this point in time, but before it becomes one, the industry wants to draw up a set of ratings that will let all consumers know the nature of the content,” said John Walls, CTIA vice president of public affairs. “Everyone is very enthusiastic about getting together and coming to terms on appropriate content ratings.” … Read More
McDonald’s gives away ringtones as more embrace mobile marketing
McDonald’s restaurants in the Pacific Northwest will give away ringtones, wallpaper and coupons to wireless handsets during a Web-based promotional campaign, the fast-food chain said. McDonald’s will use the Web site www.mobilestr33t.com as a focal point for the campaign to offer ringtones from hip-hop artists, classic rock bands, and movie and TV show theme songs. The campaign began last week and runs for a limited time. … Read More
Sierra’s stock dives on Q1 news, while rival Novatel ticks up
Wall Street stomped Sierra Wireless Inc.-sending the company’s stock down an astounding 38 percent to $8.97 per share-after the company said it expects to post a massive drop in first-quarter revenues and a huge loss. Just 12 hours later, Sierra’s main rival, Novatel Wireless Inc., forecasted relatively stable first-quarter results, which the company said shows it is “winning market share in a seasonally softer period and best positioned to capitalize on the growth of 3G markets.” The numbers highlight the turbulent nature of the wireless modem industry, which sits on the leading edge of the wireless market and can be subject to the fickle inclinations of early adopters and experimental carriers. Sierra’s extensive first-quarter decline is due to a series of miscalculations and obstacles. … Read More
Ask Jeeves further crowds mobile-search market
Internet search engine Ask Jeeves said it will bring its service to wireless devices later this year, joining an already crowded playing field of mobile-search providers. But whether wireless subscribers will use their phones to access search engines-or how they might do it-is anybody’s guess. Some of the first substantial mobile-search offerings debuted last summer, as Yellow-Pages.com, SearchGuy.com and LexisNexis all deployed services bringing their Internet-based offerings to handhelds. Google made news in October when it launched a beta test of a service enabling mobile users to access a local version of its search engine via short message service. From their handsets, users simply type in subjects and locations-for instance, “pizza” and a ZIP code-for information on nearby businesses. … Read More
Siemens to cut U.S. phone staff, but hire for networks, Nokia plays up market share
Siemens AG will cut about 74 jobs in its North American mobile-phone business, moves that come as the company ponders what to do with its loss-making global handset operations. Siemens would not say how many workers will remain in its North American mobile-phone business after the layoffs. Berndt Baumgartl, president of Siemens Communications Inc.’s U.S. mobile division, said the company does plan to stay in the mobile-phone business in North America. However, a reduction of 74 positions could signal a major withdrawal from the market, as well as the possibility that Siemens ultimately could leave the U.S. handset business altogether. … Read More
Familiar problem: HSDPA networks likely to roll out without device choices
Although Cingular Wireless L.L.C. is racing to launch a UMTS/HSDPA network in 15 to 20 markets by the end of this year, the carrier probably will face slim pickings when it comes to phones capable of taking advantage of its shiny new network. None of the world’s major handset makers have announced their HSDPA plans; indeed, most are still on their first W-CDMA phone lineups. “It’s going to be a slow start,” cautioned Chris Ambrosio, director of the wireless device strategies service for research and consulting firm Strategy Analytics. … Read More
Fresh off acquisition, Cingular takes lead in customer adds
With a handful of operators yet to post fourth-quarter and full-year 2004 results, the wireless industry is well on its way to reporting one of the highest customer growth quarters-and years-in history. That potential was bolstered last week by three of the nation’s fastest-growing operators-Cingular Wireless L.L.C., Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile USA Inc.-posting a combined 4.5 million subscriber additions during the fourth quarter and setting the industry up to surpass more than 20 million customer additions for the year. Cingular opened up the reporting last week with fourth-quarter results that surpassed even the most optimistic predictions. The carrier, which became the nation’s largest wireless operator last October following its acquisition of AT&T Wireless Services Inc., reported 1.8 million net additions on a pro-forma basis during the fourth quarter and ended 2004 with more than 49.1 million total subscribers on its network. … Read More
Testing imperative to 3G deployments
Similar to mechanics in the automotive world, test-and-measurement companies are the quiet heroes of wireless technologies. They take little credit when the networks hum and huff, yet they witness each technology’s creation day and play parts in their burial rites. From handsets to access points and gateways to each piece of infrastructure, test-and-measurement players breath, move and monitor. And with the dawn of third-generation services, the importance of test is on the rise. … Read More
CTIA wants sitings rules thrown out
As expected, CTIA has told a federal appeals court it wants it to throw out the nationwide programmatic agreement recently entered into by the Federal Communications Commission, the federal Advisory Council on Historic Preservation and the National Conference of State Historic Preservation Officers. “CTIA challenges the FCC’s conclusion that construction of a wireless communications tower is a federal undertaking under the National Historic Preservation Act, as well as the commission’s requirements regarding the treatment of properties that are ‘potentially eligible’ for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places,” said CTIA. … Read More
