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!
Verizon is new No. 1
The ongoing fight for dominance of the U.S. wireless market flared up once again last week as Bell Atlantic Corp. and Vodafone AirTouch plc said they will commence this year an initial public offering of Verizon Wireless, the joint venture that combines the U.S. wireless holdings of Bell Atlantic, PrimeCo Personal Communications L.P. and Vodafone AirTouch. Verizon is the new name and brand of the company created by the merger of GTE Corp. and Bell Atlantic, which was obliged to create a different name for the company without the word “Bell” in it, according to the companies’ merger agreement. … Read More
‘Heavenly match’ is finally official
It is a match made in heaven. BellSouth Corp. and SBC Communications finally ended weeks of speculation, announcing plans to create a wireless joint venture that will become the second-largest wireless operator in the United States, serving 16.2 million subscribers and reaching 175 million potential customers. And, with the exception of two overlapping markets the companies will have to divest, the union is a perfect fit, analysts and company executives noted last week. … Read More
VoiceStream prepares for transnational race for customers
VoiceStream Wireless Corp. is prepared to wage war on two fronts in the battle of the titans for transnational control of wireless telecommunications, John Stanton, VoiceStream’s chairman and chief executive officer said. Although focused on expanding its domestic footprint through acquisitions of carriers and spectrum, the Bellevue, Wash., carrier also is alert to international alliance possibilities. “Fundamentally, the United States is behind. But Mannesmann-Vodafone (AirTouch plc) was the starting gun in the race to create global franchises through alliances and cross ownership,” Stanton said. … Read More
Can the small carriers survive the age of consolidation?
The flurry of consolidation in the wireless industry leads the industry observer to believe a nationwide presence is a necessity to compete in this market going forward. AT&T Wireless Services Inc. raised the bar in 1998 offering its nationwide plan, the Digital One Rate plan. Others responded. Last week, Bell Atlantic Mobile and Vodafone AirTouch plc announced their new nationwide brand, Verizon, and introduced nationwide one-rate calling plans. BellSouth Corp. and SBC Communications Inc. announced plans to merge their wireless properties so they can compete more successfully for the high-end user. … Read More
Wireless content firms find initial success with IPOs
Amid a market of as-yet unseen volatility, two wireless Internet content firms commenced with initial public offerings last week that so far have enjoyed moderate degrees of success. First to emerge was i3 Mobile Inc., formerly Intelligent Information Inc. The company aggregates Internet-based content like news, sports scores and stock quotes for a number of wireless carriers, who may brand it as their own and offer it to subscribers as a separate service. … Read More
CDG expects CDMA handsets with SIM cards by the end of 2000
The CDMA Development Group said it expects handset makers to introduce commercial Code Division Multiple Access handsets with subscriber identity modules by the end of the year to allow for global roaming. The CDG announced late last month that the Telecommunications Industry Association will approve the CDMA SIM standard for publication. The SIM was standardized to maximize a similarity between CDMA and Global System for Mobile communications SIM applications, said Terry Yen, director of Asia Pacific Projects with the CDG. … Read More
ETSI to standardize all ITU-accepted 3G technologies
The European Telecommunications Standards Institute agreed last week to standardize all technologies the International Telecommunication Union has accepted for the third-generation market. RCR reported last week the European Commission planned to officially ask the European standards body to take up this work. The ETSI board agreed to do so prior to the EC’s official request. Paul Reid, ETSI’s 3rd Generation Marketing Officer, said ETSI will begin work quickly to put the standards in place for recognition with the various European regulatory bodies. European governments plan to grant, auction or selectively tender 70 to 80 3G licenses this year. … Read More
Stock market roller coaster ride actually building pattern
”The $1 trillion that came out of Nasdaq in the last five days will be looking for places to invest when things get better,” Thomas M. Galvin, chief investment officer and equity strategist for Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette Securities Corp., said April 6. The latest turmoil in the stock markets may appear to have come out of nowhere, but the pattern has been building for a year. While investor exuberance has grabbed headlines, another trend has quietly and steadily emerged. … Read More
Nextel to announce Web services
Nextel Communications Inc. will soon announce commercial availability of wireless Internet service, people close to the company say. According to the company’s Web site, its Nextel Online service already is available in 44 markets. Nextel is offering three flat-rate pricing packages ranging from $15 per month to $40 per month on top of its regular rate plans. The service is unlimited and minutes aren’t deducted from customers’ monthly voice plans. The packet-based nature of the service won’t require customers to dial up for a connection. … Read More
NextWave gets attention of House Judiciary: hearing scheduled
NextWave Telecom Inc. appears to have gotten the attention of the House Judiciary Committee with a letter sent to its chairman last week complaining that the Federal Communications Commission is knowingly conducting a misinformation campaign. “The March 23rd letter is designed to divert attention away from the FCC’s assault on the Bankruptcy Code … The FCC is attempting to seize through litigation sleight-of-hand what it has not achieved lawfully through the legislative process,” said Frank Cassou, NextWave executive vice president and general counsel, in a letter to Rep. Henry Hyde on Wednesday. … Read More
