#TBT: Motorola basks in Razr glory; rural carriers look at 3G … 8 years ago this week

Editor’s Note: RCR Wireless News goes all in for “Throwback Thursdays,” tapping into our archives to resuscitate the top headlines from the past. Fire up the time machine, put on the sepia-tinted shades and enjoy the memories!
Razr team takes bow, hints at secret sauce
Score a hit in the global marketplace with a sleek handset that spawns imitators and you can crown yourself a design innovator and refer to your designs as “iconic.” This is particularly true if, previously, you’d been groping for ideas and, now, sales and glowing press propel your company’s revival. Necessity is the mother of invention, they say. In developing this story line-part hard fact, part myth-making-it helps if you are recognized by a high-profile award for your work and you have hard-working, humble brainiacs to trot out as representative of your new direction. … Read More
Nokia, Moto expect solid results; Samsung, LG reeling: Sony Ericsson beats all expectations
The competitive landscape for the world’s top five mobile-phone vendors at mid-year has come into clearer focus with second-quarter earnings already reported or expected this week. The plot has thickened perhaps, while not varying much from earlier episodes of this long-running, global industry serial. Analysts expect that when Nokia Corp. and Motorola Inc. report their second-quarter earnings on Wednesday and Thursday, respectively, that Nokia will offer revenue and earnings in line with expectations while Motorola-perhaps fueled by the competitive fervor that comes with second place-may do better than expected. Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. last week said that revenue and earnings in its handset business were down significantly and LG Electronics Co. Ltd. is expected to report an even weaker performance when it reports earnings on Thursday. … Read More
Rural operators juggle 3G plans
Although much attention has been focused on the network transitions and upgrades of national carriers, many regional operators around the country also are deciding how to implement new technologies and whether to spend money to upgrade infrastructure. Those technology decisions are typically driven by the technology choices of their major roaming partners, be it the CDMA path or GSM path. A number of carriers are in the midst of the same transitions that larger carriers are experiencing: migrating customers from TDMA to GSM technology, or trying to decide at what point they should upgrade to the latest technology. … Read More
Fine ‘merely cost of doing business,’ Martin laments: FCC levies $97,500 fine on data broker
The Federal Communications Commission fined LocateCell.com $97,500 for repeatedly failing to respond to subpoenas to provide information in connection with the commission’s investigation of data brokers that deceptively gain access to consumers’ phone records from cellular carriers. It is the FCC’s first fine against a data broker and the stiffest allowable under the law, though LocateCell.com can challenge the FCC action. The commission is investigating other data brokers, and also attempting to ascertain whether cellular carriers are liable for violating federal telecom consumer privacy regulations. … Read More
Leap not letting history slow its progress
Not to put too fine a point on it, but Leap Wireless International Inc. has been growing by leaps and bounds-raising the question of whether the company’s rapid market rollouts will bring a repeat of the implosion that the carrier faced when it pushed itself into 40 markets and then declared bankruptcy only a few short years ago. However, while Leap’s rapid network launches may seem familiar, there are some fundamental differences in the situation this time around, analysts say. … Read More
China Mobile cracks down on third-party content providers
Content providers around the world scrambled last week as China Mobile Communications Corp. disclosed plans to strengthen policies for third-party content subscriptions. The nation’s largest operator unveiled a series of changes including offering one-month free trials, increasing the number of text-message reminders to users and automatically canceling subscriptions of users who fail to respond to confirmation requests. Billing on a per-message basis will be forbidden. The new policies are expected to be implemented later this month, and fellow carriers China Unicom and China Telecom are expected to follow suit. … Read More
New, old faces line up for AWS auction
Next month’s advanced wireless services auction, anticipated for years due to the infusion of an additional 90 megahertz of spectrum into the U.S. wireless industry, may come to be remembered by who didn’t show for the big dance. In the no-surprise category, Cingular Wireless L.L.C., Verizon Wireless, Sprint Next Corp. (with its cable TV partners) and T-Mobile USA Inc. signed up to bid on some of the 1,122 licenses in the 1710-1755 MHz and 2110-2155 MHz band up for sale by the Federal Communications Commission scheduled for Aug. 9. … Read More
Mobile WiMAX taking shape
Given all the recent WiMAX announcements, it seems that the communications infrastructure community has convinced the rest of the world to invest in WiMAX technology, whether for fixed or mobile networks. In Seoul, South Korea’s top two carriers, SK Telecom Co. Ltd. and KT Corp., recently launched commercial mobile WiBro services, Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.-developed homegrown WiMAX standard. The companies said they plan to roll out WiBro services in other markets early in 2007, and they expect to have services deployed nationwide by sometime in 2008. … Read More
Cingular to cut capex spending, but industry as a whole on rise for ’07, Lehman predicts
A recent report from Lehman Brothers Equity Research suggests that Cingular Wireless L.L.C. plans to cut its capital expenditures next year by $1.5 billion, a 20-percent drop from the $7.5 billion the nation’s leading carrier is planning to spend this year. However, Lehman Brothers said it believes other carriers, including T-Mobile USA Inc., Sprint Nextel Corp. and Verizon Wireless will offset the decline, leading to increased wireless infrastructure sales next year. Lehman Brothers explained that the bulk of Cingular’s capex reduction is likely a result of its reduced GSM network integration costs following the acquisition of AT&T Wireless Services Inc. in late 2004. … Read More
Smartphones drive data use, but pricing model still in flux
The data on mobile devices and data is clear and simple: smart-phone users consume more data because their devices are optimized for games, video, music and e-mail. Even the most popular handsets-for instance, the seemingly ubiquitous Motorola Inc. Razr-don’t come close to driving similar use. All this according to M:Metrics’ May Benchmark Survey of smart-phone use and data consumption in the U.S., the United Kingdom, Germany and France. So is driving data adoption, which challenges the industry, as simple as building affordable smart phones and they will come? … Read More
Check out RCR Wireless News’ Archives for more stories from the past.
Photo courtesy of the Marconi Society.