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, set the date for #TBT and enjoy the memories!
Disney/Pixar deal clouds Apple’s wireless future
Steve Jobs may have just taken one step closer to wireless. The head of Apple Computer Inc. landed a spot on the board of The Walt Disney Co. last week under the terms of Disney’s $7.4 billion buyout of computer animation studio Pixar. While the deal undeniably centered on Pixar’s expertise in making blockbuster animated films, some believe it may also pave the way for Apple to enter the mobile-phone business in a big way. “Now everyone can focus on what is most important,” said Jobs, the founder and chief executive officer of Pixar, “creating innovative stories, characters and films that delight millions of people around the world.” … Read More
Carriers post blowout 4Q numbers, industry now set for record growth
The U.S. wireless industry is on track to chronicle its best-ever quarterly customer growth, with more than 5.4 million net adds already reported by four of the largest carriers. In a record-smashing quarter, Verizon Wireless clocked 2 million net customer additions to pull past Cingular Wireless L.L.C.’s blockbuster results of 1.8 million net adds. T-Mobile USA Inc. gave its own best-ever showing by bringing in 1.4 million net wireless customers. Churn was down, data revenues were up and carriers’ wireline parents benefited from the bounty. But the silver lining did have its cloud. Average revenue per user shrank slightly for both Verizon Wireless and Cingular; T-Mobile USA and Alltel Corp.-which reported results in mid-January-both registered an increasing percentage of prepaid customers; and much of Cingular’s growth came from customers added through resellers. … Read More
RIM options dwindle in NTP case
The legal options for Research In Motion Ltd. continued to dwindle last week as the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear its case against patent holder NTP Inc. The high court rejected a request from the Waterloo, Ontario-based BlackBerry-maker to review whether U.S. patent laws apply to foreign companies doing business in America. The court made no comment in leaving the legal battle to lower courts. The move continues a courtroom losing streak for RIM, which is facing an injunction that could kill service to U.S. BlackBerry users. A Virginia U.S. District Court in 2003 ordered RIM to pay NTP an 8.55-percent royalty on BlackBerry sales after it found the Canadian developer infringed on NTP’s patents. … Read More
As industry posts record handset sales investors remain concerned about future
The worldwide mobile-phone market roared to another record finish in the fourth quarter as unit shipments reached a staggering 245 million, according to research and consulting firm IDC. For the full year, the handset industry shipped a total of 825.5 million phones. “2005 was the year of the emerging market,” said Neil Mawston, an analyst with research and consulting firm Strategy Analytics. “Booming demand in the Southern Hemisphere, in regions such as India and Africa, drove global mobile-phone sales 19-percent higher year-over-year. Emerging markets accounted for one-half of total worldwide sales in 2005.” … Read More
Industry veteran O’Brien joins emergency alert firm
Morgan O’Brien, the industry pioneer who built Nextel Communications Inc. into a multibillion-dollar national wireless force, is joining a start-up firm seeking to leverage a patented geographic location-based technology for targeted emergency alerts and commercial mobile marketing. O’Brien will be chairman of the advisory board at northern Virginia-based SquareLoop Inc. SquareLoop is headed by former wireless association executive-turned-entrepreneur Tom Stroup. … Read More
Balloon tower firm elevates trial system in rural N.D.
Floating towers soon may give some rural North Dakotans better wireless voice and data coverage. Next month, Chandler, Ariz.-based Space Data Corp. is set to trial its latex communications balloons with Extend America, a North Dakota fixed broadband provider and Sprint Nextel Corp. iDEN affiliate. The companies are exploring the commercial possibilities of using SkySite helium-filled balloons equipped with wireless repeaters to provide wireless communications coverage across vast rural areas of North Dakota. “Coverage is everything in North Dakota,” said Greg Rhode, chief operating officer of Extend America as well as founder and president of e-Copernicus, a consulting firm that specializes in rural wireless issues. … Read More
Muni Wi-Fi wave continues to build as industry wrestles with standards
New agreements, contract details from Philadelphia and a smidge of a slowdown in product certifications kept Wi-Fi circles buzzing last week. In Philadelphia, reports surfaced early last week that the city had worked out the terms of its contract with Earthlink Inc. for the city’s Wi-Fi network. But, by the end of the week, neither side was talking about the expected contract terms. Nevertheless, it has been widely reported that the city and Earthlink are proposing a 10-year deal and expect full deployment by spring 2007. Reports also indicated that Earthlink would own the network and charge $9 per month to Internet service resellers. Though reports said the contract doesn’t specify how much Philadelphia’s 1.5 million residents ultimately would pay for Internet access, city officials have stated that they wanted the price to hover around $20 or less. … Read More
White House releases GPS upgrades
The Bush administration today announced the availability of new Global Positioning System capabilities, accuracy and reliability upgrades that are expected to benefit cell phone communications and strengthen the U.S.’ technological leadership position. The move comes as Europe inches closer to launching its own satellite-based navigation system. “The new signal-known as ‘L2C-was specifically designed with commercial needs in mind,” said Deputy Commerce Secretary David Sampson in remarks prepared for delivery at a U.S. Chamber of Commerce press event this morning. “For example, it is transmitted with a higher effective power, so GPS receivers work better in urban areas and indoors. And it requires less energy to receive the signal, an important feature for battery-powered devices such as mobile phones.” … Read More
Boston uses free Wi-Fi to lure residents to business districts
Boston’s neighborhood business districts may soon be bustling with free Wi-Fi hot spots thanks to the city’s Main Streets economic development project. But Boston’s free project is different from those proposed in other large U.S. cities. First of all, Boston said its Wi-Fi project is about economic development and stimulating business growth. There will be no blanketing of the entire city with free or low-cost Wi-Fi Internet access. Boston plans to blanket only its 18 or so neighborhood business districts with free Wi-Fi, which it hopes will entice people to dwell in the area and spend money in neighborhood businesses. … Read More
EarthLink to use Motorola, Tropos for Wi-Fi buildouts
EarthLink Inc. announced a contract with Motorola Inc. and Tropos Networks Inc. as the Internet service provider prepares to launch municipal Wi-Fi networks in five cities. Though terms of the contract were not disclosed, EarthLink said the agreement includes design, installation, system integration and hardware. EarthLink has already been selected to provide Wi-Fi networks to Philadelphia and Anaheim, Calif.
Motorola said it will provide its MOTOwi4 portfolio of products, including its Canopy point-to-point and point-to-multipoint system for high-speed backhaul. “The EarthLink business model for Wi-Fi brings broadband to the masses,” said Tom Hulsebosch, senior director of sales and marketing for Motorola’s Canopy Wireless Broadband Business. “This means that anyone can afford broadband data, not just business customers. This will help create a `broadband anywhere’ expectation.” … Read More
Check out RCR Wireless News’ Archives for more stories from the past.
