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!
Can T-Mobile USA make it alone?
T-Mobile USA Inc.’s position as the nation’s fourth-largest wireless operator, as well as one of the industry’s fastest growing, might not be enough to guarantee its long-term prospects. Several industry observers have questioned the carrier’s ability to remain a standalone entity in the face of increasing competitive pressure from much larger wireless operators, as well as carriers that can offer more robust telecommunications services. “There is no future for T-Mobile,” said Iain Gillott, principal at iGillott-Research. “I think in one year to 18 months [T-Mobile USA] will be part of Cingular [Wireless L.L.C.].” … Read More
Telecom companies lead tech sector in 1Q job cuts
Telecommunications companies had the highest number of job cuts during the first quarter within the technology sector, according to a quarterly survey conducted by outsourcing company Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Of nearly 60,000 technology jobs cut during the quarter, telecom firms cut 35,079 jobs, followed by the computer industry with more than 16,168 job cuts during the first three months of this year. Technology job cuts reached their highest level since the fourth quarter of 2003 when more than 80,000 tech jobs were lost. … Read More
VoIP providers defend 911 practices
VoIP providers claim customers are informed that when they dial 911 using a Voice over Internet Protocol service, it is different than calling 911 from traditional landline or wireless phones. “You can’t call it 911 because 911 means something special,” said Chris Murray, vice president of government relations for Vonage Holding Co., at an appearance last week at the National Press Club. Murray said he uses the term “access to emergency services.” Verizon Communications Inc. offers a VoIP service known as VoiceWing. To use VoiceWing, customers must affirmatively give their locations and acknowledge they know the difference between VoiceWing 911 and landline 911 when they sign up for the service, said David Young, Verizon director of regulatory affairs. … Read More
Verizon buys stake in MCI from largest shareholder
Verizon Communications Inc. said it has agreed to purchase approximately 43.4 million shares of MCI Inc. from MCI’s largest single shareholder, Carlos Slim Helu, for $25.72 per share in cash. Industry analysts noted the sale equals a 13.4-percent stake in MCI for $1.1 billion. The agreement also calls for Verizon, which is in the midst of attempting to acquire MCI, to pay an adjustment at the end of one year in an amount per MCI share equal to .7241 times the amount by which the price of Verizon’s common stock exceeds $35.52 per share. MCI’s shares were trading up slightly early on the news at $25.91 per share, while Verizon’s stock was flat at $35.07 per share. … Read More
NextWave completes spectrum sale to Verizon, emerges from bankruptcy
Verizon Wireless completed its $3 billion acquisition of NextWave Telecom Inc.’s 28 spectrum licenses covering approximately 73 million potential customers in 23 markets. NextWave said it has formally emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings following the closing of the spectrum sale to Verizon Wireless. The spectrum deal, which was announced late last year, included nearly all of NextWave’s spectrum holdings that remained following the sale of 34 licenses to Cingular Wireless L.L.C. in early 2004 for $1.4 billion, an auction of three licenses to Verizon Wireless and MetroPCS Inc. last summer that generated nearly $1 billion and the return of dozens of licenses to the Federal Communications Commission as part of NextWave’s bankruptcy proceedings. … Read More
MobilePro to launch MVNO service using Verizon’s network
Wireless technology and broadband telecommunications company MobilePro Corp. reported that its CloseCall America subsidiary plans to launch a prepaid wireless product within the next 30 days via a mobile virtual network operator agreement with Verizon Wireless. The company noted the service would offer a “no surprise” wireless bill for consumers and would include parental controls that will allow restricting outgoing and incoming calls to only certain numbers. MobilePro added that the service would initially launch in Maryland and later expand throughout the country. … Read More
Verizon to offer Treo 650 ‘soon’
Verizon Wireless confirmed it will sell PalmOne Inc.’s Treo 650. Many in the industry had expected such a move, although neither Verizon nor PalmOne had officially announced the device for Verizon’s network. Sprint PCS and Cingular Wireless L.L.C. already offer the Treo 650. Verizon did not give a price for the advanced device or a specific release date, except to say that it would be available soon. Verizon broke from its standard announcing procedure with the news about the Treo 650. Typically, the carrier issues a press release with specifications and pricing details shortly before a device becomes publicly available. For the Treo 650, Verizon posted information about the device on its Web site-“the latest smart phone from PalmOne, the Treo 650 will soon be certified on the Verizon Wireless network”-and is offering to send interested customers an e-mail alert when the device is commercially available. … Read More
Carriers expand offerings to reach unpenetrated subs: Family plans growing piece of strategy
“We have run out of people (in the United States) who can pass a credit check and want a wireless phone,” said Roger Entner, vice president of North American wireless telecommunications for research and consulting firm Ovum. With 182 million wireless subscribers in the United States, wireless carriers are struggling to figure out how to make money off the 40 percent of Americans who don’t yet own mobile phones. Entner explained that carriers employ two main strategies in tackling this market-prepaid plans and family plans. “If you want to continue to grow … you have to have a whole arsenal of products targeting that unpenetrated market,” he said. … Read More
Nextel Partners sells towers to TowerCo
Nextel Partners Inc. said it has entered into an agreement with TowerCo Inc. to purchase, construct and own 300 cell towers for an undisclosed amount. The agreement calls for TowerCo to purchase up to 92 existing towers from Nextel Partners, predominately in the carrier’s North, Southeast and Midwest operations, for $12 million. Nextel Partners also has granted TowerCo exclusive rights to build or buy future towers up to a combined total of 300 towers by the end of 2008. … Read More
More people own phones, more people unhappy with service: Cingular, Verizon, Sprint own 7 of 10 customers
The number of households that use mobile phones is increasing, but levels of customer satisfaction are on the decline, according to new research from Forrester Research Inc. Two-thirds of U.S. households have at least one mobile phone, according to the survey, which polled 5,600 households. The report, “US Mobile Growth Defies Conventional Wisdom,” found that most households have more than one phone, and households with four or more mobile phones grew by 57 percent during the past year. … Read More
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