ALEXANDRIA, Va.-GO Communications Corp. has selected Siemens Wireless Terminals Division, a division of Siemens Rolm Communications, as its primary personal communications services handset and accessory provider.
During the first year of the multi-year contract, GO Communications will purchase approximately $40 million in PCS handsets and accessories that include a pocket-sized, soft-key and menu-driven handset, the company said.
The two companies also have agreed to participate in a joint technology program under which Siemens will supply PCS-1900 handsets with lithium batteries that allow up to 4.5 hours of talk time and 50 hours of standby power without charging.
Siemens, which delivered the first PCS handsets to Mercury One 2 One’s system in the United Kingdom, is experienced with Smart Cards. GO plans to use Smart Cards for its PCS networks.
The program also calls for Siemens to support the enhanced vocoder for PCS-1900 technology. The voice quality from the enhanced vocoder is comparable to landline voice quality, GO Communications added.
Additional provisions of the agreement between GO Communications and Siemens include joint market research, product development efforts and cooperative advertising.
GO plans to compete in the upcoming 30-megahertz block auction for PCS. GO has signed agreements with Northern Telecom Ltd. and Nokia Corp. for PCS equipment.
