Editor’s Note: Welcome to our weekly Reality Check column. We’ve gathered a group of visionaries and veterans in the mobile industry to give their insights into the marketplace.
Brazilian Picture
The number of mobile broadband capable accesses in Brazil grew 82.18% last year, totalizing 18.6 million new devices, according...
After Research in Motion (RIMM) announced Thorsten Heins as its new CEO, market analysts seemed to be looking for the company's next steps.
Tech analyst Jeff Kagan noted that with now former co-CEOs Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis's stepping down was an incredible move,...
The Bay Area Regional Interoperable Communications Systems Authority approved a $95 million agreement with Motorola Solutions (MSI) to provide a public safety network using LTE technology across 700 MHz spectrum in the San Francisco area.
The network, dubbed the Bay Areas Enhanced Wireless Broadband system,...
Research in Motion (Nasdaq: RIMM) reported that its co-CEOs Jim Balsillie and Mike Lazaridis have stepped down. The beleaguered Canadian device maker said Balsillie and Lazardis will be replaced by former COO Thorsten Heins.
“There comes a time in the growth of every successful company...
Editor’s Note: Welcome to our weekly Reader Forum section. In an attempt to broaden our interaction with our readers, we have created this forum for those with something meaningful to say to the wireless industry. We want to keep this as open as possible, but we...
The Global Mobile Suppliers Association reported that there are now 269 LTE-enabled user devices, manufactured by 57 companies in the market. This is a six-fold jump in six months and is a 36% increase in the number of devices identified compared with last October....
Brazilian telecom regulator Anatel's board of directors approved the potential framework  for the auction of radio frequency in the 451 MHz to 458 MHz band; 461 MHz to 468 MHz band and 2.5 GHz to 2690 MHz band. The tender is expected to be...
Avaya unveiled a new version of its unified communications solution targeting small- and mid-sized enterprises that includes new capabilities for SME, including mobile collaboration and productivity.
Avaya noted that among the targets for the IP Office 8.0 product is a focus on emerging...
Lime, the Caribbean unit of Cable & Wireless Communications, is soliciting more business from small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Caribbean by extending its suite of cloud-based services, the company said January 18.
Lime introduced cloud-based services when it launched its product named Lime...
Near field communication (NFC) is on its way to getting launched in Brazil and could become a reality at the end of this year, told RCR Wireless News Mustafa Almansur, NFC programme leader for the Brazilian market at GSMA, a global association whose members represent more than...
The International Telecommunication Union announced the specifications for next-generation mobile technologies – IMT-Advanced or 4G – after the ITU Radiocommunication Assembly meeting in Geneva. The ITU reported that LTE-Advanced and WirelessMAN-Advanced technologies would be accorded the official designation of IMT-Advanced, comprising requirements for 4G...
Brazilian mobile penetration is expected to grow from 124% in 2011 to 153% in 2016 and IPTV services are expected to increase from 21,000 subscriptions in 2011 to 1.5 million in 2016, according to a new report from Pyramid Research.
The main reason behind the...
Emerging markets operators will hold off on LTE deployments in favor of upgrading their 3G networks to HSPA+. This technology provides spectral efficiency and headline data speeds similar to current implementations of LTE for the price of a software upgrade in most cases.
Mexican antitrust regulator Cofeco (Comision Federal de Competencia) is slowing down media company Grupo Televisa SAB's plan to buy half of mobile phone group Iusacell, owned by Ricardo Salinas Pliego, owner of TV Azteca. The country's biggest broadcaster agreed last April to invest US$1.6...
The two major telecom operators in Mexico - fixed Telmex and mobile Telcel -, which together generate two-thirds of industry revenue, contribute less than one third of the investments. In a recent analysis, the local consulting and market research firm Competitive Intelligence Unit (CIU)...
Brazil closed 2011 with 242.2 million mobile subscribers –most of them prepaid and on GSM connections – with Vivo ending the year as the country's largest carrier by market share, according to the latest data released by Brazilian telecom regulator Anatel.
Brazil added a record...
Microsoft has invested $10 million in a tech center located in São Paulo, its second and biggest center in Latin America joining a previously launched center in Mexico City. Microsoft has tech centers in 17 countries.
Microsoft said the centers are collaborative environments that provide...
Editor’s Note: Welcome to our weekly feature, Analyst Angle. We’ve collected a group of the industry’s leading analysts to give their outlook on the hot topics in the wireless industry.
The arrival of a new year brings with its numerous expectations of what would be the changes...
Smartphone sales as percentage of total sales will break the 20% barrier in 2012, with Brazil, Colombia, Peru and Chile having especially important increases in smartphone adoption. Smartphone adoption in the region will be driven by increased vendor competition, fuelled by Chinese manufacturers that offer affordable Android phones and operators trying to increase their smartphone base to increase data revenue.
After the local data, fixed-line, cable TV and Internet provider Grupo GTD gave up the merger with Chile’s Empresa Nacional de Telecomunicaciones S.A. Entel, the second largest telecom operator has release a material fact regarding its eventual entrance into the pay-TV market. Entel said...
German software developer SAP AG (NYSE: SAP) today announced its intention to acquire Datango AG, a German provider of workforce performance support software. The transaction, scheduled to close during the first quarter of 2012, is subject to the usual regulatory approvals. The companies did...
IDC Latin America followed the company's global predictions in forecasting that 2012 will be the year of mobile and cloud platform wars as IT vendors vie for leadership while the industry redefines itself. The market intelligence firm also added the consumerization of IT, which...
The Chilean Senate has approved 33 - 0 new regulations on mobile phone antenna installations (read the document in Spanish). This agreement is expected to be ratified in the coming weeks by the National Congress, and soon to be enacted into the law.
The bill...
Worldwide PC shipments declined 1.4% during the forth quarter compared to the same period 2010, totalling 92.2 million units, according to a report from Gartner. The drop followed two quarters of positive growth. For the year, worldwide PC shipments totaled 352.8 million units, a...
