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Clearwire uses FCC delay to improve position

WASHINGTON-While major stakeholders and lawmakers haggle over how the Federal Communications Commission should proceed on the stalled $79 billion AT&T Inc.-BellSouth deal, Clearwire Corp. is cleverly taking advantage of the delay and political chaos to press for merger conditions that could better position the...

Mobile TV channel heats up: Modeo loses president; MediaFLO touts progress

Crown Castle International Corp.'s plan to launch its Modeo mobile TV networks in major U.S. markets took an apparent blow as Modeo's President Michael Schueppert stepped down without any explanation from Crown Castle or Modeo. Schueppert's resignation was disclosed in a Dec. 1 government filing...

Schueppert quits Crown Castle’s Modeo

HOUSTON-The head of Crown Castle International Corp.'s mobile TV effort unexpectedly resigned, throwing a potential wrench into the company's plans to build mobile TV networks in the nation's top markets.Crown Castle disclosed the move in a government filing. The company said Michael Schueppert, president...

Martin asks to bring McDowell into AT&T-BellSouth stalemate

WASHINGTON-Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin told Congress he asked agency lawyers to determine whether fellow GOP Commissioner Robert McDowell can be ethically cleared to participate in the agency's consideration of the politically deadlocked, $79 billion merger of AT&T Inc. and BellSouth Corp. But...

TV Guide, Roundbox to make mobile TV guide

TV Guide Mobile Entertainment Inc. and mobile broadcast software company Roundbox Inc. said they signed an exclusive agreement that calls for them to develop and co-market an Electronic Service Guide for mobile television. Roundbox is providing its software to the effort while TV Guide's...

Mobile TV attracts financing despite continued business model questions

Consider video the wireless industry's equivalent of Powerball. But nobody's betting on the content providers.In these early days of well-heeled venture capitalists and hockey-stick projections, there is no shortage of cash in mobile video in the United States. Handset manufacturers are scrambling to rush...

Behavioral targeting goes mobile: Sprint Nextel sells ads on opening screen to mobile Web

SAN FRANCISCO-In September Sprint Nextel Corp. said it would help marketers target ads for its mobile Web pages by gender or region, for example. Now the nation's wireless-service providers are getting ready to roll out a new targeting tool for marketers that will identify...

Analyst Angle: Price war ahead as Tre and TIM go head-to-head with DVB-H in Italy

Editor's Note: Welcome our Monday 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. In the coming weeks look for columns from Strategy Analytics' Chris Ambrosio, Current Analysis' Peter...

Helio unveils new Samsung-sourced handset, GPS services

LOS ANGELES—Forget about "Tokyo Drift," the latest sequel to "The Fast and the Furious" movie franchise. Now there’s the Helio Drift, a souped-up handset from mobile virtual network operator Helio L.L.C. The Drift, from Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., will be equipped with two new...

Study: Risk sharing needed to grow mobile video market

LONDON—Carriers looking to cash in on mobile video should take a cue from the television and film industries, according to a study from Informa Telecoms & Media. Wireless TV will see impressive growth in the next few years, the market research firm said, growing...

Hedgehogging

Online Editor Mike Dano has been trying out various mobile TV services for the better part of two years now. We thought we'd let him rant for hedgehogging this week since the rest of us haven't spent two years assessing mobile TV. You can...

Made-for-mobile clips get respect

The overwhelming majority of wireless users continue to view the phone simply as a platform for voice conversations. For a handful of aspiring filmmakers, though, it's a potential ticket to Hollywood. Entertainment industry executives and wireless types gathered last week at the Museum of...

Worst of the Week: Please Change the Channel

Hello! And welcome to our Thursday column, Worst of the Week. There's a lot of nutty stuff that goes on in this industry, so this column is a chance for us at RCR Wireless News to rant and rave about whatever rubs us the...

Telegent launches multi-tech mobile TV chip

Telegent Systems Inc. will join the mobile TV bandwagon with a first-generation, single-chip solution for handset manufacturers in Asia. The fabless semiconductor firm-the company contracts out to manufacturers to produce the chipsets-this week plans to introduce a hybrid chip designed to support a wide...

Sprint Nextel to offer new made-for-mobile content

NEW YORK—FremantleMedia has teamed with Mobliss to power a new, made-for-mobile video offering from Sprint Nextel Corp. The companies launched Atomic Wedgie, an offering of eight categories of short-form content targeted at the coveted 18- to 34-year-old male demographic. The offering includes footage of...

Cingular takes telemarketers to court

WASHINGTON-Cingular Wireless L.L.C. said it has filed three lawsuits in the federal court in Atlanta to stop telemarketers from making unsolicited and illegal calls to its wireless customers. In one lawsuit, Cingular alleges that Sebell Telecommunications L.L.C. of Miami, Fla. made unsolicited marketing calls...

Sprint Nextel trials Qualcomm’s MediaFLO as ‘Vue’: Verizon Wireless to launch MediaFLO by the fist quarter of next year

OVERLAND PARK, Kan.—Qualcomm Inc.'s highly anticipated MediaFLO mobile TV service is gaining momentum as Sprint Nextel Corp. confirmed it is conducting trials using the network technology and could soon join initial launch carrier Verizon Wireless in offering the service to consumers. The additional support...

DVB-H players refine launch plans, service strategies

Like most things in wireless, the mobile TV contest boils down to devices, networks and—perhaps most importantly—spectrum. As such, two U.S. companies are racing to build mobile TV networks using the same transmission standard (DVB-H), and both trumpet their position as the competitive high...

New VC firm taking long-term approach

"Idealistic" isn't a word commonly associated with venture capitalists. But Brian Biniak, founder of the new wireless venture-capital firm Provenance Ventures L.L.C., believes there is a business case for making the world a better place. "Some people complain about it, and I decided that...

MediaFLO trials under way, but company not telling much more

Qualcomm Inc.'s highly anticipated MediaFLO mobile TV service is gaining momentum as Sprint Nextel Corp. confirmed it was conducting trials using the network technology and could soon join initial launch carrier Verizon Wireless in offering the service to consumers. The additional support could be...

WARN Act lets carriers decide whether to offer emergency alerts

WASHINGTON—The Federal Communications Commission's plan to extend emergency alert service rules to mobile-phone operators appears to be in limbo, following congressional passage of a bill that effectively pre-empts telecom regulators from forcing cell-phone operators to participate in a new emergency alert regime and a...

xG hopes for London IPO

LONDON—It looks like Florida-based xG Technology Inc. is ramping up for a $56.9 million IPO on the London stock exchange. Though the company wouldn’t confirm reports about its initial public offering plans, rumor has it that xG is roadshowing its wireless Voice over Internet...

Celebrity playlist: Once-sober Moto goes ga-ga for superstar endorsements and splashy promos

By Julie Johnsson CHICAGO—Moments after tennis superstar Maria Sharapova won her first U.S. Open title this month, Motorola Inc. scored a major victory of its own.With primetime TV cameras rolling, Ms. Sharapova plucked a gold Dolce & Gabbana Razr cell phone from her racquet...

Study: 4 million users to sign up for mobile TV in the U.S. next year

NEW YORK-Roughly 4 million U.S. consumers will subscribe to mobile broadcasts from dedicated, multimedia networks such as Qualcomm Inc.'s MediaFlo by the end of next year, according to new figures from ABI Research. The market research firm predicted that carriers will increasingly look to...