DENVER-Investors in two start-up prepaid cellular phone businesses have filed a class-action lawsuit against the businesses' promotors, claiming they bilked investors out of more than $58 million.The lawsuit, filed in Denver District Court, alleges that 12 individuals and 10 businesses conspired to cheat investors...
In the most recent round of billing company mergers and acquisitions, LHS Group Inc. will acquire InfoCellular Inc., and Intertech and International Billing Services said they will work together to supply mutual customers one-stop shopping for billing and customer care.The events follow recent acquisitions...
Motorola Inc.'s announcement that its overall sales in China slowed during the first quarter doesn't indicate this market is in any trouble, say analysts.China is still seen as one of the largest markets for telecom equipment and service providers with its large pent-up demand...
NEW YORK-A fire storm has erupted among corporations and legislators over Internal Revenue Service proposals released last month aimed at curtailing overseas transactions the agency believes are designed primarily to avoid U.S. taxes.In its latest salvo, the IRS has set its sights on hybrid...
Competition from personal communications services providers has impacted the bottom line of many cellular carriers, although the overall health of the cellular industry remains strong, say some analysts.One sign that the cellular carriers are financially healthy is that several carriers have had enough cash...
NEW YORK-The Telecommunications Executive Leadership Council, a group of 18 executives, is working with Deloitte & Touche L.L.P. and The Economist to analyze factors critical to success in the next century.The council has met twice, most recently in February, to identify key issues for...
DENVER, United States-Market strategy has taken on a new meaning for wireless carriers in the Asia-Pacific, which are picking themselves up, dusting themselves off and looking around to see if the region's economic storm has left them shipwrecked or simply thrown off course a...
SBC Communications Inc. and Southern New England Telecommunications Corp. last week executed a definitive agreement to merge in a $4.4 billion stock transaction.San Antonio, Texas-based SBC, a regional telephone company that has several wireless markets in the Northeastern United States, said SNET's wireless markets...
NEW YORK-When looking for the causes of customer churn, executives of cellular and personal communications services carriers should "start with the man in the mirror," to borrow words from pop singer Michael Jackson."In many ways, it's not the customers who have caused churn; it's...
It is unclear whether the wireless communications industry will be recession proof in the Asia-Pacific region if certain currencies there continue to fall taking economic growth with them.Beginning with the devaluation of the Thai baht in July, currency values have spiraled downward by as...
MCI Communications Corp., which last week found itself with a third suitor in GTE Corp., may finally have an opportunity to enter the wireless arena in more than a reseller role.GTE, which owns cellular licenses in several metropolitan statistical areas, last week made a...
Since the passage of the 1996 Telecommunications Act, it seems rarely a week goes by without the announcement-or rumor-of another blockbuster telecom deal.The recent flurry of merger and acquisition activity clearly is changing the face of the telecom landscape and prompting debate about where...
NEW YORK-Barely finished with its acquisition of Pacific Telesis Group, SBC Communications Corp. is widely rumored to be exploring merger possibilities with AT&T Corp.Ruthlyn Newell, a spokesman for AT&T, headquartered in New York, declined to comment, citing company policy on "rumors or speculation about...
If reports that Cable & Wireless plc is considering a takeover bid of Sprint Corp. are true, the wireless industry is seeing a sign of things to come.The Wall Street Journal reported last week that Cable & Wireless met with Sprint's 10-percent owner France...
Profits U.S. carriers are beginning to receive from their international investments may position them well for the marketing battle on the homefront.According to David Roddy, chief telecommunications economist for Deloitte & Touche Consulting Group, carriers that situate themselves as a global wireless business should...
ATLANTA-A split exists between industry reality and regulatory expectations for implementing the Telecommunications Act of 1996, according to a survey conducted by Deloitte & Touche L.L.P.The company said state regulators perceive that preparations for interconnection and resale during 1996 were less difficult than perceived...
WASHINGTON-Business executives rate long-distance carriers as being more innovative in their customized telecom solutions than are local exchange carriers, an opinion wireless carriers should heed when considering a venture into the local loop, according to an updated survey."The Third Annual Telecommunications Survey-Business User Perspectives...
WASHINGTON-The proposed merger of MCI Communications Corp. and British Telecommunications plc promises to bring plenty of cash and plenty of new services to the global telecommunications arena, but wireless subscribers to MCI's paging and cellular operations here won't notice much of a change for...
NEW YORK-A recent concerted industrywide effort among cellular carriers has reduced churn to an estimated 2 percent to 2.5 percent per month on average. But the battle is far from over, as personal communications services and number portability could cause cellular churn to increase.Approaching...
NEW YORK-Never mind the summer sun. When it comes to microwave incumbent relocation, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas to personal communications services providers.By late July, about two-thirds of the incumbents already "are off the system" industrywide, according to Tim Rich, manager...
During the next five years, personal communications services are poised to make a significant advance over cellular telephone services, offering more versatile handsets, higher quality digital connections, far greater call completion and a focus on non-automobile mobility, according to a new monograph from Deloitte...
The likelihood of lower interconnection charges is good news for cellular operators, but a telecommunications economist warns the industry not to "pop the cork" on that bottle of champagne yet."There's a bit of a road ahead before the carriers find out what the cost...
If London-based Cable & Wireless plc and British Telecommunications plc merge, the new enterprise could descend upon an auspicious Asian market and create a shake up among globally-footed wireless giants."This whole merger move is based on a wireless view of the world, because East...
