After nearly two years of fits and starts, the government of Argentina finally awarded six personal communications services licenses for a total consideration of about $850 million.The government awarded two PCS licenses each in the northern and southern regions of Argentina, as well as...
NEW YORK-In a move that will give it 1,000-megahertz local multipoint communication systems licenses in nearly every Canadian city, the MaxLink Communications Group of Companies has acquired two divisions of Western International Communications, Vancouver, B.C."We will be the first and only national (fixed) broadband...
WASHINGTON-As industry opposition to Pentagon spectrum bills mounts, the Federal Communications Commission confirmed last week it is prepared to suspend the normal regulatory process for deciding how to auction 36 megahertz from TV channels 60-69 if Congress votes to hold the wireless license sale...
NEW YORK-For bond investors, high-yield debt deals by telecommunications and media companies are hard to ignore since they have constituted 30 percent to 40 percent of all new dollar-denominated issues in the last several years.Of the $617 billion in this type of debt outstanding...
WASHINGTON-Canada announced last month it will award 354 licenses for spectrum in the 24 GHz and 38 GHz bands by both auction and first-come-first-served, beginning in August.The spectrum allocations match those used in the United States. Currently, the most prominent U.S. licensees of this...
WASHINGTON-The Fixed Wireless Communications Coalition has asked the Federal Communications Commission to issue rules that will help terrestrial microwave fixed services more easily share spectrum with fixed satellite service operators.FCC rules provide that microwave and FSS share certain spectrum on an equal basis, but...
ATLANTA-Broadband Internet service provider Advanced Radio Telecom Corp. announced plans to test Triton Network Systems Inc.'s consecutive point 100 Mbps radio as part of a trial broadband network platform providing Internet access to selected businesses in Silicon Valley.The study will evaluate reliability, quality and...
WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission last week began investigating various issues fixed wireless carriers believe make it difficult for them to offer facilities-based competition to landline incumbent telcos.The Personal Communications Industry Association has been at the forefront of this battle, urging the FCC to require...
NEW YORK-Anticipating a $2 billion market in Internet-based wireless services by 2003, Motorola Inc. and Cisco Systems Inc. announced June 7 they would buy the fixed-wireless assets of Bosch Telecom in Richardson, Texas, for an undisclosed amount.With the acquisition, the two companies plan to...
NEW YORK-By July, Atlantic Tele-Network Inc. plans to launch service under the Cellular One brand in Bermuda, a tax-haven country with the third-highest per-capita income in the world and average monthly cellular phone bills of $89.The holding company, based in St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin...
Liberty Media Group's announcement last week that it plans to acquire The Associated Group Inc. would give Liberty, the Tele-Communications Inc. offshoot traditionally focused on video programming, a foothold in the emerging broadband wireless access market.Among other things, Associated owns a 41-percent interest in...
After MCI WorldCom Inc. made news with its plans to acquire paging carrier SkyTel Communications Inc., the first question on everyone's mind was, "Why?"In a recently released update, Strategy Analytics said it believes "the acquisition ... represents an attempt by MCI WorldCom to appease...
NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J.-To move device interconnectivity from enticing theory to practical reality, the new Wireless Research Center of the University of California at Berkeley has formed a bi-coastal collaboration with the Wireless Information Network Laboratory at Rutgers University in New Jersey."We started the Wireless...
My daughter is becoming quite proficient at putting together puzzles. She doesn't do it the way I would, matching the red of the mermaid Ariel's hair with another piece that also shows red hair. Instead, I think she actually memorizes how the puzzle pieces...
WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission diluted the agenda for the highly anticipated Wireless Day by including an item regarding low-volume users of long-distance services, but the chairman's office hopes the item will be considered before Thursday's meeting."The hope is that the other offices will vote...
WASHINGTON-Diginet Americas Inc. said it has secured a local carrier license and spectrum concessions from the Peruvian Transportation and Communications Ministry for the province of Lima.In addition to the local carrier license, Diginet secured spectrum in the 13, 18 and 38 GHz bands. The...
To the Editor,I just read the May 3 issue of RCR and wanted to say thanks for the mention and to congratulate you on a good discussion of TDD versus FDD. I especially appreciate your candid discussion of the issues with the benefits of...
WASHINGTON-Thomas Sugrue, wireless czar at the Federal Communications Commission, said he will propose shortly that a new rule making be initiated to fully address prickly issues stifling competitive wireless access to multi-tenant buildings.Even if the FCC moves forward, it appears Congress may be forced...
Western Wireless Corp. appears to have a long struggle ahead as it attempts to offer fixed wireless service in rural America.The South Dakota Public Utilities Commission denied Western's application requesting eligible telecommunications carrier status in the state. ETC status allows telephone carriers in states...
MONTEREY, Calif.-Aeris Communications Inc. said its MicroBurst technology now covers the whole of North America and is ready for commercial service.At the WirelessDeveloper '99 conference last week, Aeris announced coverage pacts with Orbcomm Global L.P., and with cellular carriers, whose control channels transmit mobile...
Telecommunications companies are offering some of the largest bond sales ever.Sprint Capital Corp. on Thursday expanded its $3 billion global bond sale to $3.5 billion. The proceeds will cover negative cash flow associated with building out Sprint PCS's personal communications services markets. During last...
BrazilTelemig Celular said it plans to invest R$200 million-R$220 million (US$118 million-US$130 million) during 1999 to expand its services in the state of Minas Gerais, according to the Jornal do Comercio. Telemig is owned by Telesystem International Wireless and local partners, the same group...
Nortele-mobility servicesNortel Networks introduced a portfolio of subscriber services, called e-mobility services, that provide rapid, flexible deployment of leading-edge voice and data capabilities optimized for the Internet Protocol environment. The services include Wireless Prepaid, Group Conferencing, Smart Mobile Access, Wireless Voice-Activated Dialing, Mobile Messaging...
Sprint Corp. announced April 20 first-quarter consolidated revenues of $4.72 billion, a 16-percent increase from the $4.08 billion posted for the same period of 1998. The next day Sprint said it awarded Lucent Technologies Inc. a $780 million equipment contract.Kansas City, Mo.-based Sprint is...
