Handsets

SANTA CRUZ, Calif.—Plantronics Inc. has acquired Ameriphone Inc., a company that develops telephones and accessories for the hearing impaired. Ameriphone will join Plantronics’ Walker Division, which supplies amplified phones, specialty …

OYSTER BAY, N.Y.—Long-term growth in the wireless handset component market will be “impressive,” according to a recently released Allied Business Intelligence Inc. report. ABI predicts that increased demand for mobile …

SAN DIEGO-Qualcomm Inc. announced it will launch gpsOne-enabled handsets and their associated position location service plans from KDDI Corp. in Japan this month. Qualcomm’s gpsOne technology is integrated on its …

While wireless handset sales worldwide are expected to continue to climb during the next several years, those sales are expected to be driven more by replacement handsets purchased by current …

THE HAGUE, The Netherlands-KPN Mobile began tests of i-mode-like services with a small group of users on Dec. 20. The carrier said it will commercially launch the service in the …

The next-generation upgrade path battle between GSM and CDMA escalated last week as U.S. Cellular Corp., which serves more than 3 million wireless customers, said it plans to overlay its …

While not as desirable as the latest video game consoles or a DVD player, wireless phones and services are third most requested Christmas gifts by teenagers this holiday season according …

BEIJING—China Unicom will complete the first phase of the construction of its CDMA-network on 22 December. The network will have a capacity of 15 million subscribers and cover 97 percent …

BEIJING—Motorola’s V60 and V66 type handsets went back on sale in Yinchuan, the capital city of the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region in Western China. Sales were suspended on 5 December …

SAN DIEGO—Qualcomm Inc. announced it will launch gpsOne-enabled handsets and their associated position location service plans from KDDI Corp. in Japan this month. Qualcomm’s gpsOne technology is integrated on its …

COPENHAGEN, Denmark—Lack of content will spell the demise of General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) offerings across Europe, according to a new report from Strand Consult, an independent consultancy based in …

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, North Carolina, United States—Mobile marketing platform provider Avesair is continuing its expansion into the European market with the latest announcement it has been chosen by Enpocket, a …

OXFORD, United Kingdom—Hutchison has signed a crucial network sharing deal with British Telecommunications’ former wireless division, mmO2. The agreement will allow Hutchison’s subscribers to make and receive calls using mmO2’s …

NEW YORK—Wireless streaming video company Emblaze Systems warned that its revenues for the year will be “substantially below market expectations,” blaming carriers’ tightened spending and the late introduction of video-capable …

HELSINKI, Finland—Finnish mobile operators, headed by the Swedish telecom company Telia Mobile, are exploring collaboration in constructing licensed third-generation (3G) networks. Telia is hoping to reach an accommodation with fellow …

Hoping to appease both the federal government and its own subscriber base, Verizon Wireless said in a Federal Communications Commission filling it would increase network capacity during emergencies instead of …

COPENHAGEN, Denmark—Lack of content will spell the demise of GPRS offerings across Europe, according to a new report from Strand Consult, an independent consultancy based in Denmark. The lack of …

CHICAGO—AT&T Wireless Services Inc. introduced GSM/GPRS services in the Chicago, Indianapolis and Kansas City areas geared towards the business market. The carrier said businesses will be able to access the …

BEIJING—Motorola plans to open a new branch of its China Software Center in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan Province. The center was set up in 1993 and already has branches in …

BEIJING—China Unicom expects nine out of the 19 firms licensed to produce CDMA handsets to be able to start production by the end of this year and be able to …

LONDON—NEC has denied a report in the World Street Journal that it plans to put off the launch of its third-generation (3G) mobile-phone handsets in 2002 to between September and …

OXFORD, United Kingdom, and TOKYO—An agreement made last year between Siemens and Toshiba to co-develop a wideband-CDMA (W-CDMA) handset has been “deferred.” Siemens, which claimed the project had never been …

OXFORD, United Kingdom—The newly floated European mobile operator mm02 confirmed its timescale for launching third-generation (3G) services is at least six months behind schedule. The company is now saying that …

NEW DELHI, India—The fate of a 4.5 million line GSM tender floated by the government-owned BSNL hangs in balance as the governmental Department of Telecommunications (DoT) is insisting on price …

LONDON—The Isle of Man’s third-generation (3G) network is now live after about a six-month delay from the original scheduled launch. Manx Telecom, a subsidiary of British Telecommunication’s mm02 mobile arm, …