BUENOS AIRES, Argentina—Entel PCS of Chile commercially launched its Mobile Wide Band service, using General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) over the 1900 MHz band, on 25 October, becoming the first carrier to operate a 2.5-generation (2.5G) network in South America.One terminal to be used...
ATLANTA, United States—U.S. operator Cingular Wireless announced it will begin upgrading its current TDMA and analog network to General Packet Radio Service (GPRS) packet data and GSM voice technology. Cingular said the move to GSM/GPRS, which has been expected since AT&T Wireless announced a...
NEW YORK-Calling it "the most well-known secret in corporate America," Stephen Carter, president and chief executive officer of Cingular Wireless, said the nation's second-largest mobile operator will overlay all its TDMA and analog networks with EDGE, a software enhancement of GPRS technology.Atlanta-based Cingular, with...
DUBLIN, Ireland-European mobile operators realize they must work much harder to sell new subscriptions as GSM market penetration reaches saturation point, with no immediate sign of commercial third-generation (3G) applications to stimulate new demand. But operators firmly reject suggestions from vendor groups that they...
NEW DELHI, India-The Thai cellular market witnessed rapid growth and intense competition during 2001. Subscriber numbers reached a landmark, crossing fixed-line subscriber numbers much earlier than expected. Tariffs are decreasing, and value-added services are generating huge revenues for operators. Next-generation services like General Packet...
TORONTO-As the handset manufacturing business gets tougher because of declining demand, more phone makers are looking at joint ventures as their economic salvation and perhaps their best strategy to catch number-one handset supplier Nokia. In October, after much fanfare, Ericsson and Sony launched a...
Audiovox CommunicationsAudiovox Communications introduced the Maestro, a Pocket PC that uses Microsoft Windows Powered Pocket PC 2002 software. The product features 32 MB of SDRAM and 32 MB of Flash Rom and an Intel Strong ARM 206 MHz processor. It also includes built-in CFR...
Carriers choose low-key number portability promotionsMELBOURNE, Australia-With the advent of mobile number portability (MNP) in Australia, the forecasted marketing blitz has largely failed to materialize, despite some initial predictions that mobile-phone companies would spend big to draw customers away from their competitors.Introduced on 25...
TOKYO-NTT DoCoMo, the leading mobile carrier in Japan, on 1 October launched the world's first third-generation (3G) mobile service in the Tokyo metropolitan area, receiving mixed reviews from market analysts. The visual phone, one of three 3G terminals, with a small camera and a...
NEW YORK-Once upon a time in the United Kingdom, cellular service was so difficult to obtain that carrier marketing was unnecessary because each customer could resell his service connection to another consumer for $10,000 in the gray market, said Keith Mallinson, executive vice...
Mobile satellite service is an idea and a technology that today lies buried under the apprehension and disappointment of a number of major business deals gone bad. But about 10 years ago, the mobile satellite industry had an optimistic outlook on the future,...
Editor's note: In 2000, RCR Wireless News founded the Wireless Hall of Fame to honor those individuals who have made significant contributions to the wireless industry. Following is a look at each of the inductees:
TOKYO—Toshiba and KDDI will jointly launch a field test for communications between digital consumer electronics and mobile handsets next March. About 500 households in Tokyo and Aichi Prefecture, central Japan, will participate in the field test, which is designed to verify technology that collects...
BELLEVUE, Wash.—Infowave Software announced that Mentor Graphics has purchased its Infowave Wireless Business Engine and will deploy it in its European operations.Mentor Graphics will use the business engine on WAP-enabled GSM handsets and laptops with low-speed dial up connections to the company's remote access...
HELSINKI, Finland—Vattenfall and Swedish power sector ally Birka Energi have reached a preliminary agreement to use their combined electricity systems as springboards to build new stations for third-generation (3G) networks, offering masts and antennae, as well as maintenance and electric power to telecom operators....
SAN DIEGO—Qualcomm Inc. says customers around the world are implementing more than 43 designs of its cdma2000 1x handsets and personal computer cards based on its MSM5105 chipset."By working closely with our partners in North America and around the world, we have ensured that...
TOKYO—NTT DoCoMo, the leading mobile carrier in Japan, on 1 October launched the world's first commercial third-generation (3G) service. More than 4,000 3G handsets sold on the first day of the service.Three different kinds of 3G handsets—a standard type, visual phone and card type—began...
BEIJING—The Japanese electronics company Kyocera and China Zhenhua (Group) Technologies signed an agreement to set up a joint venture to produce mobile-phone handsets in China's southwestern Guizhou province.Registered capital will be US$14.89 million, of which Kyocera holds 70 percent. The company plans to manufacture...
TOKYO—NTT DoCoMo said it will begin selling handsets compatible with its planned third-generation (3G) FOMA network beginning 1 October at 260 stores in the Tokyo metropolitan area, the day the network is scheduled to launch.The three handsets include the FOMA N2001, a "standard-type" handset,...
OXFORD, United Kingdom—Current lithium battery technology used to power cell phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs) is reaching its limits, according to researchers. To drive the power-hungry third-generation (3G) handsets and portable devices of the future, engineers are now looking closely at fuel cell...
SAN DIEGO—Qualcomm Inc. said it has a mobile station modem chipset and software solution for third-generation cdma2000 1x voice and short message service handsets for prepaid subscribers."Leveraging existing MSM5105 voice and data-capable terminal designs, handset manufacturers and operators will be able to address new...
WASHINGTON—Cingular Wireless L.L.C., which has committed to completing the initial deployment of enhanced 911 Phase II by the end of 2002, received the support on Thursday of the Communications for Coordinated Assistance and Response to Emergencies (ComCARE) Alliance."Emergency response professionals cannot save you if...
IRVINE, Calif.—Toshiba America Electronic Components said it has developed a family of 64 megabit Pseudo Static Random Access Memories for higher-density memory in the next generation of wireless devices.The company said its PSRAM devices support access times of 80 or 85 nanoseconds and are...
MOSCOW—Sonic Duo, which has the third GSM license in Moscow, finally launched a test operation of its network in the Russian capital.After several delays caused by the absence of frequencies, Sonic Duo began operating thanks to the St. Petersburg-based North-Western GSM, with which it...
