WASHINGTON-Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas) chairman of the House Commerce Committee, shocked, surprised and pleased lawmakers during two days of hearings on pretexting by announcing that a long-stalled bill to make the sale of telephone records illegal could come up for a vote at any...
WASHINGTON—A long-stalled bill to make the sale of telephone records illegal could come up for a vote today in the House as lawmakers race to get out of town for upcoming mid-term elections. Rep. Joe Barton (R-Texas), chairman of the House Commerce Committee, said,...
Here's what got the edit staff fired up this week: Did you see RCR Reporter Colin Gibbs' story about Sprint Nextel selling ad space on its mobile Web service? Like it promised, Sprint Nextel is transforming itself from a wireless carrier and into a...
WASHINGTON--The recent scandal at Hewlett-Packard Co.--where executives collected the phone records of board members to ascertain who had been speaking with the news media--is the impetus needed to push a bill onto the House floor requiring carriers to better protect telecommunications customer call records...
WASHINGTON—Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin confirmed the agency is investigating AT&T Corp. in connection with deceptive means used to obtain the phone records of Hewlett-Packard Co. board members and journalists covering the company. The mushrooming scandal prompted HP Chairman Patricia Dunn to resign...
Hello! And welcome to a special CTIA Wireless I.T. & Entertainment 2006 edition of our column, Worst of the Week. There's a lot of nutty stuff that goes on in this industry—especially at trade shows—so this column is a chance for us at RCR...
ATLANTA-PC maker Lenovo is selling a laptop computer that has built-in support for Cingular Wireless L.L.C.'s EDGE- and UMTS/HSDPA-based networks. The laptop is selling online for around $1,900. "ThinkPad users can now enjoy wireless broadband Internet access via the Cingular BroadbandConnect service without needing...
BenQ Corp. announced it will spend an additional $400 million on its handset business-BenQ Mobile, which ranks just below the world's top five handset vendors-while spinning off non-mobile businesses to strengthen the handset brand. The electronics firm has been making LCD monitors for Dell...
TAPEI, Taiwan—BenQ Corp. announced it will spend an additional $400 million on its handset business BenQ Mobile—which ranks just below the world’s top five handset vendors—while spinning off other non-mobile businesses to strengthen the handset brand. The electronics firm has been making LCD monitors...
The advent of contactless payment technology in mobile handsets ushers in big possibilities for credit-card companies, network operators, and handset and chip vendors-if all parties can agree on an equitable business model. For consumers, new technologies such as near field communication, or NFC, offer...
In the municipal Wi-Fi arena, few companies have had such a mutually beneficial relationship as Motorola Inc. and Tropos Networks Inc. Yet that relationship came into question last week as Motorola launched its HotZone Duo Wi-Fi network equipment. Motorola has been reselling Tropos' MetroMesh...
WASHINGTON-A bill outlawing deceptive tactics by data brokers to acquire and sell cell phone records may soon get a vote on the House floor, after mysteriously being pulled from a scheduled vote in early May. The possible breakthrough follows a meeting last week between...
SAN FRANCISCO—Microsoft Corp. announced a joint marketing and development alliance with Motorola Inc., among other vendors, in an effort to fold various wired and mobile access points into a unified system for enterprise communications. The overall effort is aimed at combining functions of desktop...
The United States last week struck a historic trade deal with Vietnam, the communist nation and one-time foe whose name pops up a lot these days as we find ourselves bogged down militarily in another overseas hot spot.The U.S.-led coalition made it possible for...
News continued to churn out of the various municipal Wi-Fi projects gaining steam across the country, as one city's Wi-Fi contract made its way to a politically charged city council for a vote and another swirled in rumors of being temporarily shelved. In the...
PORTLAND, Ore.—Hewlett-Packard Co., Intel Corp., Motorola Inc., Nortel Networks Ltd. and Siemens A.G. are just a few of the heavy-hitters aiming to certify interoperability requirements through a new trade group, the Communications Platforms Trade Association, which launches today. The CP-TA described itself as "an...
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.—724 Solutions Inc. announced it will go ahead with its plan to be acquired by venture-capital firm Austin Ventures. Austin said it would acquire 724 for $3.34 per common share. The amount is slightly more than the previous purchase price the companies...
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.-724 Solutions Inc. says its minority shareholder, Austin Ventures L.P., has offered to buy the company's 5.5 million outstanding shares of common stock for about $17 million, or $3.07 per share. News of the proposal came after the financial markets closed Feb....
Sony Corp. revealed new details about a digital photo program that is expected to allow users to view, upload and share pictures via various devices, including their televisions, computers and Web-enabled camera phones. The Share Everywhere product is scheduled to be available starting in...
SANTA BARBARA, Calif.—724 Solutions Inc. says its minority shareholder, Austin Ventures L.P., has offered to buy the company’s 5.5 million outstanding shares of common stock for about $17 million, or $3.07 per share.News of the proposal came Monday after the financial markets closed, but...
ORLANDO, Fla.—Sony Corp. revealed new details about a digital photo program that is expected to allow users to view, upload and share pictures via various devices, including their televisions, computers and Web-enabled camera phones.The Share Everywhere product is scheduled to be available starting in...
The chief executives of nine of the nation's high-profile, high-tech firms are calling for a complete review of national spectrum policy in order to foster what they characterize as the resource's highest and best use. Through their public-advocacy group, the Technology CEO Council, these...
The chief executives of nine of the nation’s high-profile, high-tech firms are calling for a complete review of national spectrum policy in order to foster what they characterize as the resource’s highest and best use. Through their public-advocacy group, the Technology CEO Council, these...
BARCELONA, Spain—The GSM Association and Intel Corp. unveiled an initiative designed to drive the adoption of GSM-based wireless data technologies in laptop computers. The plan calls for both parties to develop guidelines for integrating 3G modems and SIM cards into laptop computers that would...
