Leap Communications International Inc. subsidiary Cricket Communications Inc. added another version of Motorola Inc.'s venerable Razr handset to its lineup with the V3s that is compatible with the carrier's advanced wireless services spectrum it acquired during the Federal Communication Commission's Auction 66. The...
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin signaled the agency is prepared to fix a roaming snag faced by wireless providers delayed in constructing networks because spectrum licenses won at major auctions remain occupied by commercial and government users. ...
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin is coming under mounting pressure to back off a controversial plan to auction a national wireless Internet license that would require the winning bidder to provide free broadband service, open access and filtering to block obscene content. But...
While wireless providers - large and small - differ on such hot-button issues as universal service support, exclusive handset arrangements and special access, the controversy over roaming has the potential to become the major fault line in the cellphone industry.The consolidation trend is making...
The following list includes ratings changes and financial information for wireless companies announced this week by investment-banking and financial-services firms.CarrierStandard & Poor's Ratings Services revised its outlook on U.K.-based mobile satellite services provider Inmarsat Ventures Ltd. to positive from stable. It also affirmed all...
This week Leap Wireless International Inc. brought on a new chief financial officer and, in turn, the company gave itself some financial breathing room. Walter Berger is Leap's new CFO, set to come on board next week. Berger, previously at CBS Corp., takes over...
The companies listed below represent the ten largest national and regional licensed wireless carriers based on subscriber numbers at the end of the first quarter of this year.
There were no changes in rankings among the top 10 carriers, and AT&T Mobility continued to top...
Leap Wireless International Inc. is set to turn on its Cricket service tomorrow in St. Louis, Mo. Leap said the service will be available at nine St. Louis area retail stores and at more than 80 authorized dealers. The value-driven wireless service offers a...
Editor's Note: We get a lot of e-mails in response to our weekly Worst of the Week columns, and we read and enjoy each one (at least, the ones that agree with us). However, last week astute reader Dave Baird sent us an...
The following list includes ratings changes and financial information for wireless companies announced this week by investment-banking and financial-services firms.Carrier--Lehman Brothers raised its price target on Leap Wireless to $60 from $43 and improved its EPS estimates to a loss of 79 cents rather...
Editor's Note: Welcome to our weekly Reality Check column. We've gathered a group of visionaries and veterans in the mobile industry to give their insights into the marketplace. In the coming weeks look for columns from Tom Huseby of SeaPoint Ventures, Mark Desautels of...
The following list includes ratings changes and financial information for wireless companies announced this week by investment-banking and financial-services firms.Carrier--Credit Suisse First Boston lowered its estimates on Leap Wireless to a loss of $1.03 from breakeven for 2008 due to a reduction in EBITDA...
Leap Wireless International Inc. tweaked the calling plans for its Cricket service, adding some once-optional features and rolling out once-geographically limited plans to more markets. The company said it has added unlimited text messaging to Mexico for some of its "higher-value" plans, which according...
The following list includes ratings changes and financial information for wireless companies announced this week by investment-banking and financial-services firms.Carrier--Lehman Brothers lowered its EPS estimates on Sprint Nextel to break even from 42 cents for 2008 and to 18 cents from 37 cents for...
Mobile virtual network operators Virgin Mobile USA Inc. and Helio L.L.C. have few things in common other than a subscriber base that operates on Sprint Nextel Corp.'s network. And yet the struggling companies are said to be in merger talks nonetheless, according to media...
There just might be an end in sight for Sprint Nextel Corp.'s troubles. After the company reported first-quarter results that were either in line with analyst predictions or, in some cases, better than expected, the carrier's stock dropped slightly after an early jolt in...
Leap Wireless International Inc. said it will launch its Cricket service in Las Vegas tomorrow using the advanced wireless services spectrum it won during the Federal Communications Commission's Auction 66 in 2006. Leap has previously launched service using its AWS spectrum in Oklahoma City...
Editor's Note: Welcome to our weekly feature, Analyst Angle. We've collected a group of the industry's leading analysts to give their outlook on the hot topics in the wireless industry. In the coming weeks look for columns from Current Analysis' Peter Jarich, IDC's Shiv...
Leap Wireless International Inc., which sells unlimited wireless phone service under the Cricket brand, reported an unaudited $18.1 million loss in the first quarter, a 25% improvement from the $24.2 million it lost in the same period a year prior.Leap Wireless grossed 550,520 new...
Leap Wireless International Inc. will be launching its Cricket unlimited wireless services across areas of Texas bordering the Rio Grande and the Gulf of Mexico beginning tomorrow. The service will be available in the cities of Beaumont, Brownsville, Corpus Christi, Laredo and McAllen covering...
The following list includes ratings changes and financial information for wireless companies announced this week by investment-banking and financial-services firms.Carrier--RBC Capital Markets initiated coverage on Leap Wireless with a sector perform rating and a $55 price target.--Lehman Brothers lowered its 2008 EPS estimate on...
Leap Wireless International Inc. said it is deploying GenBand Inc.'s G9 Converged Media Gateway to deliver enhanced voice quality and IP services on its network.The G9 product complements Genband's Media Gateway and C3 platform, which already are operating on Leap's network. The G9 platform...
Huawei Technologies Co. Ltd. jumped the momentum of the recently completed 700 MHz auction with news that its network solutions for 700 MHz spectrum will be available in the first quarter of 2009.Based on unified base-transceiver station platform technology, Huawei said it plans to...
Like a series of dominos, several of the largest regional carriers fell to consolidation pressures within the past year. The announcements came within a few months of one another: AT&T Inc. would buy Dobson Communications Corp., Verizon Wireless snapped up Rural Cellular Corp., and...
