WASHINGTON-CTIA is asking the Federal Communications Commission to clarify recent universal-service rules that have sparked a puzzling situation where the FCC has accused the industry of not fully reporting its "toll" revenues-and by implication not paying its full share of universal-service contributions. "Commercial mobile...
Despite disappointing quarterly results, Sprint Nextel Corp. reaffirmed its commitment to upgrading its network to CDMA2000 1x EV-DO Revision A. The carrier said it plans to cover approximately 40 million potential customers with the higher-speed technology by the end of this year and have...
Shares of Electronic Arts Inc. surged after the publisher posted strong first-quarter sales of its Microsoft Corp. Xbox and mobile-phone offerings The videogame giant reported mobile revenues of $33 million in its first quarter of 2007, the first full quarter to include revenues from...
It was a good quarter for some regional providers of wireless service, with healthy growth and increasing average revenue per user. Alltel Corp. posted strong second-quarter results with plusses and minuses in all the right places. The industry's No. 5 carrier improved ARPU, substantially...
As EarthLink Inc. prepares to unwire Pasadena, Calif., using gear from Tropos Networks Inc. and Motorola Inc., another vendor is celebrating the deployment of its Wi-Fi mesh network equipment in Red River, N.M., where Enchanted Circle Communications launched a wireless broadband network using equipment...
Lindsay Lohan's BlackBerry has apparently been hacked, and some are pointing the finger at her archrival Paris Hilton. A spokesperson for Lohan said somebody stole the password to the actress' BlackBerry and then sent sordid messages to her friends and contacts. Hilton, who denies...
WASHINGTON-Wireless industry trade association CTIA is pushing Congress to overturn a federal appeals court ruling that said the Federal Communications Commission overreached when it said states could not prohibit wireless carriers from putting certain line items on their bills. "Creating a mish-mash of inconsistent...
BOCA RATON, Fla.-SBA Communications Corp., the nation's fourth-largest tower owner, posted second-quarter losses of $75.6 million despite increased revenues of $87.4 million. Last year in the same quarter the company recorded $63.2 million in revenues and a loss of $26.2 million. The company said...
REDWOOD CITY, Calif.-Openwave Systems Inc. reported substantially improved net loss figures during its fourth quarter, but revenues declined.For the quarter, Openwave reported revenues of $91.1 million, down 9 percent from revenues of $100.3 million during the same period a year ago and down nearly...
A well-worn maxim has it that "politics make strange bedfellows," which might be tweaked to reflect the wireless industry's sometimes odd match-ups. Companies that compete also cooperate, often at the nitty-gritty level of critical intellectual property that enables devices, networks and services to perform...
Trans Con Mobile Ltd. recently announced that after two years of developing mobile Voice over Internet Protocol technology, the Israeli company's proprietary base stations and handsets are in the final stages of testing; deployments are expected in the United States within six to 12...
HOUSTON-Following Crown Castle International Corp.'s good news-the company's shrinking net loss in the second quarter-the company released some not-so-good news that the Securities and Exchange Commission has launched an informal inquiry into the company's stock-option practices. Crown said it will cooperate with the SEC...
WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission is re-examining the service and licensing rules for the 700 MHz spectrum it plans to auction in 2008, and will consider changing how the spectrum is divvied up as well as when spectrum licenses will expire. The 700 MHz spectrum...
Nortel Networks Ltd. swung from a $33 million net loss at the close of last year's second quarter to a profit of $366 million this year, thanks to a 30-percent decline of its stock price during the quarter. The company's lowered stock price led...
AUSTIN, Texas-StarCore L.L.C. is closing up shop due to a lack of success in licensing its early digital signal processor family of chips. The company had hoped to challenge Texas Instruments Inc.'s leadership position in the DSP market. The shutdown is set for Aug....
Just when you thought mobile music personalization applications couldn't get any more disruptive, along come background tones. The latest-but surely not last-step in the evolution of such offerings, background tones play during entire conversations between mobile users. Subscribers can choose to assign songs for...
WARREN, N.J.-Virgin Mobile USA L.L.C. is expanding it customers' ability to earn free airtime by launching a prepaid Visa debit card that will be linked to Virgin Mobile USA phones. The "Stash" prepaid debit card will be issued by Inter National Bank and is...
If you're a Cingular Wireless L.L.C. customer, having an out-of-date wireless phone is going to cost you. The nation's largest wireless carrier will soon start charging customers an additional $5 each month if they have an analog or TDMA handset.As of the end of...
Welcome to Hedgehogging. As you know from your own jobs, something is always happening in the wireless space. Some of it makes us stop what we're doing to clap, boo or question these developments. This week's column is a roundup of some of the...
CHICAGO-Online travel company Orbitz launched a service allowing customers to find hotel rooms, view travel itineraries and check the status of flights from mobile phones. The off-deck offering is free aside from carrier data charges, and can be accessed from the company's home page...
DENVER-Qwest Communications International Inc. has quietly launched Sprint Nextel Corp.'s full-track music download service for Qwest wireless customers. The mobile virtual network operator is carrying the Sprint Music Store, which allows users to download songs to a mobile phone or PC for $2.50 per...
ATLANTA-T-Mobile USA Inc. has tweaked its pricing options with a promotional "back to school" plan for families that includes 1,000 anytime minutes for $50 per month. The plan does not include free weeknight or weekend calling, but does include unlimited mobile-to-mobile calling. The plan...
SHENZHEN, China-Chinese telecom equipment manufacturer ZTE Corp. launched a dual-mode TD-SCDMA/GSM handset. The U350 model features dual standby capability, which allows users to put a call in one mode on hold to take a separate call in the other mode. The company also makes...
WASHINGTON-While the network-neutrality issue holds up telecommunications reform, fissures in the telecom industry between big and little carriers are forming. Generally large carriers-both wireline and wireless-oppose any attempts to legislate or regulate network neutrality. Wireless trade association CTIA in June officially came out against...
