WASHINGTON-Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin has yet to convince his colleagues to reorganize the FCC with a new homeland security and public-safety bureau, he told the House Appropriations commerce subcommittee. "Before we are able to make a formal reprogramming request, the full commission...
WASHINGTON-A federal court has ordered a Florida firm to immediately halt "unlocking" TracFone Wireless Inc. prepaid cell phones. Unlocked phones can be used on cellular networks other than those affiliated with the prepaid wireless provider. TracFone, the nation's largest prepaid cell phone company, and...
BERWYN, Pa.-Regional operator SunCom Wireless Holdings Inc. pushed back its fourth-quarter and full-year 2005 financial report by two weeks. The company had been slated to make its results public on March 2, but now says it plans to make its announcement on March 16...
WASHINGTON-A federal court in New York erred and abused its discretion in rejecting a class-action suit alleging Cingular Wireless L.L.C., Verizon Wireless, Sprint Nextel Corp. and T-Mobile USA Inc. violated antitrust laws by agreeing to tie cell phone sales to the purchase of wireless...
WASHINGTON-The mobile-phone industry said the Federal Communications Commission is misguided in proposing to limit small-business bidding benefits to top carriers at this June's advanced wireless services auction. CTIA, the mobile-phone carrier association, said the FCC proposal discriminates against large in-region wireless operators and small-...
ESPOO, Finland-Frank Nuovo, the designer who helped Nokia Corp. attain the world's largest market share of the mobile handset business, will turn over his primary duties to a new design team, the company announced today. Nuovo has worked for Nokia for 16 years, and...
SARASOTA, Fla.-Global Signal Inc. blames its fourth-quarter net losses of $18.8 million on costs from integrating and financing the sites it acquired from Sprint Corp. in May 2005. In 2004, the company posted fourth-quarter net losses of $4.1 million. "2005 was a transformational year...
Yahoo Inc. filed a lawsuit against Mforma Group Inc., claiming the mobile game-maker is stealing company secrets as it hires seven former Yahoo employees. The Internet giant is suing both Mforma and the former workers, saying it will seek an injunction in a California...
Tower circles are buzzing with speculation as to who will walk off with AAT Communications Corp. and its 1,900 or so towers, in effect pushing aside fourth-quarter results from Crown Castle International Corp. and American Tower Corp. that provided few surprises in the tower...
Research In Motion Ltd. dodged a bullet as a U.S. District Court judge stopped short of ordering an immediate shutdown in service to U.S. BlackBerry users last Friday. Judge James Spencer rebuked both RIM and patent-holder NTP Inc. for failing to settle their dispute,...
Operators are beginning to deploy full-track digital music services as a way to increase revenues, boost customer loyalty and slow churn. But if carriers are going to compete with Apple Computer Inc.'s iTunes, they may want to take a hard look at the iPod....
STOCKHOLM, Sweden-In a lawsuit filed in four countries, L.M. Ericsson is alleging that Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. is infringing on its patents by continuing to do business without renewing intellectual property licenses. Ericsson claims select Samsung phones infringe on 15 of its patents related...
WASHINGTON-The team designated to manage the 800 MHz band reconfiguration necessary to solve public-safety interference reported that it has billed nearly $30 million since it was chosen in the fall of 2004, but that fees and expenses for the fourth quarter of 2005 were...
WASHINGTON-A privacy organization is calling for location-tracking information to be given to law enforcement only with a warrant indicating that there is probable cause that a crime has or is about to be committed. "Traditionally, the law has made a distinction between the content...
SAN DIEGO-Wireless Facilities Inc. announced that it will sell much of its Mexican holdings for $18 million in cash. The company also said it postponed the release of its fourth-quarter 2005 earnings report from Feb. 21 to March 14. The transfer of WFI's Mexican...
SUNNYVALE, Calif.-Good Technology Inc. announced it raised an additional $20 million in its Series E expansion round of venture-capital financing. ValueAct Capital led the round. Good said it intends to use the money to expand its GoodLink, GoodAccess and Good Mobile Defense products, and...
WASHINGTON-The Department of Transportation is embarking on a two-year, $11-million pilot project to develop a next-generation 911 system as the agency explores various technology advances. Jenny Hansen, project coordinator and a DoT consultant on the Next Generation 911 Initiative, told the Congressional Enhanced 911...
While regional carriers might not be able to call their fourth-quarter performances revivals, companies that reported results last week seemed to be stemming the flood of subscriber losses and, unlike national carriers, managed to increase their average revenue per user-though the positives didn't necessarily...
REDWOOD CITY, Calif.-Two new reports on the wireless infrastructure market offered an upbeat review and outlook. Dell'Oro Group released a new study that found the mobility infrastructure equipment market grew 7 percent last year to reach $40.1 billion, the highest level recorded in a...
WASHINGTON-Complaints filed by mobile-phone subscribers at the Federal Communications Commission dropped in the fourth quarter of 2005 compared with the previous quarter. The FCC said wireless complaints decreased from 6,873 in the third quarter to 4,956 in the fourth quarter, with fewer complaints received...
WASHINGTON-New Jersey, one of only a handful of states to ban driver use of handheld cell phones, is considering a stiffer penalty to address an ongoing national problem that has defied legislative and common-sense solutions to date. Meantime, momentum is building in other states...
WASHINGTON-TracFone Wireless Inc., the nation's largest prepaid cell-phone company, has sued to shut down firms accused of buying large quantities of phones at major retail outlets and disabling proprietary software before reselling handsets for use on other cellular networks. Miami-based TracFone, a subsidiary of...
WASHINGTON-Top wireless broadband licensees are at odds with schools and churches over whether federal regulators should mandate a 15-year cap on education spectrum leases, a feud that could force Bush administration telecom officials to choose between two highly popular and politically connected interest groups....
ATLANTA, Ga.-Cingular Wireless L.L.C. introduced a product the company said integrates mobile and office communications. Cingular's OfficeReach, a voice-based virtual private network, offers such perks as the ability to establish a one-number service that allows an employee to be reached at a desk phone,...
