WASHINGTON-The National Telecommunications & Information Administration said that it will cost nearly $1 billion to relocate federal spectrum users from the 1710-1755 MHz band. The relocation would allow the government to auction the band for third-generation wireless uses. The Congressional Budget Office had estimated...
NEW YORK-The wireless industry's bets are paying off, according to a new study on the industry by Standard & Poor's. The firm said the wireless industry is seeing healthy, double-digit growth in subscribers, use and revenue. The findings are detailed in S&P's "Key Credit...
LANCASTER, U.K.-Monstermob Group plc said it plans to spend $27 million to acquire Mobicon, a Russian wireless content provider. U.K.-based Monstermob, which sells mobile game, images and ringtones, is looking to move into the Russian market after expanding both to the East and West...
SAN FRANCISCO-Content provider Mobileplay launched an advertising-driven service that delivers free games, news, weather and other offerings to personal digital assistants and smart phones. Microsoft Office and Volvo Cars of North America are among the brands behind the service, which includes stock updates, sports...
The telecommunications industry is about to dramatically accelerate its move to OFDM-based mobile data networks, Flarion Technologies Inc. predicts in its recent white paper, "Trains, Planes and Automobiles." Unsurprisingly, Flarion contends its own Flash-OFDM technology can help speed the transformation of wireless networks from...
Lucent Technologies Inc. says it plans to appeal a U.S. bankruptcy court ruling ordering the telecommunications equipment giant to pay $244 million plus interest and other costs to Winstar Communications for allegedly violating the terms of a network supply and buildout contract between the...
WASHINGTON-A San Diego courtroom is expected to be the scene this week for a jury trial of a now-defunct company trying to get redress from the nation's largest wireless carrier. Sonic TSM Inc. is accusing Cingular Wireless L.L.C. of allegedly promised things it couldn't...
WASHINGTON-The California Public Utilities Commission is set to vote this month on a measure that would create a first-in-the-nation Telecommunications Consumer Fraud Unit. The fraud unit proposal is part of the new version of the controversial Consumer Bill of Rights. Also in the new...
After collecting and reviewing 26 industry proposals and nearly 300 public comments during a round of information requests for a citywide Wi-Fi network, San Francisco issued an official Request for Proposal for the project Dec. 22. In a statement, the city said it intends...
SUNNYVALE, Calif.-One month after announcing its restructuring, value-added service provider Mobiltek Corp. said it sold its subsidiary, Mobiltek Corp. California, to SinoConnect Ltd., a Hong Kong-based telecom system integration company. Mobiltek said it sold the subsidiary-along with the business' nine service contracts with Chinese...
LOS ANGELES-Good News Holdings L.L.C. and faith-based research firm The Barna Group Ltd. launched a portal offering wireless content including ringtones, Bible verses and video clips. The companies unveiled FaithMobile, a Web site featuring content from providers Promise Keepers, Extraordinary Women and Tyndale House...
SAN DIEGO-Qualcomm Inc. will team with KDDI Corp. to explore broadcasting wireless video programming to subscribers of the Japanese operator. The companies will establish MediaFlo Japan Planning Inc., a joint venture to examine licensing spectrum necessary to build a MediaFlo network in Japan. Japan's...
KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa.-InterDigital Communications Corp. scored another court victory as a New York judge confirmed a ruling that calls for Nokia Corp. to pay InterDigital around $250 million for patent licensing and technology development. The ruling stems from a contractual disagreement between Nokia...
WASHINGTON-Lynch Interactive Corp. again vehemently denied any wrongdoing in its activities with mobile-phone auctions. The company performed bidding and auction administrative services for a variety of bidders in recent years. The activities and associations of Lynch's chairman, Mario Gabelli, were the subject of a...
WASHINGTON-The Electronic Frontier Foundation blasted a federal judge's decision to give the Department of Justice access to cell-phone location information. The ruling appears to be within the scope of the digital wiretap law, but comes amid revelations that President Bush authorized phone wiretaps without...
WASHINGTON-More than two-thirds of the nation's population has access to enhanced 911 service, largely because it is being deployed in urban areas faster than in rural communities, according to figures posted earlier this month by the National Emergency Number Association. Howver, more than half...
WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission told Congress that it plans to begin examining whether some of the 24 megahertz of spectrum public safety is set to receive as part of the transition to digital TV could be used for a nationwide interoperable high-speed wireless network....
SPOKANE, Wash.-Wi-Fi antenna supplier Vivato Inc. decided to close its doors, leaving several municipal Wi-Fi networks up in the air, or at least not sure how to maintain, replace and troubleshoot the company's equipment. Municipalities using Vivato's Wi-Fi equipment include Frankfurt, Ky.; Grand Rapids,...
Global Signal Inc. announced that David Grain is stepping down from his position as president of the nation's third-largest tower company. The company said its chairman and chief executive, Wesley Edens, will take on the president's title also. "We appreciate David's efforts on behalf...
WASHINGTON-The Senate late Wednesday confirmed the nominations of Deborah Taylor Tate and Michael Copps to the Federal Communications Commission. The confirmations had been in doubt due to unrelated procedural issues up until the time they were pushed through.The White House in November nominated Tate,...
Shares of Research In Motion Ltd. jumped Thursday morning after the company reported strong third-quarter sales of its BlackBerry devices. RIM reported $560 million in revenue during the period, up 53 percent from last year's third-quarter revenue of $366 million. Third-quarter diluted per-share earnings...
WASHINGTON-Sprint Nextel Corp. and Clearwire Corp. have sought Federal Communications Commission approval of a deal involving the swap of hundreds of broadband radio service channels in the 2.5 GHz band. In documents filed with the FCC and made public last week, the two companies...
WASHINGTON-A government-industry meeting last week on protecting military radar from new 5 GHz Wi-Fi operations appears to have confirmed progress-but not completion-of testing analyses of dynamic frequency selection technology to be embedded in new unlicensed wireless Internet products as early as 2006. "With the...
After receiving clearance from Marconi Corp.'s shareholders and from the European Commission, L.M. Ericsson says it's ready to complete its $2.24 billion acquisition of Marconi's key telecom assets, setting up the convergence of Ericsson's wireless and wireline offerings. In October, when Ericsson announced plans...
