The good news is that about 80 percent of the world's population is covered by wireless networks, and only about one-quarter of those actually subscribe to a wireless service, which means emerging markets offer opportunities for handset vendors to grow market share and, possibly,...
PORTLAND, Ore.—A new startup, Tyfone Inc., is jumping into the mobile transaction arena with a payment product for mobile phones that the company said it has spent the past two years developing. Tyfone said its offering supports most existing forms of banking and payment...
ESPOO, Finland—What a difference four months can make, especially in the hyper-competitive pursuit of global domination in a burgeoning business. Nokia Corp. and Sanyo Electronics Co. Ltd. announced they will not proceed with the joint venture for CDMA phones they announced in February. In...
WASHINGTON—Eleven data-broker executives invoked their Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination, refusing to answer questions of the House Commerce oversight and investigations subcommittee about deceptive practices for acquiring and selling mobile phone records and other customer information to banks, major corporations, law enforcement, news outlets...
WASHINGTON—A California state appeals court upheld a record $12 million fine levied by the California Public Utilities Commission against Cingular Wireless L.L.C. in 2004, rejecting the mobile phone carrier’s contention that the agency’s action was pre-empted by federal law. "While the commission is preempted...
SAN DIEGO—Qualcomm Inc. said it has signed an agreement with Longcheer Technology Ltd. for the latter to develop, manufacture and sell W-CDMA modem cards. The worldwide agreement ensures that Qualcomm receives royalties at the company’s "standard worldwide rates," according to Qualcomm. Longcheer Technology, based...
LOS ANGELES—Paramount Pictures is using mobile phones to try to lure subscribers to its new film "Nacho Libre." The studio is teaming with digital marketing company Cellfish Media L.L.C. to market the new Jack Black comedy through a mobile search service from go2. Go2...
In the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, hundreds of thousands of people were scattered across the country. People's homes were destroyed, their neighborhoods were flooded or left without power, and many had no way of calling for help or simply to let loved ones know...
WASHINGTON-Despite legal setbacks in court jurisdictional rulings, including the Supreme Court's refusal to review a 4th Circuit headset ruling that rejected industry's federal pre-emption arguments, headset and brain-cancer litigation have failed to gain traction in state and federal courts. The reasons industry has been...
LIBERTYVILLE, Ill.—Motorola Inc. and a handful of handset vendors, along with two major network operators, have agreed to establish a global Linux-based software platform for mobile devices, the companies involved announced. The alliance, which plans to solicit more participants, could stand directly against other...
LOS ANGELES—Mobile virtual network operator Amp’d Mobile Inc. announced that its first major distribution deal will be through Best Buy stores. Best Buy is expected to start selling Amp’d Mobile phones and service beginning this summer. Until this deal, Amp’d Mobile had essentially relied...
WASHINGTON—The Supreme Court asked the Bush administration to weigh in on Minnesota Attorney General Mike Hatch’s appeal of a lower court ruling over whether mobile phone carriers must notify subscribers in advance of changes to service contracts. The lower court ruling—which Hatch is appealing—struck...
NEW ORLEANS—Hurricane Katrina may have substantially changed communications patterns in Gulf Coast cities such as Houston and New Orleans, a new mobile usage report by Telephia concludes. Mobile phone use surged after Hurricane Katrina plowed through the Gulf Coast last year, damaging phone lines...
BOSTON—Place your finger on the pulse of U.S. consumers desperately seeking a mobile phone this summer and you find all the attributes that makes anything a success in America: It’s got to standout from the crowd and it must be stylish and/or "free"—after subsidies...
The latest scuttlebutt surrounding Steve Jobs' much-anticipated jump into wireless sounds more like a breakfast treat than a music-friendly phone-but it could produce a tasty mobile device. Tech bloggers and industry analysts are abuzz over the thought of an "AppleBerry," the imaginary fruit of...
If the world would only stand still for a moment, Nokia Corp.'s new chief executive officer, Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, would still have his work cut out for him. He'd have to ensure that his company delivered the more than 1 million mobile phones each and...
WASHINGTON—Three groups sued the Federal Communications Commission over changes to small-business bidding rules, asking a federal appeals court in Philadelphia to immediately stay enforcement of new guidelines and delay the scheduled Aug. 9 start of the advanced wireless services auction pending juridical review of...
MUMBAI, India—Nothing sells a mobile phone like a familiar face, or at least that’s the idea behind Motorola Inc.’s harnessing an Indian actor to boost sales in India. The handset maker, battling its rivals in one of the world’s largest and fastest-growing markets, will...
WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission got a new member last week and immediately began considering whether it should increase the amount wireless carriers pay into the universal-service fund. FCC Chairman Kevin Martin swore in Robert McDowell Thursday amid reports that Martin wants to increase by...
HIGHLAND PARK, Ill.—Yuvee Inc. introduced a new cell phone keypad interface called NeoKeys that it says simplifies commands and text and number entry and eliminates use of the upper screen for navigation. The keypad eliminates hard labeling on the keys and provides dynamic displays...
ESPOO, Finland—A U.S. district judge has found Suplimet Corp., a Florida-based supplier of mobile phone accessories, in contempt of a prior injunction that prevented the firm from trafficking in counterfeit Nokia Corp. products. In the civil proceeding, U.S. District Judge Jose Martinez of the...
By Normandy MaddenHONG KONG—Already home to the world's largest broadband TV platform, nearly universal mobile phone ownership and a blanket of Wi-Fi hot spots, Hong Kong has yet another reason to call itself one of the world's most high-tech cities.Next killer appThe Chinese territory's...
"News of my death has been greatly exaggerated," Mark Twain is said to have written in 1897, when he remained hale and hearty. Qualcomm Inc. has taken a page from Twain and added a biblical twist, as it hails its new incarnation of BREW...
REDMOND, Wash.—Microsoft Corp.’s MSN is hoping to move onto the mobile marketing playground with the acquisition of Third Screen Media. MSN is negotiating to buy out the Boston-based company, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal. Representatives from Microsoft and Third Screen...
