Osama bin Laden and his goons appear to be in retreat. For that alone we should give thanks, though no one will be satisfied until justice is brought to the mass murderers. How interesting-and telling-that this con artist who spews venomous, anti-American slurs at...
Once upon a time, a technology called pACT had a life, savored some love and then disappeared into oblivion. Another one called B-CDMA rocked the eaves of wireless, had an echo and became silent.Like a wordsmith, the wireless industry had lots of acronyms-B-CDMA,...
Mobile satellite service is an idea and a technology that today lies buried under the apprehension and disappointment of a number of major business deals gone bad. But about 10 years ago, the mobile satellite industry had an optimistic outlook on the future,...
The wireless data industry started as a dream and a nationwide network almost 30 years ago.As the years slowly passed and people began to recognize the value of mobile data, more and more trucking managers jumped on board to wirelessly track their vehicles,...
WASHINGTON—The State Department, responding to alleged transfer of sensitive missile technology from China to Pakistan, said it will not issue licenses to U.S. firms that want to launch satellites on Chinese rockets. The economic sanctions come after the Bush administration and Beijing officials failed...
LONDON—United Arab Emirates-based mobile satellite service provider, Thuraya, plans to expand its 100-country network as soon as next year. Chief Executive Yousuf Al Sayed anticipates another satellite, built by Boeing under a $960 million deal, to be launched by 2002. The satellite provider launched...
WASHINGTON-The Federal Communications Commission issued a notice of proposed rule making to ICO Global Communications regarding its request that mobile satellite service operators in the 2 GHz band be allowed to re-use their assigned frequencies for ancillary terrestrial services.ICO said the outcome of this...
It is the best of times. It is the worst of times.Sprint PCS reported second-quarter financials so great, they even surprised analysts covering the industry. Last week, three of the six largest wireless operators- Cingular Wireless, AT&T Wireless and Nextel Communications Inc.-reported both customer...
The mobile satellite industry finally had something to smile about last week when the International Bureau at the Federal Communications Commission granted eight MSS operators licenses in the 2 GHz frequency band, opening the door for the deployment of broadband and other enhanced services.The...
WASHINGTON-Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld last week told lawmakers no decision has been reached on future military spectrum requirements, a response starkly at odds with top brass and one that comes as Rep. Chip Pickering (R-Miss.) moves closer to introducing legislation to force the Pentagon...
For several years, it seems there has been little good news to report about the mobile satellite industry. It is one that has been marked by marginal peaks and inconceivable valleys. Losses in this industry are talked about in terms of billions of dollars,...
WASHINGTON-The Bush administration came under pressure from key Senate Democrats last week to require the Department of Defense to surrender spectrum sought by mobile-phone firms for third-generation wireless systems, a development with heavy political overtones and a sense of urgency that could further isolate...
WASHINGTON-The Bush administration, in a new report with major implications for an emerging third-generation mobile-phone market worth billions of dollars in contracts, told Congress that while many countries have taken steps to make bribery of public officials illegal, some countries fall short of international...
The bad news for Globalstar Telecommunications Ltd. continues to mount following the filing of a second complaint by Ericsson Inc. against the mobile satellite communications provider, claiming Globalstar failed to buy the number of phones from Ericsson agreed to under contract.In May, Ericsson accused...
Junichiro Koizumi hopes to be the Next Big Thing in Japanese politics. So too hope the Japanese people, who have watched the one-time economic juggernaut atrophy away the past decade. With his wavy mop of hair and inspired ideas on economic structural reform, Koizumi...
WASHINGTON-As policy-makers last week voiced support for a plan to move the Pentagon off spectrum sought by the mobile phone industry for third-generation wireless systems, Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Henry H. Shelton warned Congress that further loss of frequencies will compromise military capability...
WASHINGTON-The cellular industry, putting the brakes for now on major legislation to avoid unnecessarily provoking the Pentagon, is floating a stop-gap plan on Capitol Hill that urges federal regulators to postpone next month's ruling on third-generation mobile-phone spectrum and that calls on the departments...
WASHINGTON-An upcoming House bill could diminish the Pentagon's role in deciding the terms and conditions governing the transfer of Department of Defense spectrum to the mobile-phone industry for third-generation wireless systems, a move designed to put Commerce Secretary Donald Evans in charge of the...
LEESBURG, Va.-Iridium Satellite L.L.C. began shipping last week an order of 1,000 phones pursuant to a contract signed with the Defense Information Systems Agency last December. The 1,000 phones also include a secure sleeve, which will allow for encrypted communications when both parties on...
WASHINGTON-The Cellular Telecommunications & Internet Association late Friday petitioned the Federal Communications Commission to reallocate spectrum assigned to struggling mobile satellite firms to cellular phone carriers struggling to capture additional frequencies for third-generation wireless systems.The anticipated move by the mobile-phone industry comes in response...
WASHINGTON-In an unexpected twist pitting billionaire Craig McCaw against a mobile-phone industry he once towered over, sources say the Federal Communications Commission may propose making some mobile satellite service spectrum-including that held by McCaw's New ICO and other struggling satellite firms-available for third-generation wireless...
SOPHIA ANTIPOLIS, France-The European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI) published "GEO-Mobile Radio (GMR) interface specifications," specifications for a mobile satellite radio interface.New features include direct terminal-to-terminal calls that adapt and enhance GSM radio interface coverage and a full set of circuit mode services for voice,...
New ICO Global Communications Holdings Ltd. has hand-delivered a letter to Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael K. Powell, asking the commission to allow mobile satellite service operators to use MSS spectrum for terrestrial-based services, citing the past failure of Iridium L.L.C. and the present...
Motorola Inc.'s miserable journey into the realm of mobile satellite communications with Iridium L.L.C. worsened last week when a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge in New York ruled that creditors of Iridium could proceed with plans to sue Motorola for $2 billion in damages.Creditors contend...
