A class-action law firm has begun an investigation into mobile virtual network operator Virgin Mobile USA Inc. to determine if it bears any civil liability under federal securities laws to its shareholders.Kahn Gauthier Swick L.L.C. alleges that the MVNO may have withheld actual losses...
So EarthLink announced it was seeking "strategic alternatives" for its municipal Wi- Fi business. That issue, along with its fledgling Helio mobile virtual network operator joint venture with SK Telecom, has diminished the company's value in the eye of its shareholders.While the "strategic alternative"...
As Virgin Mobile USA Inc. has endured, even thrived, over its five-year life, it has seen its customer base transition from a play for the 18- to 34-year-old crowd to a substantial proportion (nearly 50%) of over-35 subscribers.The mobile virtual network operator itself has...
United Kingdom-based ROK Entertainment Group said it has acquired a controlling stake in Fun Little Movies, a Los Angeles company that focuses on original video content for mobile.ROK, a technology, application and entertainment-development company formed in 2003, obtained a 51% stake in FLM through...
Following the failure of its U.S. mobile virtual network operator business, the Walt Disney Co. is now turning its attention to the east with plans to launch an MVNO service in Japan. We can just hear the Disney Mobile execs explaining things: "Hey, 'Hello...
After a trial involving 5,000 users, regional wireless carrier Revol has decided to go forward with a full launch of a mobile advertising service that the company said has achieved engagement rates of close to 50%. The company will begin marketing the service, Revol...
Editor's Note: In this monthly feature, RCR Wireless News talks to retail managers across the country to get a first-hand view of what's hot in wireless.RadioShack Corp. sells wireless devices and service around the country. The retailer offers postpaid service from AT&T Mobility and...
CinemaElectric Inc. is quickly finding its groove in the mobile video space. With more than half of its content produced in-house, the company has inked deals with 90 carriers in more than 50 countries to bring its programming to the third screen.Last week CinemaElectric...
EarthLink Inc. posted a third-quarter loss driven by restructuring costs and its investment in mobile virtual network operator Helio L.L.C., but promised that it was in the midst of a turnaround.EarthLink's loss for the quarter was $79.4 million on revenues of nearly $300 million....
Virgin Mobile USA Inc. is offering its subscribers the chance to create their own wallpapers and ringtones-and reap the benefits if someone else downloads their handiwork.The new service, called Studio V, allows customers to upload and edit graphics content such as photographs, designs and...
AT&T Mobility's data traffic is "growing like crazy," according to Mark Collins, the carrier's VP of consumer data. But whether users will actually pay for this stuff is still far from clear.Collins touted AT&T's "quite staggering" growth in messaging, and continued to hammer away...
Just in time for the holiday shopping season, tween-focused mobile virtual network operator kajeet Inc. announced a new line-up of handsets as well as an expanded retail effort. The MVNO's new handsets include the Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. m300, an $80 phone available in...
With the content-centered, postpaid mobile virtual network operator market in decline, analysts have already begun talking about the next evolution of the MVNO model. Apple Inc.'s iPhone is one example. So is recently launched Sonopia.Juha Christensen, CEO of Sonopia, compares his company to credit...
Mobile advertising recently got a boost from two announcements: the launch of advertising-subsidized mobile access to MySpace.com, and the advent of a U.K. mobile virtual network operator offering free wireless calls in exchange for viewing ads.Both developments offer new avenues for brands seeking to...
Tween-focused mobile virtual network operator kajeet Inc. is trying to snap up customers who must leave lame-duck MVNO Disney Mobile, which is slated to be shut down at the end of December. Kajeet, a pay-as-you-go service with parental controls on when and how the...
So the big mouse has left the wireless house.Just over a year after unveiling its mobile virtual network operator plans in a fireworks-studded event at the CTIA show in the spring of 2006, the Walt Disney Co. decided to pull the plug on its...
Xero Mobile Inc., the mobile virtual network operator in terminal pre-launch mode, is being eyed by ROK Entertainment Group.ROK CEO Laurence Alexander said he is negotiating to acquire Xero, which has long planned-and, thus far, failed-to deploy an ad-subsidized service for college students. Xero...
Wireless users will soon have yet another way to access the popular MySpace.com social networking site: an ad-supported mobile Web site from Fox Interactive Media.The announcement coincides with the launch of several other ad-supported mobile Fox sites, including IGM, FoxSports.com, AskMen and movie review...
With penetration rates pushing higher, the senior population, including 76 million baby boomers, are starting to look a little sexier.There are few tailored offering for seniors from wireless operators-and according to a recent study by iGR Inc., a substantial chunk of that market is...
An increasing number of parents around the country can sidestep the dreaded $400 cellphone bill boosted by their child's texting mania, as more wireless companies begin to offer custom controls on children's wireless usage.AT&T Mobility announced last week that it is making parental controls...
AT&T Mobility has joined the ranks of wireless companies offering parents control over their children's wireless usage. The operator today introduced a Web-based service, Smart Limits for Wireless, to allow parents to set usage limits on talk time, text messaging, instant messaging and...
Perhaps banking on a sense that only someone over 65 would know what a "coupe" is, Verizon Wireless launched a handset by that name along with a rate plan aimed at the older crowd's yearning for simplicity, safety and economy.The Coupe handset will sell...
MUNICIPAL WI-FI TOOK SOME MAJOR HITS last week. Once considered by many cities and towns to be the roadmap to offer high-speed Internet access for all, wide-spread use of the unlicensed technology is now less certain. In a week that saw Google Inc. boasting...
LG Electronics Co. has seen its rivals steal a march in recent quarters, dropping the South Korean vendor to the No. 5 slot globally, though it remains neck-and-neck for the No. 2 spot in the United States.The Korean vendor has not had the success...
