There's always something happening in the wireless industry that makes the RCR Wireless News editorial staff stop working on our stories to comment, clap or kvetch about issues affecting the industry. We suspect that you all are as obsessed with all things wireless as...
LOS ANGELES-An original animated cartoon featured on Amp'd Mobile will reportedly be picked up and distributed by Comedy Central. "Lil Bush: Resident of the United States" features kid-versions of President George W. Bush and his leading political cronies, and skewers them mercilessly. In the...
NEW YORK-XE Mobile, a mobile virtual network operator which aims to serve the under-25 market, has introduced its pay-as-you-go wireless service. According to the XE Mobile Web site, the service offers eight handsets from Motorola Inc. and Nokia Corp., ranging in price from the...
Are Helio execs good at playing "Follow the Leader." During a keynote at the CTIA Wireless I.T. Show, Helio CEO Sky Dayton made a couple of pointed jabs at his fellow panelists representing fellow MVNO Virgin Mobile (old-man socks were mentioned, for example.) At...
The mobile virtual network operator space isn't cooling down, according to the head of mobile virtual network enabler telSpace. However, instead of following the models of Amp'd Mobile Inc. or Helio L.L.C., the newcomers to the space are incumbent local carriers seeking to stem...
LOS ANGELES-Mobile virtual network operator Helio L.L.C. opened its first branded retail store in Santa Monica, Calif., touting the new location in the Third Street Promenade as a unique wireless shopping experience. "Helio stores are designed to be unlike anything else in the wireless...
NORTH HOLLYWOOD, Calif.-Disney Mobile has added a slim, silver clamshell phone from Pantech Corp. as its third handset choice for subscribers. The Bluetooth-enabled DM-P205 has a VGA camera, color interior and exterior screens and web browsing capability. It sells for $100 with a two-year...
LOS ANGELES—Forget about "Tokyo Drift," the latest sequel to "The Fast and the Furious" movie franchise. Now there’s the Helio Drift, a souped-up handset from mobile virtual network operator Helio L.L.C. The Drift, from Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., will be equipped with two new...
DALLAS—Titan Global Holdings Inc. announced it will expand its prepaid calling card business with the addition of an MVNO offering. The company targets the Spanish-speaking market with its products. Titan’s new Picante Movil, a mobile virtual network operator prepaid offering, expands on its Picante...
Disney Mobile is trying to lure customers to sign up for its service during the holiday season by lowering the cost of its handsets and offering a month of service for free, according to promotions on the mobile virtual network operator’s Web site.Disney Mobile...
LOS ANGELES-Helio L.L.C., the self-proclaimed mobile virtual network operator for the young and hip, will launch additional handsets this year and next, according to Rick Heineman, the company's head of media relations. Heineman promised to give more details on the company's handsets soon. Helio...
OVERLAND PARK, Kan.-Embarq Corp. plans to offer its wireless customers push-to-talk services and parental controls on a Sanyo Corp. 2400 mobile phone. Embarq, which has a mobile virtual network operator relationship with Sprint Nextel Corp. after being spun off from the larger company earlier...
WARREN, N.J.-Virgin Mobile USA L.L.C. announced two new services that incorporate audio and messaging. "Txt Tones" will allow users to link musical tones to text messages instead of rings. The three- to five-second sound clips can be used as an alert that a text...
Boost Mobile L.L.C. is bringing its pay-as-you-go service to rural areas, after traditionally concentrating on urban strongholds. Boost, which is a division of Sprint Nextel Corp. and runs on the carrier's iDEN network, will begin to offer service in areas that were served by...
Two wireless service providers last week began offering their customers handsets that can move between cellular and Wi-Fi networks, moves that mark the first serious attempt at commercially available converged wireless services in the United States. Such services are seen as one avenue for...
BELLEVUE, Wash.—Two wireless service providers have begun offering their customers handsets that can move between cellular and Wi-Fi networks, moves that mark the first serious attempt at commercially available converged wireless services in the United States. T-Mobile USA Inc. is targeting its offer to...
LOS ANGELES-Mobile virtual network operator Amp'd Mobile Inc. continued to expand its offerings with the introduction of several family plans, which the MVNO is selling as "shared" plans. Interestingly, the plans are far more aggressive-and offer far more minutes-than the family plans from the...
DEL MAR, Calif.-Great Call Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. announced the launch of a new mobile virtual network operator called Jitterbug, named after the dance craze that originated in the 1930s and popularized by band leader Cab Calloway. The MVNO will sell phones...
Hello! And welcome to our Thursday column, Worst of the Week. There's a lot of nutty stuff that goes on in this industry, so this column is a chance for us at RCR to rant and rave about whatever rubs us the wrong way....
DEL MAR, Calif.—Great Call Inc. and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. announced the launch of a new mobile virtual network operator called Jitterbug, named after the dance craze that originated in the 1930s and popularized by band leader Cab Calloway. The MVNO will sell phones...
LOS ANGELES—Mobile virtual network operator Amp’d Mobile Inc. continued to expand its offerings with the introduction of several family plans, which the MVNO is selling as "shared" plans. Interestingly, the plans are far more aggressive—and offer far more minutes—than the family plans from the...
The mobile virtual network operator space has been a-buzz lately, with a new MVNO launched, one closing shop, another sold and yet another expanding its service offering beyond handsets into laptop cards. Following is a look at five areas experts said MVNOs need to...
We are gathered here today to mourn the passing of a friend, a pioneer an innovator: Mobile ESPN.First of all I want to thank all of those how showed up today, especially the true supporters of Mobile ESPN, those who actually signed up for...
Sprint Nextel announced that it will sell the Motorola Slvr, Krzr and Razr sometime in "early November." We're trying to figure out exactly why Sprint Nextel issued this press release. Why didn't Sprint Nextel just wait until the phones were actually available before they...
