Wireless carriers and mobile marketers are very much in the dark about how to approach consumers on their phones, but Facebook's Beacon has helped light the way. The way not to go, that is.The oh-so-cool social-networking site managed to enrage thousand of its members...
FOLLOWING VERIZON WIRELESS' ANNOUNCEMENT that it will use Long Term Evolution technology for its fourth-generation network, many who follow the industry immediately began to peg some infrastructure vendors as winners and others as losers.The bulk of the 'loser' chatter was directed at Qualcomm Inc.,...
Verizon Wireless's plans to take a wrecking ball to its garden walls got plenty of attention. What the move means for developers, though, is far from clear.The most closed mobile operator in the United States vowed to publish technical standards next year that will...
Word has it that German mobile virtual network operator Debitel is offering to rebate almost $900 to people who want to buy an unlocked iPhone (retail price about $1,500) in an attempt to try to take away T-Mobile's current exclusivity in offering the device....
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...
Is the mobile-phone industry's increasingly reluctant embrace of open access really a concession to consumers, or an inescapable inevitability driven in part by legal developments that have forced carriers to loosen their iron-clad grip on networks and handsets and otherwise delivered a blow to...
Verizon Wireless said it will take a wrecking ball to its notorious garden walls, opening its network to third-party devices and applications. What that means for developers and consumers, though, is far from clear.The nation's No. 2 carrier-generally the most closed mobile operator in...
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...
That sucking sound you hear is Steve Jobs trying to get air after laughing too hard at the spectacle of German operators fighting over the Apple Inc. iPhone. More fighting, more publicity, more sales-hence that haunting laughter echoing throughout the wireless industry.Vodafone Group plc...
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...
The iPhone story went global this month with launches in the United Kingdom and Germany and word that Apple Inc. is exploring a partnership in China. France's Orange is set to sell the device beginning Nov. 29.Apple's international success, or lack of it, will...
THE MOBILE BANKING SPACE saw several shifts last week, as Qualcomm Inc. announced that it will acquire mobile banking company Firethorn Holdings L.L.C. for $210 million, and AT&T Mobility launched a Firethorn-supported platform that will be preloaded on its handsets starting later this year.Analysts...
Welcome to our Friday feature, Week in Review. Every Friday, RCR Wireless News runs through the major events of the past week, outlining what happened and speculating on what to look for in the coming weeks, months and years. Check below for news about...
Over the past week, a wide breadth of telecom companies have completed Long Term Evolution tests.Nokia Corp. announced results last week from the first phase of a trial that the company claimed achieved 100 megabit-per-second data transfer speeds. The trial was conducted by the...
The mobile banking space got even hotter as Qualcomm Inc. said it will shell out $210 million in cash for Firethorn Holdings L.L.C.Firethorn's technology links financial institutions and mobile network operators, allowing users to check bank balances and transfer funds from their handsets. The...
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...
After shutting down two mobile virtual network operations in the United States, Walt Disney Co. is hoping the third time is the charm; the company is restarting its "Disney Mobile" offering, this time in Japan.The company said it will work with Japanese mobile operator...
The Federal Communications Commission agreed to divide mobile satellite service L-band spectrum between CDMA operator Globalstar Inc. and TDMA operator Iridium Satellite L.L.C., while soliciting public comment on a plan to give Globalstar ancillary terrestrial component authority on most of its MSS frequencies.The agency's...
Google Inc. drew considerable media attention last week with an idea and 33 influential friends.Missing was its long-rumored gPhone, whose actual fate remains a closely guarded secret. Instead, Google announced a consortium of 34 companies-the Open Handset Alliance (OHA)-and a common goal of producing...
It appears Nokia Corp. has learned a few lessons from its doomed Club Nokia mobile content business. But that doesn't mean the direct-to-consumer waters are getting any easier to navigate.The world's No. 1 handset manufacturer last week scored a huge win, inking a deal...
T-Mobile USA Inc. added 857,000 net subscribers to its network during the third quarter, numbers boosted by the carrier's prepaid offering. The carrier had added 802,000 net subscribers during the third quarter of last year, but a higher percentage of them were signed to...
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin is said to be pushing universal service fund changes that would reduce government subsidies for mobile phone carriers serving rural areas, likely setting up a showdown with the agency's Democratic members, cellular operators and key lawmakers from states...
