The following list details this week's infrastructure awards for the cellular, Wi-Fi and WiMAX industries. The contracts are broken down by transmission technology, country and vendor. The value of the contract is included when available. CellularAustria, Bulgaria, Croatia and Liechthenstein: L.M. Ericsson said it...
A robust economy in China may be fueling robust ambitions. Two domestic Chinese handset makers will use the upcoming CTIA Wireless 2007 show to launch handsets in the United States, one under its own brand and the other under a well-recognized name, if not...
Mach announced that it acquired CB Holdings Inc., the parent company of financial-settlement company Cibernet. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Combined, Mach and Cibernet is expected to have more than 650 mobile operator clients that will process more than 25 billion billing...
U.S. Cellular Corp.'s parent company, Telephone and Data Systems Inc., is no longer considering making an offer to acquire the portion of the carrier's stock that it doesn't already own. TDS had said in February that it might make an offer to issue shares...
Editor's Note: Welcome to our Monday feature, Analyst Angle. We've collected a group of the industry's leading analysts to give their outlook on the hot topics in the wireless industry. In the coming weeks look for columns from M:Metrics' Seamus McAteer, Ovum's Roger Entner...
French media-telecom conglomerate Vivendi S.A. sharpened its charges against T-Mobile USA Inc. and its global affiliate, alleging corporate corruption helped the No. 4 U.S. mobile phone operator bid successfully on $4 billion worth of advanced wireless services licenses to support the build-out of...
Mobile virtual network operator Helio L.L.C. added a new phone to its lineup, the "Heat" from Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. The slider-style phone supports Helio's full-track music download service and GPS location offerings, as well as touch-sensitive keys. The phone is selling for $150."Young...
Pay-as-you-go mobile virtual network operator XE Mobile added big-box retailer CompUSA as a new outlet for the MVNO's handsets and airtime cards."We expect XE Mobile's products to appeal to our younger customers who want simple, cost-effective mobile communications solutions," said Gabriela Villalobos, executive vice...
Sprint Nextel Corp. has thrown down a gauntlet in the form of two new unlimited voice and data plans offered in the San Francisco market, home of a high-tech populace.Sprint Nextel's two Unlimited Access Pack plans include a $120-per-month plan that includes unlimited voice...
Think adult content is a safe play for wireless carriers? Try asking Canadian operator Telus Corp.Telus quietly dropped its racy offerings last week-less than two months after raising eyebrows by becoming the first Canadian carrier to dip its toe into the adult content waters-after...
Mobile Melo shoots, scoresCarmelo Anthony, star of the Denver Nuggets basketball team, has launched a mobile portal called Melo Mobile. The portal is powered by Konami Corp.'s mobile division. The Melo Mobile application will set users back $2 per month for news, statistics, updates...
Private-equity buyout companies are the darlings of Wall Street, snapping up companies left and right and flush with the cash to do so. According to Thomson Financial, buyouts by private-equity companies accounted for more than 25 percent of the total merger-and-acquisition activity in the...
A new handset potentially destined for mobile virtual network operator Helio L.L.C. has popped up on the Federal Communications Commission's Web site. The PN-810 from Pantech Corp. is a two-way slider with stacked sections: a middle section slides out to reveal the typical phone...
Holding company Titan Global Holdings Inc. has agreed in principal to acquire prepaid mobile virtual network operator Ready Mobile L.L.C., which only began operations last year.Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but it is expected to close by March 15. Titan subsidiary...
Think adult content is a safe play for wireless carriers? Try asking Canadian operator Telus Corp.Telus quietly dropped its racy offerings this week-less than two months after raising eyebrows by becoming the first Canadian carrier to wade into the adult content waters-after customers objected...
The Planned Parenthood Federation of America has become the latest organization to team up with Working Assets to offer wireless service to its supporters through a mobile virtual network operator offering using Sprint Nextel Corp.'s wireless network.Planned Parenthood Wireless will provide 10 percent of...
American Tower Corp. reported favorable financial results for the fourth quarter, as well as positive expectations for 2007, and announced a new $1.5 billion stock-repurchasing program. The tower operator earned $18.3 million during the quarter, a significant improvement from the $90.7 million it lost...
The search for hotties never ends.Hot wireless markets, that is, with potential growth in first-time subscribers and prospects for high volumes of relatively low-cost handset sales, market share and, possibly, profits.A couple of currently hot markets will remain in contention-think China and, particularly, India-and...
International operator Vodafone Group plc has agreed to acquire a majority interest in Indian mobile operator Hutchison Essar Ltd. for $11.1 billion-however, whether a major shareholder will cooperate is unclear.Vodafone said it had reached the multibillion-dollar deal to acquire companies that control a 67-percent...
Wireless e-mail company Visto Corp. announced it raised another $35 million in venture-capital funding, this time scoring money from Altitude Capital Partners L.L.C. The news means that Visto has now raised close to $300 million in VC financing over the course of its nine-year...
Tween-focused mobile virtual network operator Kajeet Inc. has begun selling phones and service via its Web site, with coverage maps that appear to match up with the Sprint Nextel Corp. network. The MVNO is offering three handsets, all of them flip-phones: the 225 from...
Mobile-phone firms and the U.S. government are leading a $10 million global effort to leverage wireless technology to fight HIV/AIDS and other deadly diseases in 10 African countries."The explosive spread of mobile-phone networks across the developing world has created a unique opportunity to significantly...
BARCELONA, Spain-A trio of executives from operators counting more than 400 million subscribers made for an entertaining opening keynote at this year's 3GSM World Congress.As has been the case for several years, Vodafone CEO Arun Sarin led off the keynote proceedings at 3GSM, this...
International operator Vodafone Group plc has agreed to acquire a majority interest in Indian mobile operator Hutchison Essar Ltd. for $11.1 billion.Vodafone will acquire companies that control a 67-percent interest in Hutch Essar via company subsidiary Vodafone International Holdings B.V. Vodafone said that it...
