FranceFrance Telecom said it signed a partnership agreement with the Sonae group in Portugal. The two already have a working relationship as stakeholders in Optimus, the third mobile operator in Portugal. The new partnership would be held 43.33 percent by France Telecom and 56.67...
Western Wireless Corp. reported revenues for the second quarter ended June 30 of $136.6 million, an increase from the $98.4 million reported the same time the previous year. The company recorded a net loss of $47.9 million, or 63 cents per basic common share,...
JERUSALEM-Hutchison Whampoa is considering listing its Israeli mobile phone unit, Partner Communications Co. Ltd., in London or on the Nasdaq National Market to secure financing to expand its network, according to a report in the Financial Times.GSM 900 operator Partner operates under the Orange...
LEXINGTON, Mass.-Wildfire Communications Inc. announced Orange plc Group has launched the Wildfire virtual personal assistant in the United Kingdom.In conjunction with the launch, Orange said it will conduct a $15.5 million marketing campaign to promote the service, featuring 60-second ads airing before all screenings...
Second-quarter subscriber growth in the U.K. mobile-phone market exceeded analysts' expectations as prepaid services continue to provide a growth engine for the industry."The market has been ahead of expectations since the fourth quarter" when carriers introduced aggressive prepaid pricing plans, said Jake Saunders, European...
NEW YORK-In a move apparently intended to get ahead of the crowd, Hutchison Telecommunications Australia Ltd., Sydney, announced July 12 it plans to sell 29.5 percent of the company in a $215 million initial public offering next month.The Australian branch of Hong Kong-based Hutchison...
DUBLIN, Ireland-One of the most common complaints from telecommunications companies competing with former monopoly operators is cross-subsidization by the incumbent, particularly in countries where the incumbent also controls a major cellular operator. However, regulators across Europe have been tackling this issue, and it now...
AlbaniaAlbania said it plans to issue a public tender to sell a majority stake in Albanian Mobile Communications, the sole cellular provider in the country. The government also plans to offer a license for a second GSM operator at the same time.HungaryThe Primatel consortium,...
Phone.com Inc., formerly Unwired Planet, has been tied to several announcements in the weeks preceding its impending initial public offering that have served to elevate the company to new levels of recognition.Most recently, Phone.com has been mentioned in conjunction with Sprint PCS and Nextel...
NEW YORK-Moody's Investors Service, London, assigned a speculative grade rating of Ba3 to Orange plc's planned private placement of $562 million in 10-year senior notes."The Ba3 rating factors in the risks associated with Orange's funding of its capital ... requirements to provide sufficient capacity...
ORANGE, Calif.-World Wide Wireless Network Inc., a provider of high-speed business connectivity in Southern California, expanded its wireless network to include 13 points of presence.Prior to the expansion, World Wide Wireless Networks' subsidiary, Global Pacific Internet, had eight sites. "We can provide service to...
The U.K. government now plans to auction five third-generation mobile phone licenses early next year, explaining that more competition will drive down prices and spur innovative services.Last year, the United Kingdom plans to auction four 3G licenses by mid-1999, but postponed its auction plans...
In the wake of the deadly tornadoes earlier this month that ripped through Oklahoma and Kansas, the idea of using wireless technology as a warning system for natural disasters is receiving renewed attention.Douglas "Bud" Weiser, who heads a volunteer organization dedicated to establishing emergency...
BelgiumKPN Orange launched GSM 1800 service in early April as the third mobile operator in Belgium.IrelandEsat Telecom Group confirmed it accepted an offer to acquire a pro rata share of 9 percent of Ireland's GSM operator Esat Digifone for US$57 million from International Investment...
DUBLIN, Ireland-In the wake of the phenomenal success of "ready-to-go" prepaid packages, many European mobile phone subscribers are concerned they are paying more than they need to for their service. This issue came to a head earlier this year in the United Kingdom where...
GermanySiemens' Information and Communication Networks Group, T-Mobil and Unwired Planet Inc. announced they will participate in a field trial to integrate Wireless Application Protocol compatible software from Unwired Planet into Global System for Mobile communications infrastructure. Under the agreement, Siemens will integrate Unwired Planet's...
CEDAR KNOLLS, N.J.-Omnipoint Communications announced it is offering the Nokia 5190 and 6190 Global System for Mobile communications handsets.Among other things, the Nokia 5190 features the NaviKey, a one-button navigation tool for easy, one-handed use and changeable color plates that allow the user make...
HANNOVER, Germany-Orange plc made several announcements from CeBIT '99, the European trade show. Orange signed an agreement with Nokia Corp. to begin a major trial of its Wireless Application Protocol Gateway. The Nokia WAP Gateway enables WAP terminals to use WAP services located at...
NEW YORK-A subsidiary of Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa Ltd., which holds a minority stake in both Orange plc and Western Wireless Corp., plans to issue $547 million in Euro-denominated bonds due 2006 and about $194 million in Hong Kong dollar-denominated notes due 2002.Hutchison has...
CANNES, France-Comverse Network Systems announced it will provide systems to support the deployment of Orange plc's "Every Phone" service in the United Kingdom.The Orange Every Phone provides subscribers with a call direction service, enabling them to receive incoming calls on virtually any telephone line.Comverse...
Wildfire Communications Inc. announced United Kingdom operator Orange plc has begun a targeted deployment of Wildfire's network voice-activated virtual assistant.Orange said the initial deployment will involve several thousand customers who represent different age, gender and accent demographic groups, on which the company plans to...
Unwired Planet Inc. took another step toward making its vision of Wireless Application Protocol devices and services a commercial reality by providing interoperability testing between its WAP-enabled UP.Link Server and WAP-encoded browsers produced by handset manufacturers.The first company to begin testing its proprietary browser...
NEW YORK-The United Kingdom started off 1999 with a bang, becoming the first country to implement local number portability for wireless telephony customers.All four cellular operators-Orange plc, Vodafone Group plc, Cellnet and One 2 One-had agreed to license amendments in the fall of 1997...
Tele Danmark A/S announced the takeover of Millicom East Holding B.V., a Dutch holding company owning shares in the two Lithuanian cellular companies Bite GSM and Comliet. After the transaction, Tele Danmark will control 71.6 percent of Bite and 49 percent of Comliet. In...
