Buried deep in the support area of its Web site, iPhone maker Apple Inc. provided instructions on how to update the handset via a cabled connection to a PC. The company titled the item "Updating and restoring iPhone software." The update is available only...
Alltel Corp. reported a strong quarter in which it saw its best-ever figures in wireless service revenue and churn-but profits were down 54% from the previous year's second quarter due to 2006's inclusion of profits from the company's wireline division, which Alltel has since...
Whether Jose Trujillo of Melrose Park, Ill., will find support among fellow iPhone owners-or a court of law in Cook County, Ill.-for his just-launched lawsuit against Apple Inc. and AT&T Inc. over the need to have the unit's rechargeable battery replaced eventually remains to...
In the Byzantine world of handset pricing, intrigue is the name of the game. What to read into the latest handset price gyrations? Our guess: largely price cuts to pique consumer interest during the coming dog days of summer. AT&T Mobility discounted its Nokia...
Verizon Wireless announced a $2.67 billion deal to acquire Rural Cellular Corp., one of the nation's largest rural carriers. The agreement will add RCC's 700,000 customers to Verizon Wireless' base-which currently stands at 62.1 million-and will expand the No. 2 operator's coverage in parts...
Nokia Corp. has time on its side.With its closest competitor receding in the rear-view mirror, Nokia said during the second quarter that it would realign its business structure to become more nimble and responsive to market demands and opportunities-a change made from a position...
WITH VIRGIN MOBILE USA L.L.C. SEEKING A $500 MILLION INITIAL PUBLIC OFFERING, the company is looking to complete the first IPO of a mobile virtual network operator in the United States. The IPO market has been stronger this year than in recent years, which...
The iPhone will be launched in "a few major countries" in Europe before the end of December, Apple Inc. executives said this afternoon during a conference call to discuss the company's earnings. By that time Apple expects to sell one million units between sales...
An increasing percentage of customers report that their service problems are "resolved in a timely manner," according to the latest survey of customer care by J.D. Power and Associates-and carriers' investments in network infrastructure are likely the cause. The semi-annual study asks customers about...
Retail franchise Yakety Yak Wireless' location in Huntington Beach, Calif., sells devices and service from Verizon Wireless, Sprint Nextel Corp. (both Sprint and Nextel brands) and soon will offer wares from MetroPCS Communications Inc. It offers services that include contact-list backup and transfer as...
Dear Editor,We would like to respond to some of the many misleading comments made by Reed Hundt in RCR Wireless News relating to our editorial. That piece argued that the FCC should not play favorites in auctioning spectrum, and that Congress should change the...
How can the world's largest cellphone maker expand its sales efforts? That's the question Bill Plummer is working on.
Plummer is VP of Multimedia Sales and Channel Management in North America for Nokia. In his role he oversees handset sales to carriers as well as...
Federal Communications Commission Chairman Kevin Martin's 700 MHz plan has triggered an angry backlash, with the agency chief suddenly finding himself squeezed by the cellular industry and others vehemently opposed to open access and those asserting the draft rule does not go nearly far...
Nokia Corp. will enhance its N800 Internet tablet with VoIP from Skype, giving the latter a degree of legitimacy in the mobile device market. The N800 is a handheld Internet browser that eschews cellular connections in favor of Wi-Fi, and now supports Skype's software...
The mantra of OPM-other people's money-is alive and well in wireless.The latest private-equity investments, announced yesterday, include New York-based Lindsay Goldberg's $283 million stake in Brightstar Corp., which is expanding its wireless distribution and supply chain operations globally. Separately, Los Angeles-based Platinum Equity is...
Dear Editor,We would like to respond to some of the many misleading comments made by Reed Hundt in RCR Wireless News relating to our Washington Post editorial. That piece argued that the FCC should not play favorites in auctioning spectrum, and that Congress should...
Tens of thousands of customers opening up their shiny, new iPhones during opening weekend experienced a different way to activate a wireless device-outside the store.Instead, customers were pointed to Apple Inc.'s iTunes for activation, in a transaction that was powered by software vendor Synchronoss...
Tessco Technologies Inc. acquired NetForce Solutions Inc., a provider of technical and sales training to the wireless, telecommunications and networking industries. Although Tessco declined to disclose the purchase price, it did report that the deal includes all non-cash business assets for an initial cash...
Initial research into the guts of Apple Inc.'s iPhone shows Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. and Infineon Technologies AG as two of the major component suppliers for the much-hyped device. But figures from tear-down firm iSuppli Corp. reveal that Apple itself is the true victor,...
AT&T Mobility saw a few bumps in activations with the massive demand for the Apple Inc. iPhone, but analysts estimated that eager customers snapped up between 500,000 and 700,000 of the devices during its high-profile opening weekend-putting the device well on its way to...
Canada's Wireless Age Communications Inc. pulled the plug on its troubled technology distribution business.The Toronto-based company declared the bankruptcy of mmwave Technologies Inc., a subsidiary that distributes components for wireless, digital, optical and microwave use. Shimmerman Penn Title & Associates Inc. will serve as...
The Supreme Court ruled manufacturers can set minimum prices for products sold by retailers without automatically violating antitrust law, setting aside a 96-year-old ruling that the cellular industry and others argued was outdated.Michael Altschul, general counsel of cellphone industry association CTIA, agreed with the...
Dear Editor,Every now and then the Federal Communications Commission has to do something very important. In the next two weeks this FCC has a chance to protect the homeland and ensure billions of dollars of benefits to consumers. Or if spun into confusion by...
Wells Fargo & Co. and Visa USA said today that they are in a three-phase trial to determine the type and method of mobile payments favored by consumers. The first phase, with Wells Fargo employees in a lab, concluded in April. The bank and...
