Editor's Note: In this monthly feature, RCR Wireless News talks to retail managers across the country to get a first-hand view of what's hot in wireless.Seattle-based Car Toys operates stores in four states, selling mobile devices and service from three of the four national...
Verizon Wireless got caught up briefly in abortion politics after denying a request from a pro-choice organization to use its network for text messages-which the carrier swiftly remedied after a public outcry. The carrier had rejected a request from NARAL Pro-Choice America, which supports...
Nokia Corp. introduced a beta version of a downloadable application that groups text conversations by contact.Conversations, as the offering is dubbed, enables threaded SMS messages similar to offerings available on the Apple Inc. iPhone, Palm Inc. Treos and Windows Mobile-enabled handsets. The application is...
Annual consumer spending on mobile broadcast TV services is expected to surpass $6.6 billion worldwide by 2012, according to a new report from Jupiter Research.The service is expected to be in the hands of more than 120 million users in at least 40 countries...
Americans are more responsive to text ads than their European counterparts, according to new figures from M:Metrics.But that trend isn't likely to last.The Seattle-based market research firm found that Spanish consumers reported the most SMS come-ons, with 75% of mobile users saying they had...
ACE*COMM surveyed teens and parents on their cellphone uses. Based on responses from 1,000 U.S. and 1,000 U.K./German teens in 2005-2006, the firm found:● 39% of American teens use SMS with friends while in school● 24% of U.S. teens play video games on their...
Editor's Note: Welcome to Yay or Nay, a feature for RCR Wireless New' new weekly e-mail service, Mobile Content and Culture. Every week we'll review a new wireless application or service from the user's point of view, with the goal of highlighting what works...
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 RCRNews.com to rant and rave about whatever rubs us the wrong way. We...
AT&T Mobility has joined the ranks of wireless companies offering parents control over their children's wireless usage. The operator today introduced a Web-based service, Smart Limits for Wireless, to allow parents to set usage limits on talk time, text messaging, instant messaging and...
Editor's Note: Welcome to Yay or Nay, a feature for RCR Wireless News' new weekly e-mail service, Mobile Content and Culture. Every week we'll review a new wireless application or service from the user's point of view, with the goal of highlighting what works...
Sprint Nextel Corp. is upping its casual text messaging rate by five cents as of Oct. 1, from 15 cents per message to 20 cents per message. And the carrier said the change-which is permissible under its terms of service-will not allow customers to...
Mobile banking and payments are gathering steam in the U.S., but the space is also drawing significant interest abroad. Within recent weeks, a series of international companies have made banking-related announcements, including:-- Royal Bank of Scotland Group, which offers banking services in Europe, the...
The mobile banking and payments space continues to gather momentum, with banks exploring and announcing new services, and solutions providers forging new partnerships to enable the applications.Just within the past two months, a number of banks in the U.S. and abroad have begun marketing...
One way to get a sense of how much priority Hollywood networks are placing on mobile is to look at the executives on board and how many people are working on their respective teams.The big four networks-ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox-each takes a different...
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 RCRNews.com to rant and rave about whatever rubs us the wrong way....
Travel planning and roadside assistance organization AAA unveiled a downloadable application that offers drivers access to turn-by-turn directions and AAA services via mobile phone. Jeff Green, managing director of location-based technology for AAA, said that about 50% of the 29 million calls received by...
The Federal Communications Commission scored one for the little guys last week, essentially saying that nationwide operators have to strike roaming agreements with smaller carriers. The commission did not dictate prices for roaming service, but noted that reasonable deals must be made and carriers...
Editor's Note: Welcome to Yay or Nay, a feature for RCR Wireless News' new weekly e-mail service, Mobile Content and Culture. Every week we'll review a new wireless application or service from the user's point of view, with the goal of highlighting what works...
In case you hadn't heard, Google is going mobile. The Wall Street Journal last week trumpeted the Internet giant's efforts to build handsets in a page-one story that quickly echoed throughout the blogosphere and the trade press. London's Telegraph stoked the rumor mill a...
Media companies and mainstream brands are moving delicately to use text messages as a way to snuggle up next to mobile users without incurring their wrath. And they're hoping to pick up the tab.SMS marketing campaigns have a long-and decidedly mixed-track record. European marketers...
Editor's Note: Welcome to our weekly 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 Current Analysis' Avi Greengart, Jupiter Research's...
SunCom Wireless Inc. posted shaky results for the second quarter. The rural carrier showed improvements in its average revenue per user, but its churn rate was up, its losses increased and it suffered from troubles in its customer base due to credit-challenged prepaid customers.The...
Editor's Note: Welcome to Reality Check, a feature for RCR Wireless News' new weekly e-mail service, Mobile Content and Culture. We've gathered a group of visionaries and veterans in the mobile content industry to give their insights into the marketplace. In the coming weeks...
Just a little over budgetA Polish bus driver was fired for using his company cellphone to try to win a contest, according to an Associated Press report. Leszek Wojcik sent 38,000 text messages-1,200 a day-at a cost of about 86 cents per message. He...
