At the end of each year, the RCR editorial staff looks back on the news events that made RCR headlines and decides which were the most significant, industry-impacting stories of the past 12 months. Here are our picks for 1999 in chronological order.1. Jan....
NEW YORK-Wholly owned subsidiaries of VoiceStream Wireless Corp. and Omnipoint Corp., whose merger is expected to close by spring, have secured a $3 billion bank loan, Standard & Poor's Corp. said last week.VoiceStream also is in the process of acquiring Aerial Communications Inc. The...
LOS ANGELES-Econ One Research's latest monthly survey of wireless-phone service prices showed that some carriers charge up to twice as much for the same service in one city as they charge in another.The economic research and consulting firm's October survey covered the 18 service...
Some confusion exists in the wireless industry over whether mobile-phone-component shortages are affecting the handset supply in the United States.Major handset suppliers say they aren't struggling with component shortages, but one major carrier said its lower subscriber additions in the third quarter were caused...
As Sprint PCS shuts down its Global System for Mobile communications network in Washington, D.C., at the end of this month, speculation is increasing about what will happen to the GSM infrastructure.All roaming with GSM operators will terminate this month, said Sprint PCS. Carriers...
Powertel Inc.'s stock tumbled nearly $12 last week after VoiceStream Wireless Corp. Chief Executive Officer John Stanton said his company has no immediate plans to acquire any more GSM operators in the United States.Powertel's stock had been riding in the $68 range on merger...
Mannesmann AG, parent of Germany's top mobile communications company, confirmed last week it made a bid to buy U.K. mobile carrier Orange plc, which Orange's largest shareholder accepted.The bid values Orange, the United Kingdom's third-largest mobile operator, at about $32 billion.Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa,...
Fueled by United States Cellular Corp.'s strong financial results, parent company Telephone and Data Systems Inc. increased revenues and operating cash flow by 17 percent and 28 percent, respectively, in the third quarter.U.S. Cellular said service revenues, compared with the same period last year,...
The Edge Consultants, an affiliate of agency.com, released a Wireless Application Protocol browser for handheld computers running either Palm Computing or Windows CE operating systems, called WAPman.Lucent Technologies Inc. said it completed the first call on a prototype wideband radio platform designed to help...
Lucent Technologies Inc. will be noticeably absent when the Personal Communications Industry Association kicks off its 2000 showcase next September in Chicago.The infrastructure vendor has told PCIA it plans to stop exhibiting at its future shows in North America, opting instead to invest its...
The Federal Communications Commission once again must address rules surrounding the now-defunct pioneer's preference process, a program riddled with controversy throughout this decade.Omnipoint Corp. and VoiceStream Wireless Corp. last week filed an opposition to Qualcomm Inc.'s petition that the FCC deny the carrier's request...
NEW ORLEANS-Telephia Inc. announced VoiceStream Wireless Corp. selected Telephia's Market-trac and Program-trac marketing and network quality information solutions to enhance its acquisition and retention efforts in VoiceStream's Portland, Ore., market.Telephia tracks both quantitative and qualitative data, including market share, customer perceptions and experiences and...
Qualcomm Inc. last week asked the Federal Communications Commission to deny Omnipoint Corp.'s request to transfer its New York personal communications services license to VoiceStream Wireless Corp., a move that clouds the companies' efforts to complete their $1.7 billion merger agreement by this year.Qualcomm,...
SAN MATEO, Calif.-RightPoint Inc. said VoiceStream Wireless Corp. is implementing RightPoint's real-time e-marketing suite to personalize its customer sales and support Web site.RightPoint said it's e-marketing suite enables visitors to VoiceStream's Web site to view service offerings and recommendations tailored to their individual needs...
NEW YORK-The Advisory Commission on Electronic Commerce is engaged in a monumental juggling act with significant implications for levies on telecommunications in general, judging by comments at its two-day hearing last week.Charged by Congress with recommending whether and how Internet transactions should be taxed,...
PCS carriers can be credited with spurring huge demand for wireless service in the United States, but they continue to struggle with brand awareness and perceptions customers have about coverage.
"It's a brand game and a consumer-marketing game," said Andrew Sukawaty, president of nationwide carrier...
BETHESDA, Md.-Omnipoint Corp. reported revenues of $89.7 million for the quarter ended June 30, more than double revenues of $42.2 million the company reported for the same period last year.Net loss for the quarter totaled $178.8 million, or $3.36 per share, compared with a...
Personal communications services carriers can be credited with spurring huge demand for wireless service, but they continue to struggle with brand awareness and perceptions customers have about coverage."It's a brand game and a consumer-marketing game," said Andrew Sukawaty, president of nationwide carrier Sprint PCS,...
WASHINGTON-The Securities and Exchange Commission is continuing its investigation of alleged insider trading of Omnipoint Corp. stock prior to the announcement that VoiceStream Wireless Corp. is buying Omnipoint.On July 26, the ongoing investigation resulted in a Hong Kong investor, Samson Hui, agreeing to pay...
CHICAGO-The North American GSM Alliance elected VoiceStream Wireless President Bob Stapleton the group's new chairman.Stapleton served as president of Western Wireless Corp. from 1992 to 1999. He also has been president of VoiceStream Wireless since its formation in 1994. Stapleton succeeds Don Warkentin, president...
WASHINGTON-At the root of two remaining legal battles from the personal communications service C-block debacle is one word-money.If the Federal Communications Commission is not after money, it should not care what a New York bankruptcy judge ruled, says NextWave Personal Communications Inc.If Omnipoint Corp....
BELLEVUE, Wash.-Western Wireless Corp. announced it has spun off its 80.1-percent ownership in personal communications services division VoiceStream Wireless Corp.Western distributed to each of its shareholders one share of VoiceStream stock for each share of Western Wireless common stock. Western Wireless said it anticipates...
BELLEVUE, Wash.-Western Wireless Corp. announced it has mailed to shareholders a Schedule 14C information statement related to the spinoff of its 80.1-percent ownership of VoiceStream Wireless Corp. Western expects to spin off its personal communications services division May 3.
