wireless industry

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As Telecoms Hype 4G, Recall How Long 3G Was in Coming

(Newser) - 3G landed in the US in 2003. But it wasn’t until the iPhone came around five years later that “consumers finally had a device that showed them the power of mobile broadband networks,” Stephanie N. Mehta writes in Fortune. In fact, "a few executives at US...

Radio Shack Ditches 'Radio' to Become ... 'The Shack'

(Newser) - From all accounts, Radio Shack is set to rebrand itself “The Shack,” Joshua Topolsky writes for Engadget. “It makes perfect sense—radios aren’t exactly considered cutting edge these days,” Topolsky writes, and “the store is about to launch a full assault on the mobile...

Google Voice Worth More Than Beloved iPhone

(Newser) - Apple and AT&T rejected the Google Voice app for the iPhone, driving TechCrunch founder Michael Arrington to drop the mobile device entirely. Why are Apple and its carrier blocking an innovative program that has amazing call-forwarding features and transcribes voicemail into text? “Because they absolutely don’t want...

Prepaid Cell Phones Are New Frugal Chic

Pay-as-you-go replaces contracts as consumers cut spending

(Newser) - More customers are turning to Tony Soprano-style, pay-as-you-go cell phones, and not just to avoid wiretaps. As the recession forces consumers to cut costs, all-inclusive prepaid plans are the new frugal option, reports the New York Times. "In today’s economy, it’s not cool to pay $120 a...

Sprint Nextel to Cut 8K Jobs
 Sprint Nextel to Cut 8K Jobs 

Sprint Nextel to Cut 8K Jobs

3rd-largest wireless outfit has lost millions of subscribers

(Newser) - Sprint Nextel is eliminating about 8,000 positions in the first quarter as it seeks to cut annual costs by $1.2 billion. The third-largest US wireless provider said it will complete the layoffs, about 14% of its 56,000 employees, largely by March 31. About 850 of the reductions...

Dow Dips 81 on Autos, Building
Dow Dips 81 on Autos, Building 
MARKETS

Dow Dips 81 on Autos, Building

Several wireless and financial firms fall after downgrades

(Newser) - Stocks fell today as the markets digested poor, but better-than-forecast, reports in auto sales and construction spending, the Wall Street Journal reports. Though the Dow rose to an 8-week high Friday, it fell 81.80 today to close at 8,952.89. The Nasdaq lost 4.18, closing at 1,...

Sprint Tries to Open Up to Customers

Struggling telco's CEO seeks suggestions for improvement

(Newser) - You won’t get Sprint Nextel CEO Dan Hesse if you email “Dan@Sprint.com,” but you will get the company’s attention, reports the New York Times. In an ad campaign designed to get Sprint in touch with its customers, Hesse asks “If you could change the...

Verizon Seeks Alltel Deal, Challenge to Top Dog AT&T

Wireless companies are in negotiations to cover 80 million customers

(Newser) - Verizon Communications is in negotiations to buy wireless carrier Alltel, a merger that would cover 80 million US subscribers and create the nation's biggest cell-phone company, the Wall Street Journal reports—though the potential $27 billion deal could easily fall through. But if it's consummated, and the feds see no...

Sprint in Talks to Sell Struggling Nextel Unit

Wireless carrier reportedly ready to give up on troubled acquisition

(Newser) - Sprint is considering selling or spinning off its Nextel division, signaling the end of a troubled, disappointing merger, the Wall Street Journal reports. Talks are already under way with Nextel founder Morgan O'Brien, who would integrate the unit into his new wireless public-safety network, and other prospective buyers, including private-equity...

Wireless Drives AT&amp;T Growth
 Wireless Drives AT&T Growth 
earnings report

Wireless Drives AT&T Growth

Company posts 22% increase in net income for Q1 despite dip in landline earnings

(Newser) - AT&T posted a 22% increase in net income during the first quarter, thanks to strong growth in its wireless unit. Its wireless earnings nearly doubled, while landline earnings dropped 2.1%. The company’s net income was $3.46 billion (57 cents a share), compared to $2.85 billion...

Whew! Google Saved by the Highest Bidder

Search giant OK with not winning FCC spectrum auction

(Newser) - Google nearly became the unenthused owner of a $4.71 billion slice of wireless airwaves in a recent Federal Communications Commission auction, the New York Times reports. Its bid was part of a deal with the FCC to open some spectrum to third-party services, but for much of the bidding,...

FCC Boss Nixes Bid to Open Up Wireless Networks

Systems already 'open enough,' he says

(Newser) - The head of the FCC has rejected a request from Skype to open up wireless networks to outside devices, AP reports. The Internet phone provider wanted wireless operations included in a 1968 FCC decision that required AT&T to open up its network beyond its own devices that paved the...

In the Works: Wireless Bill of Rights

States fight feds over who will regulate

(Newser) - Wireless carriers seem to have angered a few too many consumers with hidden fees and surprise charges. Politicians in 22 states are considering various versions of a wireless consumers’ bill of rights, reports BusinessWeek. But the wireless industry, daunted at facing different regulations in every state, is throwing its weight...

AT&T, Verizon Will Dominate New Airwaves

Wireless spectrum auction saw no major first-time entrant

(Newser) - AT&T and Verizon were the two top bidders in the airwaves auction that ended this week, representing 80% of the FCC’s record $19.6 billion haul and positioning themselves to offer advanced wireless Internet services, reports the Wall Street Journal. Google, sans licenses, was another winner, gaining open...

Verizon Opens Its Network to Outside Phones

Provider answers calls for more open industry

(Newser) - Verizon will open its cell-phone service to any phone builder willing to meet its technical specs, the Wall Street Journal reports. The provider has so far restricted access to its own retailer, but hopes to stave off pressure from regulators, consumers, and tech companies pushing for a more universal industry.

Sprint May Go Lower Than $99.99
Sprint May
Go Lower
Than $99.99

Sprint May Go Lower Than $99.99

Mobile provider expected to undercut flat-rate calling plans

(Newser) - With both AT&T and Verizon unveiling $99.99 flat-rate unlimited calling plans this week, Sprint's is expected to undercut its rivals by up to 40%, plunging the wireless industry headlong into a price war. Sprint isn't telling yet, but analysts predict it will offer unlimited calling for roughly $60...

Patent Battle Breaks Out Between Motorola, RIM

Firms exchange suits after licensing agreement disintegrates

(Newser) - A patent battle has flared between BlackBerry maker RIM and Motorola after the two failed to agree on terms to renew an existing licensing agreement, reports the Wall Street Journal.The friction comes as each company is intruding into the other's turf: Motorola by building Blackberry-like email devices, RIM by...

Microsoft Will Buy Maker of Sidekick

After Yahoo! rebuff, Redmond giant scoops up Danger

(Newser) - Microsoft is poised to buy Danger, the maker of the T-Mobile Sidekick, in a move that follows on the heels of Yahoo's rebuff of the software behemoth's $44 billion buyout offer. Microsoft hasn't said how much it's forking over, but called Danger the "perfect complement to our existing software...

AT&T's 4Q Numbers Bolstered by Cell Sales

Other operations lagging behind

(Newser) - AT&T's quarterly numbers indicate strong wireless sales, the Wall Street Journal reports, though unimpressive figures from its landline and Internet divisions have left some analysts and investors concerned. AT&T enjoyed a quarterly revenue of $3.14 billion—up from $1.94 billion this time last year—bolstered by...

Teenagers Still Addicted to POTS
Teenagers
Still Addicted
to POTS

Teenagers Still Addicted to POTS

Net-loving teens use plain old telephone service the most

(Newser) - Internet use among teenagers continues to rise—93% of teens have some sort of access, and 64% contribute some kind of content on a regular basis. But, despite the proliferation of cell phones and a myriad of bleeding-edge choices, the No.1 communications tool for teens remains the land line,...

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