News
Dish: If Sprint Bid Falls Through, There are Other Options
May 9, 2013 4:58 pm | by Ben Munson | CommentsDish Network is in a heated battle with Japanese carrier SoftBank over whose bid is the best value for Sprint. But Dish Chairman Charlie Ergen seems confident that his company has other options for breaking into wireless should Dish lose out. During Dish’s first quarter conference call Thursday, Ergen suggested Dish could partner with someone else in the wireless industry, sell its spectrum or sell the company.
AT&T Launches Aio Wireless Prepaid Brand
May 9, 2013 11:34 am | by Ben Munson | CommentsAio’s website lists four different rate plans. Basic, Smart and Pro all offer essentially the same service except that Basic ($40) throttles HSPA+ data after 250 MB, Smart ($50) throttles it after 2 GB and Pro ($70) throttle it after 7 GB. In addition, a $15 Tablet plan offers 250 MB of HSPA per month. Extra gigabytes of HSPA run $10 and unlimited international calling plans start at $10.
AT&T Network Chief Highlights Small Cell Deployments
May 9, 2013 11:10 am | by Andrew Berg | CommentsAT&T is big on small cells. In fact, the company is set to deploy over 40,000 small cells by the end of 2014. Speaking at the Jefferies 2013 Global Technology conference, Bill Smith, president of AT&T's network operations, small cells are a key tool in the carrier's toolbox for maintaining the vitality of AT&T's wireless network going forward...
First News Briefs for May 9, 2013
May 9, 2013 10:52 am | by Wireless Week Staff | CommentsTelit Wireless Solutions, a global provider of machine-to-machine (M2M) modules, services and solutions, today announced approval by Sprint for its CE910-DUAL cellular M2M module. A dual-band CDMA 1xRTT module, the CE910-DUAL allows Sprint M2M Solutions customers to deploy a wide range of M2M applications benefiting from reliable connectivity over Sprint’s nationwide network while enabling even the most cost sensitive business plans.
Dish Posts Disappointing 1Q, Shares Dive
May 9, 2013 10:37 am | by Andrew Berg | CommentsDish Network today reported a dip in first quarter revenue, profits and subscribers. The company said revenues hit $3.56 billion, slightly off the $3.58 billion the company reported in the same quarter last year. The company attributed the decline in part to the ailing Blockbuster segment.
Huawei Founder Gives First Ever Media Interview
May 9, 2013 10:32 am | by Nick Perry, Associated Press | CommentsWELLINGTON, New Zealand (AP) — During 26 years at the helm of Chinese tech giant Huawei, founder Ren Zhengfei has never once agreed to be interviewed by a journalist. Until Thursday. During a visit to the company's New Zealand operations, Ren sat down with four local journalists at a Wellington hotel. The rules were strict: no international media, no photos.
Sony Back in Black on Cheap Yen, Healthier Sales
May 9, 2013 10:26 am | by Yuri Kageyama, AP Business Writer | CommentsTOKYO (AP) — Sony Corp. is back in the black for its fiscal fourth quarter, recording a 93.9 billion yen ($948 million) profit, with big help from a weaker yen that boosts overseas earnings. The Japanese electronics and entertainment company also dragged itself back to profit for the fiscal year ended March 31, following four straight years of red ink.
Nokia Stays Focused on Emerging Markets with $99 Smartphone
May 9, 2013 9:48 am | by Ben Munson | CommentsThe colorful 501, running the Finnish company’s Asha platform, reverses a current smartphone trend by sporting a relatively small 3-inch display. With fairly slow max GSM data speeds, the 501 isn’t designed to do much heavy surfing, but it’s good for basic communications/social functions, equipped with Wi-Fi and has good battery life.
AOL Shares Tumble in Premarket on Weak 1Q Results
May 8, 2013 11:12 am | by Associated Press | CommentsThe New York-based internet company earned $25.9 million, or 32 cents per share, for the three months ended March 31, up from $21.1 million, or 22 cents per share, in the same quarter of 2012. Excluding one-time items, the company said it posted an adjusted profit of 41 cents per share.
First News Briefs for May 8, 2013
May 8, 2013 11:04 am | by Wireless Week Staff | CommentsHealthx now offers a new remote patient-monitoring platform to improve outcomes for chronically ill members with diabetes, hypertension, congestive heart failure (CHF), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), coronary artery disease (CAD) and multiple co-morbidities.
Report: Sprint Pushes Dish for More Details on Merger Bid
May 8, 2013 11:02 am | by Ben Munson | CommentsSprint is holding back on granting financial information to Dish Network as it pushed the company to elaborate on how its $25.5 billion merger offer will be funded and how it will create cost savings. Bloomberg, citing sources familiar with the matter, said Sprint’s board has raised its eyebrows at Dish’s ability to round up the $9.3 billion in financing it needs for the deal.
T-Mobile Sells 500K iPhone 5s in First Month
May 8, 2013 10:14 am | by Ben Munson | CommentsT-Mobile released its first quarterly numbers since adding the iPhone 5 to its portfolio and sales of the device are impressive. For the first quarter of 2013, T-Mobile said it sold 500,000 iPhone 5s to “new and existing customers,” quite a feat considering the U.S.’s fourth-largest carrier just rolled out the device to customers on April 12.
New Boingo iOS App Leverages iTunes Account for Payment
May 8, 2013 9:50 am | by Andrew Berg | CommentsWi-Fi provider Boingo Wireless has announced that iOS users can now use their iTunes account to purchase a Boingo subscription. According to a press release, the latest version of Boingo’s iOS app links directly to a customer’s iTunes account, streamlining subscription sign-up and monthly billing...
First News Briefs for May 7, 2013
May 7, 2013 10:54 am | by Wireless Week Staff | CommentsRuckus Wireless, Inc. today announced that it is teaming with Sprint's Custom Network Solutions (CNS) group to deliver enterprise, public sector and federal customers nationwide its Smart Wi-Fi products and services as part of Sprint CNS's in-building wireless data solutions portfolio.
Samsung, Apple Share 100 percent of Global Smartphone Profits
May 7, 2013 10:48 am | by Ben Munson | CommentsGlobal smartphone profits in the first quarter took a shine to Apple and Samsung and literally left nothing for anyone else. As the Wall Street Journal’s All Things D points out, new research from Canaccord Genuity suggests that Apple captured 57 percent of worldwide smartphone industry profits while Samsung scooped up the remaining 43 percent.
