Carriers & Vendors
VZW Makes $7 Billion Distribution
May 14, 2013 9:16 am | by Andrew Berg | News | CommentsVerizon Wireless today announced a $7 billion cash distribution to its owners, Vodafone and Verizon. The payment will be made on June 25 and will see Verizon getting $3.85 billion, while Vodafone will take $3.15 billion. The move comes after speculation...
Clearwire Again Implores Shareholders to Vote For Sprint Offer
May 13, 2013 11:17 am | by Ben Munson | News | CommentsToday’s letter goes over the points outlined in a letter Clearwire sent to shareholders last week but this time, Clearwire comes armed with a new recommendation from Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS), an advisory firm that is now recommending Clearwire shareholders vote for the Sprint merger.
Report: SoftBank Pushing Banks to Not Finance Dish’s Sprint Bid
May 13, 2013 10:09 am | by Ben Munson | News | CommentsSoftBank appears to be playing hardball with banks that could potentially help finance Dish Network’s $25.5 billion opposing bid. A Reuters report cited two sources suggesting SoftBank, which owns 33 percent of Chinese e-commerce site Alibaba, has told lenders their chances of underwriting Alibaba’s imminent IPO could be jeopardized by aiding Dish in financing its Sprint bid.
Samsung Boasts 5G Technology 100 Times Faster than 4G
May 13, 2013 10:00 am | by Andrew Berg | News | CommentsSamsung said today that it is testing 5G technology capable of data speeds 100 times faster than 4G networks. According to a press release, Samsung's new adaptive array transceiver technology will allow data to transmit at higher frequencies than currently possible...
Dish: If Sprint Bid Falls Through, There are Other Options
May 9, 2013 4:58 pm | by Ben Munson | News | 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 | News | 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 | News | 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 | News | 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.
Huawei Founder Gives First Ever Media Interview
May 9, 2013 10:32 am | by Nick Perry, Associated Press | News | 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.
Nokia Stays Focused on Emerging Markets with $99 Smartphone
May 9, 2013 9:48 am | by Ben Munson | News | 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.
Report: Sprint Pushes Dish for More Details on Merger Bid
May 8, 2013 11:02 am | by Ben Munson | News | 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 | News | 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.
Q&A: Lurie Welcomes Customers to AT&T's Digital Life
May 7, 2013 1:57 pm | by Wireless Week Staff | Articles | CommentsAT&T has officially launched its IP-based Digital Life home automation service in 15 markets, with plans to introduce the service in up to 50 markets by the end of 2013. The new service, which was announced last spring and has been trialing in Dallas and Atlanta...
Samsung, Apple Share 100 percent of Global Smartphone Profits
May 7, 2013 10:48 am | by Ben Munson | News | 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.
SoftBank CEO: Our Sprint Deal is Better Because of TD-LTE
May 7, 2013 10:09 am | by Ben Munson | News | CommentsSpeaking at a press conference, Son touted his company’s success in deploying TD-LTE over 2.5 GHz spectrum in Japan. He added SoftBank is better equipped to help Sprint deploy the same kind of service on the large swaths of 2.5 GHz Sprint stands to inherit should its $2.2 billion bid to buyout WiMax wholesaler Clearwire go through.
Nokia Remains Focused on Windows Phone
May 7, 2013 9:59 am | by Andrew Berg | News | CommentsNokia will continue to focus on Windows Phone, according to a report from Reuters today, which cited comments from Nokia CEO Stephen Elop prior to the company's annual general meeting. Elop said that while the company continues to make adjustments as it goes...
Microsoft Touching Up Windows 8 to Address Gripes
May 7, 2013 8:42 am | by Michael Liedtke, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsMicrosoft is retooling the latest version of its Windows operating system to address complaints and confusion that have been blamed for deepening a slump in personal computer sales. The tune up announced Tuesday won't be released to consumers...
First News Briefs for May 6, 2013
May 6, 2013 10:47 am | by Wireless Week Staff | News | CommentsSprint and Time Inc. today announced a mobile content, advertising and retail alliance. As part of the arrangement, Time Inc. will deliver its branded content within a customizable section of the SprintZone application on select Sprint devices. Customers can expect the latest entertainment, lifestyle, sports and business news.
Clearwire Sends Letter to Stockholders, Urging Yes Vote on Sprint Bid
May 6, 2013 10:32 am | by Ben Munson | News | CommentsClearwire outlined its exhaustive efforts to turn around its fortunes in the WiMax wholesale market in a letter sent Monday to stockholders. But the company continually returned to the conclusion that Sprint’s $2.97 per share offer (translating to nearly $2.2 billion for shareholders) was not only the best deal but really the only deal that would save Clearwire before its liquidity runs dry.
US Cellular Embraces iPhone After Rejecting It
May 3, 2013 3:26 pm | by Peter Svensson, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsU.S. Cellular, the fifth largest cellphone company and the only major one to resist the iPhone, says it's going to start selling it this year. CEO Mary Dillon announced the reversal Friday on a call with investors and analysts. She didn't specify exactly when the company would start...
Report: McAdam Hints at Withholding Vodafone Payments
May 3, 2013 10:25 am | by Andrew Berg | News | CommentsVerizon Wireless may be tightening the screws on Vodafone, in an effort to force the European carrier to sell off its 45 percent of the Verizon Wireless joint venture. According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, Verizon CEO Lowell McAdam hinted...
U.S. Cellular Profits Down 92 Percent, 74K Postpaid Losses
May 3, 2013 9:54 am | by Ben Munson | News | CommentsU.S. Cellular posted a net income of $4.9 million for its first quarter of 2013, down a considerable 97 percent from the $62.5 million it posted in the same quarter last year. Similarly, diluted EPS for the quarter sank to $0.06, down from the $0.73 EPS it posted in the first quarter of 2012.
Pentagon Clears Use of Samsung's Devices
May 3, 2013 9:13 am | by Associated Press | News | CommentsSamsung Electronics Co. says the U.S. Department of Defense has approved using Samsung smartphones for its networks. The South Korean company said Friday the Galaxy S4 smartphone has become the first Android device to meet the security requirements set out by the U.S. government...
Intel Taps COO Krzanich as Chipmaker's Next CEO
May 3, 2013 8:59 am | by Peter Svensson, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsIntel, one of the pillars of Silicon Valley, is following its traditions and promoting an insider to the job of CEO. The world's largest chipmaker is tasking Chief Operating Officer Brian Krzanich with steering it through an industry shake-up that is seeing tablets and smartphones overshadow...
Sprint Making Good on June 29 iDen Shutdown
May 2, 2013 9:22 am | by Andrew Berg | News | CommentsThe shutdown of Sprint's iDen network has been a longtime in coming and is very near at hand, according to the company. Sprint today confirmed that the last full day of iDEN service will be June 29, with a shutdown that begins first thing Sunday, June 30 and continuing throughout the day...
