Wireless Week back issues from October 2005:
Use SMS & LBS for early warning systems: as I write this, Hurricane Rita is deciding where she will strike land. Being fickle as she is, no one is sure where she will go. At times like these, timely short messages could provide residents with valuable information and assurance.(UpFront)
Oct 01, 2005; ... As if Hurricane Katrina didn't put enough of an exclamation point on communications systems, Rita is serving up a reminder notice. Wireless carriers have a responsibility to provide communications to their customers. As this Category 5 monster looms, I have to wonder aloud if the wireless ...
Barbed wireless.(Cartoon)
Oct 01, 2005 ... WALLED GARDEN? IT'S MORE LIKE RAZOR ...
Holes in the walled garden? U.S. operators are beginning to see the benefits of off-deck offerings. But can they open their walled gardens without compromising service quality?(Cover Story)
Oct 01, 2005; ... It's no longer a question of if or when U.S. operators will open their walled gardens. It's now a question of how much--as in how much money can they make by selling mobile content via channels other than their top deck? Can operators successfully migrate from the walled garden structure ...
Lessons learned.(AFTER THE STORM)
Oct 01, 2005; ... Hurricane Katrina set a new watermark for disaster; with Mother Nature striking with blinding fury. Besides her vicious assault on the Gulf Coast, her power overwhelmed an aging and neglected manmade structure that buckled under the roiling waters of the mighty Mississippi. The 25-foot ...
Retrenching after Katrina: carriers take a crash course on security and scale after storm.(AFTER THE STORM: TIER 1 CARRIERS)
Oct 01, 2005; ... Water, power, territory and safety have been the biggest concerns and headaches for wireless carriers slogging through network recovery efforts following the biggest natural disaster in American history, but Hurricane Katrina's wind, water and chaos also are teaching some new lessons. ...
Vendors tack on new disaster requirements: while vendors individually learned from the disaster and are planning for the future, the question of a coordinated industry response comes up.(AFTER THE STORM: VENDORS)
Oct 01, 2005; ... Despite the pain and suffering, I every bad event can become an opportunity to learn. So it is with the wireless industry's infrastructure manufacturers as they deal with the disaster that was Hurricane Katrina. Disaster response is a continuously evolving process. The vendors ...
Small carriers weather the storm: hometown operators say preparation, past experience and a commitment to their communities helped them get their networks back on track after Hurricane Katrina.(AFTER THE STORM: REGIONAL CARRIERS)
Oct 01, 2005; ... When Hurricane Katrina blasted ashore on Aug. 29, Hu Meena, president of Cellular South, was ensconced in the company's Biloxi, Miss., headquarters. Corporate personnel had been sent home for the day due to the storm, but Meena and a few others stayed in a conference room--staffers refer ...
FCC takes post-Katrina stock: scope of recovery business clearer at FCC.(AFTER THE STORM: REGULATORY)
Oct 01, 2005; ... WASHINGTON -- The recovery of the communications networks in the Gulf Coast states stricken by Hurricane Katrina depends on a number of business concessions and details that allow more latitude for carriers in their efforts, say executives and regulators involved in the task. ...
Financials take hit: the long haul brings financial repercussions for carriers in third, fourth quarters.(AFTER THE STORM: BOTTOM LINES)
Oct 01, 2005; ... The financial impact of Hurricane Katrina on both national and regional wireless carriers and their supporting networks and vendors could reach several billions of dollars once the waters have receded and an accurate accounting of the damage is assessed. The cost to BellSouth ...
Silver lining: Hurricane Katrina may have dealt a devastating blow to the Gulf Coast and its communications systems, but in the long run, it could open the door for more wireless technology and advanced networks.(AFTER THE STORM: NEW TECHNOLOGIES)
Oct 01, 2005; ... Hurricane Katrina may have left behind a lingering cloud of chaos for wireless and wireline service providers as they straggle to rebuild their networks, but certain newer wireless technologies may see a silver lining in all of the destruction. With so much of the established ...
Platform puts operators in control of multimodal content services.(Telenity)(Advertisement)
Oct 01, 2005 ... Ready ... Convergence of telecommunications and entertainment is underway and both industries are looking for new ways to deliver new content and new value added services. At the same time, wireless and wireline network operators have been working to unify their networks around ...
Preparing for the "next Katrina".(after the storm Hurricane Katrina, 2005)(using wireless communications post disaster reconstruction)(Column)
Oct 01, 2005; ... Among the countless thoughts we've all had in the wake of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita is how important wireless is, can and should be to our nation's communications and public safety infrastructure. From everything I've seen and heard, I believe wireless operators were reasonably ...
Telemarketer warnings still haunt wireless: e-mail warnings over impending use of wireless telemarketing calls persist.(Service Providers)(Column)
Oct 01, 2005; ... WASHINGTON -- Oct. 1, wireless customers are to become the targets of telemarketers armed with a new directory of wireless telephone numbers--at least, that's what some unsolicited e-mail messaging would have consumers believe. The messages, which are usually forwarded to ...
Disney fine-tunes wireless scheme: Disney executives believe the company's well-loved brand, coupled with customized handsets and a competitive offering, will make this MVNO a hit with families and tweens.(Business)
Oct 01, 2005; ... LOS ANGELES -- In a nondescript office building in North Hollywood, members of the Disney Mobile team are busy ramping up for the launch of a youth-oriented wireless service sometime early next year. Banking on the connection families have to the Disney name, not to mention its vast ...
OSS evolves with network upgrades: as wireless networks evolve with more services, so must the operations support systems behind them.
Oct 01, 2005; ... As wireless networks become more complex, so do the systems used in a network that provide support services. Some applications remain the same while others added to 3G and Internet protocol networks must be integrated. "We're seeing a fundamental shift in the industry," says ...
Cell meets Skype: a new software product offers consumers a way to avoid wireless international and long-distance charges by funneling the calls in part over a computer Internet connection. But will carriers view this as innovation or competition?(Technology)
Oct 01, 2005; ... In recent years, telephony mavericks Skype and Vonage have made waves in the wireline voice world, offering consumers a way to bypass costly international and long-distance charges by funneling calls over their broadband Internet connection--much to the consternation of incumbent phone ...
EV-DO Rev A gains steam: although EV-DO is relatively new to the U.S. market, operators already are looking ahead to Revision A and the new applications that it makes possible.(Evolution Data Only)
Oct 01, 2005; ... MIAMI -- It's been 10 years since CDMA first made its technology debut in Hong Kong, when Hutchison Telecom commercially launched the service in September 1995. At that time, voice capacity was a big priority for wireless operators, and CDMA promised operators many spectrum efficiencies. ...
Podcasting goes mobile: mobile podcasting, an off-shoot of the Internet craze, has started to take off. Whether it will reach a huge audience remains to be seen.
Oct 01, 2005; ... At barely a year old, the Internet audio publishing phenomenon podcasting already has millions of users listening to thousands of podcasts. For the uninitiated, podcasting is a word derived from the popularity of Apple's iPod and its ability--as well as that of all MP3 ...
Unified messaging reaches new dimension; linking e-mail, voice mail, IM and fax messages through various platforms appears to be gaining traction.(IP multimedia subsystem technology)
Oct 01, 2005; ... Convergence can mean many things to many people. Several years ago, unified messaging or unified communications was all the rage. More recently, it's been IP multimedia subsystem (IMS) technology. And don't forget the convergence of cellular and Wi-Fi VoIP or fixed-to-mobile substitution. ...
RFS' TMA: compact form factor UMTS-on-PCS/cellular overlays nominal gain of 12 dB.(low-noise tower-mounted amplifier from Radio Frequency Systems Inc.)(Brief Article)
Oct 01, 2005 ... Radio Frequency Systems (RFS) unveiled a new low-noise tower-mounted amplifier (TMA) that promises to provide tower-top amplification in a light and compact form factor. Specifically designed for UMTS-on-PCS/cellular-band overlay applications, the amplifier provides the gain ...
VoiceSignal VSuite 3.0: OTA support natural number dialing support for "barge in" commands.(VoiceSignal Technologies VSuite 3.0, a speech application software)(over-the-air)(Brief Article)
Oct 01, 2005 ... VoiceSignal announced VSuite 3.0, a speech application for mobile phones that supports over-the-air (OTA) downloadable language modules. By allowing consumers to download language modules, VSuite 3.0 frees up memory normally required for storing multiple languages, allowing ...
Azimuth W-Series: desktop platform 3-slot chassis/2 module Wi-Fi phone analysis.(Azimuth Systems Inc.'s W-Series 301W chassis )(Brief Article)
Oct 01, 2005 ... Azimuth Systems introduced a new platform designed specifically for Wi-Fi design engineers, with VoWi-Fi performance and device emulation and Wi-Fi industry standard certification capabilities. The new W-Series 301W chassis provides design engineers a compact testing platform ....
Multi-Tech SIP VoIP server: bridges PSTN to IP connect up to 8 analog trunks connects analog phone, fax.(Multi-Tech Systems Inc.)(Brief Article)
Oct 01, 2005 ... Multi-Tech Systems announced its session initiation protocol (SIP) VoIP server. The company says the patent-pending MultiVOIP SS SIP survivability server provides the basic features of a centralized IP telephony system to remote locations during IP network (such as WAN) failures ...
Groove Music Gateway: personalized programming streaming radio music subscriptions.(Groove Mobile Complete Music Gateway)(Brief Article)
Oct 01, 2005 ... Groove Mobile announced an expansion of its products and services to include a comprehensive mobile music suite for m-commerce. The Groove Mobile Complete Music Gateway will include personalized and programmed streaming radio, music subscriptions and more, in addition to its ...
Go figure.(wireless e-mail user statistics)(ACCESS Company Ltd. is acquiring PalmSource inc.)(market share of WiMAX and pre-WiMAX equipment)(Brief Article)
Oct 01, 2005 ... 25% Of Vodafone's business customers work or travel in the United States. 10M Number of enterprise wireless e-mail users today, according to Nokia, which is aiming for a 40-percent market share of the market. $324.3M Value of ...
Phone advertising shows promise.(By the Numbers)
Oct 01, 2005 ... According to a report by In-Stat, a sister company to Wireless Week, more than 40 percent of 18- to 34-year-olds surveyed say advertising would be acceptable on their wireless phones. Overall, about 20 percent of wireless phone users say they would find some form of advertising on their ...
Defining the MVNO.(Mobile virtual network operators market)(Brief Article)
Oct 01, 2005 ... According to Research and Markets, there are now more than 22 MVNOs in the United States. Here's how the Irish market research firm classifies the groups: 1. Low-cost international long-distance ...
There goes that phone again ...(Motorola RAZR phone)(top selling wireless telephones)(Brief Article)
Oct 01, 2005 ... Did you really think the summer would go by without another mention of Motorola's RAZR phone? We didn't think so, and we couldn't resist when online wireless service provider Wirefly released its list of the summer's top-selling phones. Guess what? The RAZR captured the top three ...
Reasons customers choose carriers.(survey of wireless subscribers and online services)(Brief Article)
Oct 01, 2005 ... In its second-quarter 2005 online channel effectiveness study, Compete found that 30 percent of 1,254 wireless subscribers surveyed online chose their service provider based on service quality and coverage. The predictive analytics firm suggests carriers consider geographically targeting ...
The battle for the small screen: mobile search functionality has the potential to link subscribers to the good life. But it will take a critical eye toward how it will be used and what types of devices.
Oct 01, 2005; ... Hello, Central, give me Doctor Jazz He's got what I need, I say he has --Joe "King" Oliver Nearly a century ago, jazz legend King Oliver connected the dots between the then emerging telephone and the good life. Fast forward to the early 21st century and that ...
Have your people call my people ... or ... let's just talk: carriers and mobile game developers can take steps to improve their relationships, but first they have to start communicating.(Guest Opinion)
Oct 01, 2005; ... Carrier decisions often appear arbitrary to mobile game developers and publishers. The limited communication between carriers and content developers often creates problems for carriers that they may not even be aware of, especially since dealing with vendors for ringtones and wallpapers is ...
Lessons from disaster don't come easy: times of disaster show the need for better communications among emergency responders, but beware sweeping answers to complex problems.
Oct 01, 2005; ... Hindsight is always 20-20. As the weeks go by, many have become Monday morning quarterbacks when it comes to disaster-related communications. If we lived in an all-IP world full of mesh networks, some QBs say, communications would not become a major problem and systems could be more ...
Gaming CEO has lady luck on her side.(PROFILE: Vicky Wu: Entrepreneur Follows Her Heart)(she started mobile gaming company)
Oct 01, 2005; ... It's not every CEO who is willing to wait tables to keep her business going. Then again, Vicky Wu is not your everyday CEO. The founder of mobile gaming company Froghop was an intern at Lockheed when she was 16. She started her own company in 2000--and it's still in business. And at 31, ...
Wireless proves fertile ground.(PDAHealthWare Inc. introduced EggAlert program)(Brief Article)
Oct 01, 2005; ... You could call it the mobile "fertility phone." Chicago-based PDAHealthWare has literally given birth to the latest mobile application in EggAlert, a program geared toward women trying to conceive. EggAlert sends clients a text message alert on their cell phone notifying them that they are ...
Openwave Systems.(On The Move)
Oct 01, 2005 ... HAROLD COVERT was named CFO at Openwave Systems, replacing JOSHUA PACE, who will continue as an adviser to the company ...
TowerGroup.(On The Move)
Oct 01, 2005 ... Industry veteran BOB EGAN joined TowerGroup as director of its Emerging Technologies research service. He most ...
Wireless Age Communications.(On The Move)
Oct 01, 2005 ... BRAD POULOS, president of Wireless Age Communications, was named CEO of the Canadian company after the departure of JOHN SIMMONDS, who remains ...
NetMotion Wireless.(On The Move)
Oct 01, 2005 ... TOM JOHNSTON was named senior vice president of products and marketing at NetMotion Wireless. The former Microsoft ...
Revol.(On The Move)
Oct 01, 2005 ... ROCKY CROSSLAND was appointed CEO of Cleveland-based service provider Revol by the board of Cleveland Unlimited, ...
Sprint North Supply.(On The Move)
Oct 01, 2005 ... JIM MAYFIELD was named president of Sprint North Supply. Most ...
Wayport.(On The Move)
Oct 01, 2005 ... GORDON WILLIAMS JR. joined Wayport as senior vice ...
Apples & oranges: maybe I am not "desperate" enough to watch that housewives show or "amazed" enough to trail those families of race participants. But I sure am not going to pay $1.99 to download a rerun.
Oct 15, 2005; ... Last week, Steve Jobs and Apple unveiled the video iPod to much fanfare and hoopla. Don't get me wrong. I am a huge tan of iPods specifically and Jobs in general. So ir is with some reticence that I say this product will bomb, of at least in its initial state, it won't change the video ...
Industry mourns passing of Roger Brown.(news director for CED Magazine)(Brief Article)
Oct 15, 2005 ... CED Magazine, a sister publication of Wireless Week, and the cable industry lost a steady hand and staunch advocate Oct. 6 with the passing of Roger Brown, publisher and news director for CED. He died at home after an 8-month battle with cancer. He was 46. Brown began his ...
Texting knows no bounds: simple SMS isn't quite so simple anymore. It's being used for a growing number of purposes.(Short messaging service)(Cover Story)
Oct 15, 2005; ... Everyone in the industry knows that text messaging, or short messaging service (SMS), has turned into one of the biggest unplanned growth engines in wireless communications. Just a few years ago, few thought the technology would take hold in the United States, as it had in other parts of ...
Warding off regulation with numbers: industry uses new study to show the impact of wireless on the nation's economy.(Service Providers)
Oct 15, 2005; ... WASHINGTON -- In hopes of having a stronger hand in shaping its future, the wireless industry is getting the word out about how important it is to the nation's economy. CTIA hopes that by quantifying the industry on a regular basis, theindustry can better position ...
MVNOs break traditional mold: the buzzwords of the industry--off portal--make traditional operators uncomfortable. MVNOs, however, are more open to alternative business strategies.(Business)
Oct 15, 2005; ... Bring up certain subjects and executives at traditional operators will cringe, or offer guarded responses. Hot-button issues such as off-portal, adult content and wireless gambling are just a few topics that are still highly debated in conventional settings. But bring up those same topics ...
Wideband codecs wait in the wings: wideband voice codecs may offer more natural voice quality, but barriers may mute their introduction on wireless networks.
Oct 15, 2005; ... Cellular technology today is evolving from narrowband to broadband, and now that progression applies not just to the networks but also to the voice codecs that stream across them. A chorus of wideband voice codecs is now circulating among wireless technology players and ...
Refining disaster strategies: configuring networks to withstand disasters won't be cheap, but it is possible.(Column)
Oct 15, 2005; ... The city of New Orleans holds special significance for many of us wireless industry old-timers. It has been by far the most frequent site of the annual CTIA Wireless showcase and exhibition, North America's premier industry convention. The 2005 show was again in the Big Easy, and as usual ...
Integration issues plague MMS interoperability: disparate network architecture and protocols are hindering the delivery of multimedia messages across different carrier networks.
Oct 15, 2005; ... Intercarrier MMS interoperability deals among U.S. operators have been flourishing for the past several months--Verizon Wireless alone has MMS interoperability with five other carriers. But that doesn't necessarily mean that multimedia messages actually are being exchanged across networks ....
OMA forges ahead on interop: after three years of work, the alliance continues to make progress on specifications that make services interoperable.(Open Mobile Alliance)
Oct 15, 2005; ... The Open Mobile Alliance (OMA), spawned by a political marriage more than three years ago, has created more than three dozen specifications all aimed at the interoperability of applications and content on wireless devices. And 2005 may have been OMA's best year for assuring ...
Satellite spectrum up for grabs: satellite, traditional wireless players line up to get a piece of 2 GHz spectrum.(mobile satellite spectrum)
Oct 15, 2005; ... The satellite industry's role in the aftermath of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita is playing a part in the battle over the 2 GHz mobile satellite spectrum (MSS) that wireless carriers have their eyes on. And judging by filings with the FCC, the battle cry is reaching a sky-high crescendo for ...
Entertainment, wireless vie for top billing: entertainment companies want to reach the broadest audience possible. Wireless carriers want differentiation from competitors. Can these conflicting agendas co-exist?
Oct 15, 2005; ... Entertainment firms have long viewed wireless as an interesting marketing channel and a potential new medium for distributing their content. But lately the fervor over content, particularly video, has reached a new high as operators search for unique content that will differentiate them ...
Mini battlegrounds heat up: Wi-Fi technology compels cities, providers to think about new roles.(municipal newtorks)
Oct 15, 2005; ... There's no question Wi-Fi networks remain controversial in the world of wireless. But where the technology is sparking more visible debate lately is in the area of municipal networks. With an increasing number of large cities implementing or contracting for Wi-Fi networks, their ...
EarthLink gambles on wireless: as the ISP watches its revenues decline, it mores more aggressively in to wireless transmission modes.(it formed joint venture with SK Telecom Company Ltd. to provide Mobile virtual network operators services)
Oct 15, 2005; ... This year will be the year that EarthLink, one of the country's largest ISPs, decided to cast its future success with wireless communications. EarthLink has 5.4 million subscribers, based on second-quarter numbers, but has seen its subscriber churn rate increase while revenues ...
Delivering the goods: wireless systems for retail and delivery expand beyond just tracking inventory.
Oct 15, 2005; ... An IBM commercial now in prime-time rotation opens with a semi-truck grinding to a halt in front of an office desk set squarely in the middle of a lonely desert road. A woman behind the desk calmly informs the annoyed drivers that they took a wrong turn in delivering their goods, based on ...
Go figure.(wireless communications services)(Brief Article)
Oct 15, 2005 ... 37 Number of Enabler Releases published thus far by the Open Mobile Alliance, whose nearly 400 members collaborate to develop the releases. $125 Amount a U.S. consumer spending $54 per month on wireless voice and data services would spend for the same services in the European ...
Top-selling cell phone accessories.(By the Numbers)(Brief Article)
Oct 15, 2005 ... September 2005 1. Motorola HS850 Bluetooth Headset 2. Premium Vehicle Power Charger for Motorola RAZR V3 3. Logitech Mobile Freedom Bluetooth Headset 4. Motorola HS820 Bluetooth Headset 5. Plantronics Voyager 510 Bluetooth Headset ...
Print on.(By the Numbers)(Brief Article)
Oct 15, 2005 ... What's new with cameraphone users? According to a study by NPD Techworld for Fuji Photo Film U.S.A., 44.6 percent of survey participants say they've taken pictures on their cameraphones that they wished they had printed. The most commonly noted reasons for not printing the images included ...
Margins keep dropping in European markets.(By the Numbers)
Oct 15, 2005 ... Average margins per user (AMPUs) in Central Europe and Eastern Europe fell almost 30 percent to just $6 per month in the second quarter, according to Strategy Analytics. Operators in the region are losing ground with AMPU levels 50 percent below the global average in the current quarter, ...
Look out for unhappy switchers.(By the Numbers)(Cellular telephone services Retail Sales Index )(Brief Article)
Oct 15, 2005 ... The likelihood of switching providers among those most dissatisfied with their recent retail purchasing experience increased 46 percent from 2004, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2005 Wireless Retail Sales Satisfaction Study. The study shows that 20 percent of ...
Security remains top of mind.(By the Numbers)(Brief Article)
Oct 15, 2005 ... While 87 percent of critical business data is found on endpoint PCs, 56 percent of queried employees think their current wireless network security strategy is reactive or inadequate. That's according to a survey of 56 public and private sector organizations conducted by Senforce ...
2006: FMC convergence: fixed mobile convergence has been in the works for a long time, but change is in the air as a shift occurs in telecom infrastructure and network economics.
Oct 15, 2005; ... Convergence is a concept we have been discussing in the telecom industry for many years. We already are seeing de facto convergence on a number of levels, such as substitution of wireline minutes by wireless, or the use of the Internet for voice via VoIP. Bundled services are another form ...
Author dials into human nature.(In a Cell Phone Minute book written by Judy Reiser )
Oct 15, 2005; ... Her Book Features Stories of Mobile Life If cell phones could talk, what tales they'd tell. These devices can't talk, but author Judy Reiser is giving them a voice with her new book. Released last month, "In a Cell Phone Minute" is a collection of anecdotes revolving around the ...
Science + Math = ringtones.(OFFBEAT / NEW TONES)(Wolfram Research Inc. ringtones WolframTones)(Website tones.wolfram.com)(Brief Article)
Oct 15, 2005; ... What do cellular automata and Mathematica have to do with ringtones for cell phones? A lot, if you work at Wolfram Research, a computer software firm that has branched into the somewhat unlikely specialty area of ringtones. WolframTones, available via the Website ...
Wireless Facilities Inc (WFI).(On The Move)
Oct 15, 2005 ... DAVID CLAASSEN joined Wireless Facilities Inc. (WFI) as vice president, IP and core network engineering for WFI's U.S. network services division. He most recently ...