RIM to acquire multimedia app developer in $18.9M transaction
December 11 2008 - 1:26 pm ET Colin Gibbs RCR Wireless News
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Research In Motion Ltd. is stepping up its application-development play with an $18.9 million acquisition of Chalk Media Corp.A member of the BlackBerry ISV Alliance Program, Chalk’s technology delivers multimedia files to groups within businesses and other organizations. The deal includes a $2.2 million loan from RIM to fund Chalk’s operations until the transaction’s close, which is expected in February pending shareholder approval.Chalk’s board has unanimously approved the acquisition, which is subject to approval of 75% of the votes cast at a special shareholder meeting slated for January.RIM is increasingly pursuing third-party developers as it ramps up its in-house software efforts. Shares of the Waterloo, Canada-based firm inched upward 30 cents, or just less than 1%, to $38.73 following the announcement.
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Tuesday, December 9, 2008
Trends in Wireless Indyustry
RCR wireless report
(pdf in harddrive)
#1: CONS O L I DAT I ON
SP
operator consolidation:
Verizon Wireless picks up Californian carrier
AT&T Mobility nabs 19,000 subscribers through W. Va. carrier buy
By the Numbers: Top Ten U.S.Wireless Service Providers, 2007
Who’s left? T-Mobile buys SunCom in latest rural roll-up
VZW to acquire Alltel
Vnedors
Alcatel-Lucent, NEC partner for LTE
Moto, Nortel deal in the works?
CommScope again goes for Andrew in $2.6B deal
Nokia Siemens Networks readies for take
#2: S P E CTR UM
700 MHz auction
T-Mobile USA, Leap move closer to AWS launches
FCC moves on 2155-2175 MHz spectrum band
FCC details plans for free nationwide wireless broadband ISTOCKPHOTO
#3: B EYOND TH E PHONE
Hardware, and beyond: Nokia and Samsung race to provide Internet services
Nokia moves to realize Internet ambitions
Nokia’s vision based on constant connectivity
#4: E NTE RTA I NME NT
462M to subscribe to mobile TV services by 2012
Consumers (still) want location-based services
Cellphones to dominate for navigation, study finds
S.E., Nokia set to battle in D-2-C space
#5: WI R E LE S S CR E E P
Infotainment on the move: The future of in-vehicle consumer infotainment
AT&T snags Starbucks Wi-Fi agreement
The mobile enterprise, 2008: ‘all over the map’
#6: FUTU R E TE CH / COMP E T I T I ON
WiMAX opportunity bright, though challenges remain
Verizon Wireless’ LTE decision puts ball in UMB,WiMAX court
FCC begins new round of white-spaces testing
Skype’s rallying cry
Yahoo’s impressive mobile run
A changing tide? Ovi, Android loosen carriers
#7: H EAVY HAN D O F R E G U LAT I ON
CRACK DOWN: Proposed bill would give FTC some mobile authority
Klobuchar:Wireless carriers require federal oversight
State’s role in consumer protection bill pondered
#8: O P E N ACC E S S
Martin to oppose open-access mandates
Open access: Paradigm shift or an open question
House introduces net neutrality bill
#9: CONS UME R AP P L I CAT I ONS
Parsing reality from the hype A bright future for ad-funded mobile entertainment
Garmin punches into cellphone market with iPhone-style navigation gadget
Dish to test satellite-based mobile TV service using 700 MHz spectrum
#10 : D E V I C E FRAGME NTAT I ON/ O S
Analyst’s crystal ball on device trends
Open access: Paradigm shift or an open question
Android floats in space
(pdf in harddrive)
#1: CONS O L I DAT I ON
SP
operator consolidation:
Verizon Wireless picks up Californian carrier
AT&T Mobility nabs 19,000 subscribers through W. Va. carrier buy
By the Numbers: Top Ten U.S.Wireless Service Providers, 2007
Who’s left? T-Mobile buys SunCom in latest rural roll-up
VZW to acquire Alltel
Vnedors
Alcatel-Lucent, NEC partner for LTE
Moto, Nortel deal in the works?
CommScope again goes for Andrew in $2.6B deal
Nokia Siemens Networks readies for take
#2: S P E CTR UM
700 MHz auction
T-Mobile USA, Leap move closer to AWS launches
FCC moves on 2155-2175 MHz spectrum band
FCC details plans for free nationwide wireless broadband ISTOCKPHOTO
#3: B EYOND TH E PHONE
Hardware, and beyond: Nokia and Samsung race to provide Internet services
Nokia moves to realize Internet ambitions
Nokia’s vision based on constant connectivity
#4: E NTE RTA I NME NT
462M to subscribe to mobile TV services by 2012
Consumers (still) want location-based services
Cellphones to dominate for navigation, study finds
S.E., Nokia set to battle in D-2-C space
#5: WI R E LE S S CR E E P
Infotainment on the move: The future of in-vehicle consumer infotainment
AT&T snags Starbucks Wi-Fi agreement
The mobile enterprise, 2008: ‘all over the map’
#6: FUTU R E TE CH / COMP E T I T I ON
WiMAX opportunity bright, though challenges remain
Verizon Wireless’ LTE decision puts ball in UMB,WiMAX court
FCC begins new round of white-spaces testing
Skype’s rallying cry
Yahoo’s impressive mobile run
A changing tide? Ovi, Android loosen carriers
#7: H EAVY HAN D O F R E G U LAT I ON
CRACK DOWN: Proposed bill would give FTC some mobile authority
Klobuchar:Wireless carriers require federal oversight
State’s role in consumer protection bill pondered
#8: O P E N ACC E S S
Martin to oppose open-access mandates
Open access: Paradigm shift or an open question
House introduces net neutrality bill
#9: CONS UME R AP P L I CAT I ONS
Parsing reality from the hype A bright future for ad-funded mobile entertainment
Garmin punches into cellphone market with iPhone-style navigation gadget
Dish to test satellite-based mobile TV service using 700 MHz spectrum
#10 : D E V I C E FRAGME NTAT I ON/ O S
Analyst’s crystal ball on device trends
Open access: Paradigm shift or an open question
Android floats in space
Watchful for Huawei - Network Vendor
Who: Charlie Martin, CTO, Huawei Technologies Inc.
Why: It’s not easy to break into the infrastructure market. But Huawei Technologies Inc. seems to have the financial strength and patience to try to make a go of it in the United States and the rest of the world. To date the company has managed a few contracts with smaller U.S. wireless operators, but the vendor has grown its U.S. workforce from 200 to 500 employees in the past 18 months. Globally, Huawei is No. 4 behind L.M. Ericsson, Nokia Siemens Networks and Alcatel-Lucent. The Chinese-based vendor has already racked up impressive wins with giant European operators Telefonica S.A. and Vodafone Group plc, so a deal with an American tier-one player is not as far-fetched as it once appeared. Already the company has doubled its CDMA marketshare; whether it can continue to become a dominant player remains to be seen, but Huawei certainly has momentum on its side.
Why: It’s not easy to break into the infrastructure market. But Huawei Technologies Inc. seems to have the financial strength and patience to try to make a go of it in the United States and the rest of the world. To date the company has managed a few contracts with smaller U.S. wireless operators, but the vendor has grown its U.S. workforce from 200 to 500 employees in the past 18 months. Globally, Huawei is No. 4 behind L.M. Ericsson, Nokia Siemens Networks and Alcatel-Lucent. The Chinese-based vendor has already racked up impressive wins with giant European operators Telefonica S.A. and Vodafone Group plc, so a deal with an American tier-one player is not as far-fetched as it once appeared. Already the company has doubled its CDMA marketshare; whether it can continue to become a dominant player remains to be seen, but Huawei certainly has momentum on its side.
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Citibank Launches Citi MobileSM Technology
Citigroup Inc. (NYSE: C)
April 02, 2007
Citibank Launches Citi MobileSM Technology, Making Everyday Banking on Your Cell Phone Effortless
New York, NY – A push of a button on your cell phone is all it takes to check your balance, pay bills, transfer funds, find an ATM and more. Today, Citibank, the leader in banking innovation introduces Citi Mobile the first mobile banking application from a major U.S. bank that can be quickly downloaded onto cell phones, making mobile banking for Citibank clients as fast and effortless as banking online.
“Citi Mobile represents the next generation of technology that delivers a new level of service to our clients.” said Charles Prince, Chairman and CEO, Citigroup Inc. “Providing on-the-go banking through mobile phones that comes with all the protection our clients have become accustomed to represents a natural evolution for us.”
Citi Mobile combines the consumer need for convenient, on-the-go banking with advanced mobile technology that is compatible with more than 100 popular mobile devices, across major U.S. wireless carriers.
“Citibank prides itself on being at the forefront of technology and innovation and on providing a superior client experience,” said Maura Markus, President, Citibank North America. “Citi Mobile is an example of our commitment to providing our clients even more choices and convenience for their everyday banking, wherever they may be. For our clients, it’s like having Citibank Online in the palm of their hand.”
Consumers can also rest easy that their personal information is safe. Citi Mobile transactions are secure with 128-bit encryption, the same technology that’s used at Citibank.com. In addition, absolutely no personal information is stored on the phone and if a cell phone is lost or stolen, Citi Mobile can be deactivated instantly. For added security Citi Mobile only permits access to accounts from the phone that is registered with the service, and via a client’s 6-digit access code.
Citi Mobile is scheduled to launch in California this week and by mid year, all Citibank clients will be able to enroll in the service. Later this year, a Spanish language version of Citi Mobile will be released.
At launch, Citi Mobile clients will be able to sign up online and in the near future via Citibank branches and by phone. Once enrolled, one click is all it takes to download Citi Mobile – a small application that takes just a minute or two to install. Once installed, clients simply select the Citi icon on their phone to access their accounts. Through the Citi Mobile interface, clients will have immediate and highly secure access to their everyday banking and can navigate through menus to:
View real-time balances
See account activity
Pay bills
Set up future payments
Transfer money
Find a Financial Center or ATM
Direct connect to customer service representatives
Citi Mobile’s user-friendly interface is designed to run on typical mobile phones as well as on high-end devices such as the Blackberry. Clients will simply use the familiar up/down/left/right arrow keys found on all cell phones to navigate through Citi Mobile’s many features. When new features become available, the Citi Mobile application will be upgraded automatically, with no customer intervention required.
Citi is a long-time innovator in banking technology; pioneering ATMs in the seventies, PC banking in the eighties, and online banking in the nineties. Today, Citi continues to innovate around the globe and recently introduced the world's first biometric payment service for cardholders in Singapore and the first of its kind, biometric ATM for microfinance clients in India. In the U.K., Citi recently purchased Egg Banking, the world’s largest online bank, and launched a Vodafone-branded mobile-based international money transfer service. And in the United States, Citibank is conducting a pilot with MasterCard PayPass to offer clients a contactless payment tag for “tap-and-go” purchases at more than 46,000 U.S. retail outlets.
April 02, 2007
Citibank Launches Citi MobileSM Technology, Making Everyday Banking on Your Cell Phone Effortless
New York, NY – A push of a button on your cell phone is all it takes to check your balance, pay bills, transfer funds, find an ATM and more. Today, Citibank, the leader in banking innovation introduces Citi Mobile the first mobile banking application from a major U.S. bank that can be quickly downloaded onto cell phones, making mobile banking for Citibank clients as fast and effortless as banking online.
“Citi Mobile represents the next generation of technology that delivers a new level of service to our clients.” said Charles Prince, Chairman and CEO, Citigroup Inc. “Providing on-the-go banking through mobile phones that comes with all the protection our clients have become accustomed to represents a natural evolution for us.”
Citi Mobile combines the consumer need for convenient, on-the-go banking with advanced mobile technology that is compatible with more than 100 popular mobile devices, across major U.S. wireless carriers.
“Citibank prides itself on being at the forefront of technology and innovation and on providing a superior client experience,” said Maura Markus, President, Citibank North America. “Citi Mobile is an example of our commitment to providing our clients even more choices and convenience for their everyday banking, wherever they may be. For our clients, it’s like having Citibank Online in the palm of their hand.”
Consumers can also rest easy that their personal information is safe. Citi Mobile transactions are secure with 128-bit encryption, the same technology that’s used at Citibank.com. In addition, absolutely no personal information is stored on the phone and if a cell phone is lost or stolen, Citi Mobile can be deactivated instantly. For added security Citi Mobile only permits access to accounts from the phone that is registered with the service, and via a client’s 6-digit access code.
Citi Mobile is scheduled to launch in California this week and by mid year, all Citibank clients will be able to enroll in the service. Later this year, a Spanish language version of Citi Mobile will be released.
At launch, Citi Mobile clients will be able to sign up online and in the near future via Citibank branches and by phone. Once enrolled, one click is all it takes to download Citi Mobile – a small application that takes just a minute or two to install. Once installed, clients simply select the Citi icon on their phone to access their accounts. Through the Citi Mobile interface, clients will have immediate and highly secure access to their everyday banking and can navigate through menus to:
View real-time balances
See account activity
Pay bills
Set up future payments
Transfer money
Find a Financial Center or ATM
Direct connect to customer service representatives
Citi Mobile’s user-friendly interface is designed to run on typical mobile phones as well as on high-end devices such as the Blackberry. Clients will simply use the familiar up/down/left/right arrow keys found on all cell phones to navigate through Citi Mobile’s many features. When new features become available, the Citi Mobile application will be upgraded automatically, with no customer intervention required.
Citi is a long-time innovator in banking technology; pioneering ATMs in the seventies, PC banking in the eighties, and online banking in the nineties. Today, Citi continues to innovate around the globe and recently introduced the world's first biometric payment service for cardholders in Singapore and the first of its kind, biometric ATM for microfinance clients in India. In the U.K., Citi recently purchased Egg Banking, the world’s largest online bank, and launched a Vodafone-branded mobile-based international money transfer service. And in the United States, Citibank is conducting a pilot with MasterCard PayPass to offer clients a contactless payment tag for “tap-and-go” purchases at more than 46,000 U.S. retail outlets.
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
The Clearwire IPO's Cool Reception Hasn't Swayed Sprint's WiMax Commitment
The Clearwire IPO's Cool Reception Hasn't Swayed Sprint's WiMax Commitment
Sprint Nextel is awarding contracts toward its $3 billion build-out of a WiMax network. By Richard Martin InformationWeek March 17, 2007 12:00 AM (From the March 19, 2007 issue)
Since its founding by wireless pioneer Craig McCaw in October 2003, Clearwire has been a darling of the high-tech investment community, attracting more than $1.1 billion in funding from Intel and Motorola. Since much of the interest in Clearwire is tied to its use of WiMax technology, the cold investor response to its public offering this month raises questions not just about Clearwire's prospects, but about the future of WiMax.
By March 16, Clearwire's share price had sunk to $20.02, almost 20% below its opening IPO price of $25. Clearwire raises concerns with its apparently insatiable need for cash and its long-term business prospects. The company has around 206,000 subscribers in about 375 cities and towns for the fixed version of WiMax, which competes with cable and DSL, and it plans to build a nationwide broadband network based on the 802.16e IEEE standard, known as mobile WiMax, as equipment becomes available. A Clearwire spokeswoman declined to comment for this story.
With the potential to offer broadband connections over long distances using licensed spectrum, WiMax has generated much hype. But it's competing with third-generation cellular networks and other technologies that also could blanket regions with wireless connectivity. WiMax also has some limitations, including the lack of consistent spectrum across national borders.
"What is WiMax really going to do that these other broadband mobile technologies in evolution won't be able to do?" asks Jane Zweig, head of the Shosteck Group, a telecom consulting firm. "The cable companies, the telcos, everybody is or will be offering the same type of service. The networks have to be ubiquitous, there have to be devices that run over them, ... you have to have interoperability with other mobile networks. There are just lots of questions about WiMax."
Besides Clearwire, no company is betting more heavily on WiMax than Sprint Nextel, which plans to spend $3 billion on a nationwide WiMax network. Dogged by slowing subscriber growth for its cellular voice service, Sprint essentially staked the company's future on WiMax. "We're more enthused today about the market opportunity than we ever have been," asserts Don Stroberg, VP for global broadband strategy at Sprint Nextel.
Indeed, Sprint, as the No. 3 U.S. wireless carrier, enjoys many advantages a startup lacks: an existing customer base of about 53 million at the end of 2006, established relationships with device makers, an installed base of cell towers, and cash flow from its cellular business. What's more, Sprint has lined up major vendors (including Clearwire backers Intel and Motorola) to create the semiconductors, devices, and other infrastructure needed for people to use its network, laying off some of the risk of building a network on new technology.
Working with that ecosystem of partners will let Sprint revamp its business model, Stroberg says. "It comes down to our ability to offer WiMax with the support of Intel and Motorola and Nokia, and go after that embedded-device market that goes way beyond ordinary mobile phones," he says. "That means our customer-acquisition cost could be cut to a fraction of what it is today." That could let Sprint offer more flexible types of service than the typical cellular two-year contract with a "walled-garden" model that keeps users from surfing the wider Web.
Sprint last week said it awarded Nokia a network equipment contract to roll out WiMax services in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, and San Antonio by the first half of 2008. Sprint's Chicago network is being built by Motorola and the Baltimore-Washington, D.C., market by Samsung, both slated for initial service late this year.
Wall Street seems, so far, to have more faith in Sprint's WiMax ambitions than Clearwire's: After a steep decline in 2006 as the company lost ground to Cingular (now AT&T) and Verizon, Sprint shares have increased 12% since mid-January.
Sprint Nextel is awarding contracts toward its $3 billion build-out of a WiMax network. By Richard Martin InformationWeek March 17, 2007 12:00 AM (From the March 19, 2007 issue)
Since its founding by wireless pioneer Craig McCaw in October 2003, Clearwire has been a darling of the high-tech investment community, attracting more than $1.1 billion in funding from Intel and Motorola. Since much of the interest in Clearwire is tied to its use of WiMax technology, the cold investor response to its public offering this month raises questions not just about Clearwire's prospects, but about the future of WiMax.
By March 16, Clearwire's share price had sunk to $20.02, almost 20% below its opening IPO price of $25. Clearwire raises concerns with its apparently insatiable need for cash and its long-term business prospects. The company has around 206,000 subscribers in about 375 cities and towns for the fixed version of WiMax, which competes with cable and DSL, and it plans to build a nationwide broadband network based on the 802.16e IEEE standard, known as mobile WiMax, as equipment becomes available. A Clearwire spokeswoman declined to comment for this story.
With the potential to offer broadband connections over long distances using licensed spectrum, WiMax has generated much hype. But it's competing with third-generation cellular networks and other technologies that also could blanket regions with wireless connectivity. WiMax also has some limitations, including the lack of consistent spectrum across national borders.
"What is WiMax really going to do that these other broadband mobile technologies in evolution won't be able to do?" asks Jane Zweig, head of the Shosteck Group, a telecom consulting firm. "The cable companies, the telcos, everybody is or will be offering the same type of service. The networks have to be ubiquitous, there have to be devices that run over them, ... you have to have interoperability with other mobile networks. There are just lots of questions about WiMax."
Besides Clearwire, no company is betting more heavily on WiMax than Sprint Nextel, which plans to spend $3 billion on a nationwide WiMax network. Dogged by slowing subscriber growth for its cellular voice service, Sprint essentially staked the company's future on WiMax. "We're more enthused today about the market opportunity than we ever have been," asserts Don Stroberg, VP for global broadband strategy at Sprint Nextel.
Indeed, Sprint, as the No. 3 U.S. wireless carrier, enjoys many advantages a startup lacks: an existing customer base of about 53 million at the end of 2006, established relationships with device makers, an installed base of cell towers, and cash flow from its cellular business. What's more, Sprint has lined up major vendors (including Clearwire backers Intel and Motorola) to create the semiconductors, devices, and other infrastructure needed for people to use its network, laying off some of the risk of building a network on new technology.
Working with that ecosystem of partners will let Sprint revamp its business model, Stroberg says. "It comes down to our ability to offer WiMax with the support of Intel and Motorola and Nokia, and go after that embedded-device market that goes way beyond ordinary mobile phones," he says. "That means our customer-acquisition cost could be cut to a fraction of what it is today." That could let Sprint offer more flexible types of service than the typical cellular two-year contract with a "walled-garden" model that keeps users from surfing the wider Web.
Sprint last week said it awarded Nokia a network equipment contract to roll out WiMax services in Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth, and San Antonio by the first half of 2008. Sprint's Chicago network is being built by Motorola and the Baltimore-Washington, D.C., market by Samsung, both slated for initial service late this year.
Wall Street seems, so far, to have more faith in Sprint's WiMax ambitions than Clearwire's: After a steep decline in 2006 as the company lost ground to Cingular (now AT&T) and Verizon, Sprint shares have increased 12% since mid-January.
Sprint unveils WiMax plans
Story last modified Tue Mar 27 07:08:50 PDT 2007
ORLANDO, Fla.--Sprint Nextel is pushing forward with its plan to build a high-speed mobile WiMax network with the announcement of new device vendors, as well as additional markets where the network will be deployed.
Sprint, which is the third-largest mobile operator in the U.S., said in August that it would spend $3 billion in the next two years to build a network using the IP-based wireless technology known as WiMax. The company expects to build a network that can reach 100 million people by the end of 2008. Sprint is using its existing 2.5GHz spectrum, half of which it acquired from its merger with Nextel, to deliver the new service.
On the eve of the CTIA Wireless trade show, which begins here on Tuesday, Sprint said it had chosen Samsung to develop PC cards for its WiMax network. The cards will come in two different configurations. One will offer WiMax-only connectivity, while the other version will offer WiMax connectivity as well as access to Sprint's third-generation EV-DO network. Sprint also selected ZTE to supply WiMax devices based on the IEEE's 802.16e standard, including PC cards and modem solutions. Zyxel Communications of Anaheim, Calif., will also supply modem products.
To accelerate the pace of WiMax-embedded device development and have a wide variety of WiMax-enabled access devices available for customers, Sprint announced a new WiMax Device and Chipset Ecosystem program that will facilitate the dialog between chipset and device makers. It is designed to guide manufacturers on required specifications, features, functionality and product design.
Sprint also announced several new cities that will be part of the WiMax network when it launches in 2008, and listed which of its infrastructure partners would be developing which markets. Motorola will be developing Chicago, Detroit, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Minneapolis and Grand Rapids, Mich. Samsung will develop Baltimore, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., and Providence, R.I. And Nokia will develop Austin, Dallas/Fort Worth metro area, Denver, Salt Lake City, San Antonio, Seattle and Portland, Ore.
Sprint had previously announced that Chicago and the Baltimore/Washington, D.C., metro area would be the first two markets to get the service, by the end of 2007. And Nokia had also named four markets, in Texas, for deployment in early 2008: Austin, Dallas, Fort Worth and San Antonio.
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