TelecomWeb News Digest articles from October 2005

TelecomWeb News Digest archives from October 2005

U.K. Cablecos Combine In $6B Deal.
October 3, 2005... In a move that has been mooted for years, the U.K.'s only two cable TV operators, NTL and Telewest, are merging to create a triple-play giant with more than five million residential customers. The deal - one of the most significant ever done...

Verizon Rushes To Get Texas IPTV Franchise.
October 3, 2005... Verizon, wasting little time after the new Texas law allowing statewide video franchises was signed, has asked the Texas Public Utility Commission for a franchise that will initially let it deliver IPTV to the 21 communities in the...

Agile Optical Powerhouse Born.
October 3, 2005... Two young up-and-coming agile optical networking startups, Meriton Networks and Mahi Networks, have decided to merge - technically the deal's being structured as Meriton buying Mahi - hoping to create a company with a more complete product...

Ohio Advocate Eyeballs Verizon-MCI Merger.
October 3, 2005... Fewer than three weeks after filing an opposition statement that seeks conditions on the proposed $16 billion SBC Communications/AT&T merger, Ohio's consumer advocate has taken a similar position on the proposed $8.5 billion Verizon...

SBC Snags Multiple Network Contracts.
October 3, 2005... SBC Communications has landed a series of network-services contracts calling for metro and wide-area communications services as well as IP telephony. The San Antonio, Texas-based carrier says deals with out-of-state customers TRW Automotive...

BellSouth Offers Storage Freebie.
October 3, 2005... BellSouth today increased e-mail storage capacity to 250 MB at no additional cost for select small business and consumer broadband customers, reflecting a 10-fold increase in capacity for each account. Beginning this month, residential...

Qwest Hunts $40B GSA Network Contracts.
October 4, 2005... Qwest Communications International today disclosed it has assembled a team to bid on upcoming General Services Administration network systems and services contracts that could be worth about $40 billion in total. The Denver- based carrier,...

MCI Pays Up In 16 States.
October 4, 2005... Despite its refusal to admit any wrongdoing, MCI will be paying $331 million to 16 states, including Florida and the District of Columbia, to settle accusations that it engaged in accounting fraud. The two settlements dealt with MCI-WorldCom...

Crown Castle Ponders Australian Unit's Future.
October 4, 2005... Crown Castle International, a major supplier of wireless and microwave radio towers and equipment as well as being a system operator, has begun evaluating "strategic alternatives" for its investment in Crown Castle Australia (CC Australia),...

House Eyes FCC E-Rate Program In Gulf Coast.
October 4, 2005... The U.S. House of Representatives is planning another communications- related public hearing in the wake of hurricane damage in Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas. This time, legislators will examine the Federal Communications...

Munis Choose Different Methods For City-Wide Wireless.
October 4, 2005... It looks like the rush is on coast to coast when it comes to cities wanting to provide their inhabitants with wireless services outside of their homes. Philadelphia has made the decision to go with broadband provider EarthLink for its...

Entone Wins PCCW IPTV Deal.
October 4, 2005... Entone Technologies won a contract with one of the world leaders in IPTV services: PCCW in Hong Kong. Entone will help support the telco's deployment of on-demand services to its subscribers. PCCW has blazed a trail with television...

Covad Buys NextWeb WISP For $24.7M.
October 5, 2005... Covad Communications today signed an agreement to acquire NextWeb Inc., a Fremont, Calif.-based fixed-wireless Internet service provider (WISP), in a proposed cash-and-stock transaction valued at approximately $24.7 million. Covad says...

Avaya Lands VoIP Call Center, Network Contracts.
October 5, 2005... Customer premises equipment supplier Avaya landed voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP) contracts with Allstate Insurance and ABN AMRO for North American call-center systems and global networking systems, respectively. Avaya says the Allstate...

Using Satellites To Collect Tolls, Ease Squall.
October 5, 2005... One of the major causes of congestion on roadways can be attributed to cars stopping to pay tolls. While such services as EZPass in the United States (which uses RFID technology) helps to ease congestion by requiring motorists only to slow...

Telia Secures Muni Broadband Deals.
October 5, 2005... TeliaSonera Sweden has lengthened the reach for its high-speed broadband offerings in Sweden. The telco is planning to sell broadband services through two municipal core networks in Eskilstuna and Pitea. Households and companies in these...

Survey Sez: Wireless Industry Set For More Churn.
October 5, 2005... As wireless penetration among new users begins to slow and the competition to keep existing customers continues to accelerate, the likelihood of switching providers among those most dissatisfied with their recent retail purchasing experience...

Company To Watch: Tiger Telematics.
October 5, 2005... Tiger Telematics Inc., a designer, developer and marketer of GPS-enabled telematics equipment and the Gizmondo gaming device, is looking to move from over-the-counter trading to the Nasdaq. It recently filed Form 10Ks with the U.S....

FCC Seeks New USF Admin Board.
October 6, 2005... The Federal Communications Commission's Wireline Competition Bureau is seeking a few good nominations by Oct. 28 for members of the board of directors at the Universal Service Administrative Company (USAC), the embattled, independent...

As Rural Groups Form New USF-Protection Coalition.
October 6, 2005... Four rural-telephone lobbying organizations today disclosed the formation of what they characterize as a consumer-oriented coalition aimed at keeping Universal Service Fund (USF) programs at full strength to subsidize telecom services in...

Telstra Broadband Subs Top A Million.
October 6, 2005... Australian telco Telstra, reaching a major broadband milestone, has broken through the one-million-subscriber barrier in broadband connections for its BigPond service. The carrier says broadband in Australia continues to grow at a phenomenal...

U.S. FTTx Cities Top 650.
October 6, 2005... Fiber all the way to the home (FTTH) in the United States now is available in 652 communities scattered across 46 states, according to a new study done by industry researcher Michael Render. That total compares with only 217 listed in a...

Global Crossing, GlobeTel Sign Regional VoIP Deal.
October 6, 2005... International carriers Global Crossing and GlobeTel Communications today disclosed an agreement to offer Internet service providers (ISPs) and other third-party carriers customizable voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) solutions for end-user...

CTIA Wrap: What Really Mattered In San Francisco.
October 6, 2005... In a compact, more user-friendly version of the big spring meeting of the wireless tribes, last week's CTIA-sponsored IT Wireless IT & Entertainment 2005 Show had few blockbuster announcements. Okay, so Qualcomm's MediaFLO is coming (no,...

Verizon/MCI Merger Two Steps Closer.
October 7, 2005... In a double slam dunk, the European Commission and MCI shareholders gave the nod to the pending $8.5 billion Verizon/MCI merger. Next stop: the Federal Communications Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice. The shareholders...

Japan Awaits TD-CDMA Broadband Launch.
October 7, 2005... Japan's first wireless broadband service using UMTS TD-CDMA technology is set for commercial launch as soon as this month, pending only final approval of frequency allocations by Japanese regulators, following a $7.69 million stock placement...

Senate Readies 2009 DTV Transition Bills.
October 7, 2005... The Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee reportedly is preparing to unveil legislation that will include the start of digital television (DTV) broadcasting by Jan. 1, 2009 - consistent with a draft bill that surfaced earlier...

Eagle Broadband Cries Foul.
October 7, 2005... Eagle Broadband, angered by what it claims is a "deliberate misinformation campaign" on investor chat boards designed to drive down its share price, has filed suit in the Superior Court of California against 25 "John Doe" defendants - whom it...

Study: Vendors Face Shift In Mid-Market IPT Buying Pattern.
October 7, 2005... A new primary research study from TelecomWeb news break's sister company InfoTech shows a recent shift in those making purchasing decisions for IP telephony (IPT) among businesses in the mid-market may have a significant effect on which...

Vodafone Plays Games With EA.
October 7, 2005... Vodafone has inked a deal with leading gaming software supplier Electronic Arts (EA) to bring some of EA's game franchises to Vodafone Live! wireless customers throughout the carrier's massive service area. Financial terms of the deal were not...

Earthquake Response: Satellite Broadband Rushed To Pakistan.
October 10, 2005... Barely 48 hours after the devastating magnitude-7.6 earthquake in Pakistan, the first mobile satellite broadband terminals reportedly already are in the process of being installed in the stricken region. The nearly instantaneous response is...

China Netcom's Olympic Undersea Effort.
October 10, 2005... China Network Communications Group Corp (China Netcom) reportedly has begun work on a 350-kilometer undersea fiber cable landing in Qingdao in eastern Shandong province in order to boost the country's international traffic capacity in time...

Level 3, Cogent Air Internet Peering Cut-Off Flap.
October 10, 2005... Level 3 Communications and Cogent Communications Group are getting into a big flap over Level 3's discontinuance of its Internet interconnection peering relationship with Cogent, a Washington, D.C., Tier 1 service provider. Broomfield,...

Global Crossing Readies IPv6 Network Deployment.
October 10, 2005... Global Crossing today disclosed deploying the standardized Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) protocol for improved addressing, routing and security capabilities on a native basis across its global IP network infrastructure. The Florham...

CWA Workers Strike Sprint In Four States.
October 10, 2005... Citing company demands for massive contract concessions, nearly a thousand Sprint Corp. workers represented by the Communications Workers of America took to their signs at midnight last night in some Florida, Tennessee, North Carolina and...

Denmark Targeted For 3G Launch.
October 10, 2005... TDC Mobile is stepping up its plans to offer advanced mobile services to users in Denmark. Earlier today, the carrier selected Nokia to supply a WCDMA 3G radio access network, representing Nokia's first such deal in that country. Nokia...

Live From Orlando: UNE-P Panic Disappears.
October 11, 2005... Back in February, at the last meeting of CompTel/Ascent and just before the end of mandated UNE-P (Unbundled Network Elements - Platform), there was panic in the trade-show aisles and mass confusion about what many competitive carriers would...

Hutchison 3G Use Spikes.
October 11, 2005... Hutchison Whampoa is reporting a significant wireless-industry milestone in its Asian and European markets: breaking through the 10-million barrier for 3G customers after only 18 months of operation and full handset availability. The...

European Enterprises Still Fear Wireless E-Mail.
October 11, 2005... European enterprises, like their American brethren, are going mobile, boosting sales in the European wireless enterprise applications market for wireless sales force automation, field service management and field force automation that...

MCI, FiberNet Compete For Tech-Support Deals.
October 11, 2005... In separate developments today, both MCI and FiberNet Telecom Group disclosed plans to launch additional operating activities aimed at providing professional-level technology support, consulting and related network services to business...

Lucent Lands TeliaSonera IPv6 Migration Deal.
October 11, 2005... Lucent Technologies was selected by pan-European service provider TeliaSonera to help prepare and manage the carrier's Internet Protocol (IP) network for a large-scale migration to next-generation IP version 6 (IPv6) standards in the 2006...

Nokia Touts GSM Potential At 450 MHz.
October 11, 2005... International supplier Nokia is preparing to support GSM technology for wireless handsets operating in the 450 MHz band, which it views as a viable solution for those living in areas with a low teledensity but that has high- growth potential....

Ethernet Carrier Certification Program Launched.
October 12, 2005... The Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF) today unveiled a new program under which it will certify Ethernet providers as meeting the standards for its "Carrier Ethernet" program. The provider certification follows the MEF's launch of certification...

FCC Opens Can Of Wireless Worms.
October 12, 2005... Mobile industry troubles and challenges in meeting year-end 2005 deadline quotas on enhanced 911 capabilities for wireless handsets and services have prompted the Federal Communications Commission to open up a public comment proceeding that...

Linksys, Skype Launch IP Phone Combo.
October 12, 2005... Cisco Systems subsidiary Linksys and Skype Technologies are linking to market and sell cordless telephones that interface with personal computers and are compatible with Skype's Internet Protocol (IP) telephony offerings. The Internet...

Sonus Partners With Israeli VAR.
October 12, 2005... Internet Protocol infrastructure vendor Sonus Networks plans to expand its presence in Israel via a new partnership agreement with TNN Networks, a large communications systems integrator and value-added reseller (VAR) in that country....

One Million Swedes Use Mobile Data.
October 12, 2005... Mobile data usage is soaring in Sweden, according to TeliaSonera. During the past year, usage of mobile data services has increased more than 300 percent among Telia's subscribers, figured on the basis of GPRS data traffic measurements. ...

ITV Next To Go Mobile.
October 12, 2005... U.K. broadcaster ITV soon will launch the first phase of mobile interactive services in that country. Subscribers will be able to get highlights or made-for-mobile footage from such strong ITV shows such as "Coronation Street," "I'm A...

Here We Go Again: Qwest Presses Anti-Merger Case.
October 13, 2005... Lobbying officers at Qwest Communications International continue to express their company's concerns regarding the proposed $16 billion SBC Communications/AT&T and $8.5 billion Verizon Communications /MCI transactions, although it is unclear...

Mobility, Differentiation Will Drive WLAN Spending.
October 13, 2005... According to a new report from research house IDC, the next five years bode well for wireless LAN providers who sell to U.S. enterprises. Spending on wireless LAN equipment within each industry is expected to more than double by 2009,...

Unwired Campus Survey Reveals Some Surprises.
October 13, 2005... Who would have thought 10 years ago that wireless connectivity would be part and parcel of a high-school senior's decision regarding which college to attend? According to this year's survey by chip-make Intel and the Center for Digital...

Hot China Market Attracts More Attention.
October 13, 2005... China's telecom business continues to boom as AT&T, Lucent Technologies and Nokia all disclosed business-transaction breakthroughs in Asia's fastest- growing national economy. AT&T said it won a contract to provide an Internet Protocol...

More For You CrackBerry Addicts.
October 13, 2005... As if it wasn't enough fun to give those thumbs an hour-after-hour workout, Nokia added three new models to its portfolio of business-optimized devices that support corporate mobile email solutions like BlackBerry Connect, GoodLink from Good...

MSF Sets Calendar For Interop Tests.(Calendar)
October 13, 2005... Earlier today, the technical specification and standards-promoting MultiService Forum (MSF) organization said the industry is preparing a year ahead of time for tests and demonstrations on global interoperability of its so- called MSF R2+...

ARRL To FCC: Shut Down BPL System.
October 14, 2005... In support of amateur radio operator complaints of interference, the American Radio Relay League (ARRL) is asking the Federal Communications Commission to shut down the two-year-old broadband over power line (BPL) system in Washington, D.C.,...

Congress To Feel More VoIP 911 and DTV Pressure.
October 14, 2005... The U.S. Congress will be seeing more letter-writing campaign pressure from lobby and industry groups to ensure that emergency call-handling capabilities are offered by voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP) service providers and that the...

BT Stumbles Toward 8 Mb/s.
October 14, 2005... BT, which now offers broadband at a top speed of only 2 Mb/s, has disclosed details of a wider test of its planned nationwide 8 Mb/s ADSL offering and set a spring 2006 launch date for the commercial launch of 8 Mb/s service nationwide. The...

eBay Closes On Skype.
October 14, 2005... eBay said this morning that it has signed the final closing papers in its controversial acquisition of VoIP house Skype, finishing up the deal barely a month after it was announced. With the cost in part based on eBay share prices as well as...

PanAmSat Launches Dual-Load Galaxy 15.
October 14, 2005... PanAmSat yesterday launched its new Galaxy 15 satellite which carries dual C-band and L-band transponders aimed at handling high-definition television and video distribution traffic for cable programmers as well as addressing new government...

Rogers Launches 3G Trials, Promises Quadruple Play.
October 14, 2005... Canadian carrier Rogers Communications is going to launch a trial of 3G/HSDPA, with plans for commercial deployment next year. Rogers, which is expected to have about 650,000 wireless subscribers by the end of this year, said that it has...

Nortel Names Yet Another President/CEO.
October 17, 2005... Nortel Networks Corporation's board of directors today appointed former Motorola executive Mike S. Zafirovski as it latest president and CEO, succeeding Bill Owens. He walks through what's become a revolving door on Nov. 15 - becoming the...

Rumor Du Jour: BSkyB May Bid For Easynet.
October 17, 2005... Reports out of the U.K. over the weekend suggest satellite TV provider BSkyB is bidding to take over broadband wholesale provider Easynet in a deal that's speculated to be worth between $250 million and $300 million. Neither company has...

Global Crossing, China's CPCNet Connect.
October 17, 2005... International carrier Global Crossing and China's CPCNet Hong Kong Limited, a CITIC Pacific subsidiary, today disclosed reaching a network interconnection agreement that gives the U.S. service provider access to 12 cities in the People's...

Global Survey Underscores IP Convergence Trend.
October 17, 2005... AT&T's survey of 236 global executives on IP networks and convergence indicates that almost 25 percent of companies already have such networks deployed throughout all or most of the organization and 60 percent expecting to reach that level...

FCC Orders $211M USF Hurricane Initiative.
October 17, 2005... The Federal Communications Commission late Friday issued its formal order to implement a $211 million emergency-services plan for supporting the Universal Service Fund (USF) program under adverse circumstances in areas affected by Hurricane...

M:Metrics Raises Funds For Expansion, New Services.
October 17, 2005... M:Metrics, which tracks and analyzes the consumption of mobile content and applications, raised $7 million during Series B financing round led by Prism Venture Partners. The money has been earmarked for international expansion and new...

Senate Set For DTV, VoIP E911 Markups.
October 18, 2005... This Thursday (Oct. 20), the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee will mark up a draft bill on digital television (DTV) transition and related analog spectrum reallocations as well as proposed legislation introduced earlier...

Cable Industry: Telcos Apparently Got What They Paid For.
October 18, 2005... We've never been sure about exactly which "consumers" many consumers' groups purport to represent, but TelecomWeb news digest's sister publication CableFAX has given us a clearer view of just who Consumers for Cable Choice...

FCC Wants Opinions On 'Broadband Era' Regs.
October 18, 2005... The Federal Communications Commission formally opened up for public comment a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) on non-economic industry factors and consumer-protection measures the agency could consider to prepare for what it calls the...

SBC Picks Lucent For IP Multimedia Deal.
October 18, 2005... SBC Communications tapped Lucent Technologies to supply Internet Protocol (IP)-based platforms that help telcos integrate wireline and wireless voice, high-speed Internet access and video offerings. In a contract of undisclosed value, the...

Growing Pains Continue At IPCC.
October 18, 2005... More than 18 months after the International Packet Communications Consortium (IPCC) "re-invented" itself, changing its name from the International Softswitch Consortium and setting itself a new mission of helping the emerging VoIP industry...

House Wants To Strip E-Rate 'Gold-Plating'.
October 18, 2005... Following a yearlong investigation, the House Energy and Commerce Committee's Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee today approved a bipartisan staff report detailing the E-rate program's waste, fraud and abuse. The report also identifies...

Survey: Communications Industry Litigates Less.
October 19, 2005... According to a recent survey of corporate counsel, the average U.S. telecommunications or technology company currently faces 42 lawsuits, and nearly a third of them spend more than 2 percent of their gross revenue on legal expenses. ...

Satellite Providers Beef Up Broadband Portfolios.
October 19, 2005... Satellite operators are embracing broadband services and are ramping up service contracts on land and sea, for business and for pleasure. For example, Caprock Communications just inked a strategic alliance with Seattle-based Seamobile...

Telcos Scale Back TV Aspirations.
October 19, 2005... Earlier this year, ABI Research took a look at the nascent global market for "telco TV", and the equipment needed to support advanced video delivery services. At that time, carriers were planning rapid project deployments, and subscriber...

New Cisco India Plans Start With $1.1B Kitty.
October 19, 2005... Cisco Systems today said it will invest about $1.1 billion during the next three years on business activities in India. The manufacturer also reached an agreement with the national government on several communications and information...

Verizon Wireless Asks For More E911 Time.
October 19, 2005... Add Verizon Wireless to the list of carriers asking the Federal Communications Commission for an extended deadline regarding the agency's mandate that 95 percent of subscribers have access to automatic location-based enhanced 911...

Former Senator Joins IDT Board.
October 19, 2005... Former U.S. senator Thomas Slade Gorton (R-Wash.) is the latest politico to be asked to serve on the board of directors of domestic/international carrier IDT Corporation. Gorton, who recently was a member of The National Commission on...

Motorola Tries To Handcuff Its Ex-President.
October 20, 2005... Motorola has gone to court to block Nortel's plan to hire its former President and COO Mike S. Zafirovski as the newest Nortel president and CEO, charging that if Zafirovski goes to work for Nortel, it will inevitably result in the use or...

Muni Network Battles Engulf Iowa.
October 20, 2005... Voters in 31 Iowa cities next month will decide on ballot proposals that would permit local governments to provide broadband Internet access services, including measures that specifically authorize the creation of municipal communications...

Troubled Mitec Cleans Its Executive House.
October 20, 2005... Canadian telecom and satellite component house Mitec Telecom, running deep in the red, shook up its top executive staff this morning, just hours before the company's annual meeting and fewer than 48 hours after disclosing it had hired...

Lucent's 3G Beachhead On Isle of Man.
October 20, 2005... On Nov. 1, mobile operator 02 and its Manx Telecom subsidiary will deploy a Lucent Technologies-supplied 3G/UMTS-based high speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) network service on the Isle of Man, marking one of the first such commercial...

France Telecom Completes Orange Slovakia Buyout.
October 20, 2005... France Telecom (FT) boosted its position in Eastern Europe with the announcement that it's spending $628 million to buy out the minority shareholders in Orange Slovakia, reportedly the leading mobile operator in the country. The agreement...

Canada Adopts VoIP E911 Alert Strictures.
October 20, 2005... Mirroring the efforts of the Federal Communications Commission stateside on the same issue, the Canadian Radio-Television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) issued a decision earlier today that requires all voice over Internet protocol...