AT&T has said it plans to acquire T-Mobile in a deal worth $39 billion. While AT&T has the experience and lobbying muscle to push a deal of this magnitude forward at the FCC and the Department of Justice, here’s how to make your individual voice heard. Read more »
AT&T said it will buy T-Mobile USA from Deutsche Telekom AG, in deal valued at $39 billion. The deal points to the game of spectrum accumulation as operators prepare for the demand for mobile data and also will place Sprint between a rock and hard place. Read more »
AT&T is tired of giving customers who are sharing their smartphones’ data plans via unauthorized tethering a free ride. The company is sending out notifications to users who are tethering their devices without the requisite plan, letting them that the free ride is over. Read more »
AT&T is now offering a free 30-day trial of its 3G iPad data service. The offer is being circulated via email according to TUAW, and allows you to sign up for a free month of service with no additional commitment required. Read more »
The world the added 196 million mobile subscribers during the fourth quarter of last year, a record amount. The growth is positive for operators, but they are already looking ahead to ensure that when everyone has a cell phone their sales keep trending up. Read more »
As the number of mobile broadband users rises, T-Mobile is again adjusting its data plans. A new 10 GB plan is joining the 5 GB and 200 MB offerings. All plans include unlimited hotspot access and an automatic 20 percent discount for voice customers. Read more »
Mobile operators are looking for dollars from the content producers. This time, it appears they want over-the-top providers to help fund the cost of building out their networks. But are Wi-Fi offload, congestion pricing and high-margin, machine-to-machine services enough to maintain healthy margins? Read more »
Can Wi-Fi draw potential shoppers into a traditional retail store? According to a survey of 1,088 consumers, yes it can: 80.5 percent say they prefer a store with Wi-Fi. That allows them to research products reviews without having to worry about mobile broadband data caps. Read more »
A review of 78,633 cellular accounts has one analytics firm suggesting the U.S. doesn’t need “bill shock” legislation as 99.5 percent of consumers aren’t impacted. The math is correct, but misses the point that bill shocks happen after the fact: proactive notifications are a good thing. Read more »
Finding a Wi-Fi hot spot may soon be as seamless as finding cellular coverage if carriers get together and agree to allow one another’s customers to roam onto their Wi-Fi networks. A Cisco executive says Wi-Fi roaming is needed and carriers are open to the idea. Read more »
The fears that video will crush cell phone networks as people casually scan YouTube clips on the street or stream Netflix movies from their iPads is forcing mobile operators, entertainment companies and electronics companies to rethink their networks, but perhaps intelligent caching could help. Read more »
Hot on the heels of Verizon talking about tiered data plans for the iPhone as well as new plans for its LTE roll out, AT&T is signaling more of its thoughts on pricing plan changes. AT&T also announced a new pricing plan for tablets today. Read more »
Macheen, a company trying to provide retailers and device makers with mobile broadband service, launched today and could possibly fill a much-needed niche as more and more people buy connected devices but don’t want to sign up for more data plans. Read more »
AT&T has produced a coverage map indicating where it has 4G service, with cities such as Dallas, San Francisco and Boston showing faster wireless. But while the map is a step forward for transparency, it has the potential to mislead users about 4G down the road. Read more »
Verizon iPhone users enjoy an unlimited $30 data plan today, but the carrier says these iPhone plans will change to a tiered model this summer. Smaller, cheaper plans could attract more customers to the carrier, but consumers won’t want to give up their current unlimited plans. Read more »
The tablet revolution is upon us with 180 million such devices expected to be sold by 2014. But many of the newer tablets are launching in a costly 3G version. Chime in on our poll as we see if Wi-Fi tablets are good enough for most. Read more »
Connected devices were the top source of revenue growth for mobile operators last year, but without new pricing plans, that growth could stall, according to data released today by Chetan Sharma. And so far AT&T is on a tear when it comes to M2M growth. Read more »
Sure, consumers don’t care what constitutes real 4G, but for those diehards who believe real 4G has to deliver 1 Gbps down and 100 Mbps while mobile then rejoice, because the standard for LTE-Advanced could soon be set and be network-ready by the end of 2013. Read more »
Underlying the entire mobile ecosystem are semiconductor firms that supply the radios and brains inside the handset and those that make the chips to power the network. From their product launches this week, it’s clear to see where the mobile world is heading. Read more »
Wireless Intelligence took a look at how competition has fared among the wireless industry worldwide and found that markets with a large number of mobile operators saw price declines commensurate with markets that had a more concentrated number of wireless carriers. Read more »
In a crowded market for speech recognition, Vlingo will focus on becoming a personal assistant, signaling an evolution from voice as a user interface and a means to avoid cramped keyboards, to voice as a natural means of getting a computer to do what you want. Read more »
Next week, the mobile-obsessed hordes will descend on Barcelona for the hottest tech show on Earth: the Mobile World Congress. For those who are staying behind and are worried about being overwhelmed, here are the five themes worth paying attention to during the show. Read more »
Apple’s plans for a universal SIM card and allowing consumers to pay for mobile access from multiple carriers via iTunes would turn Apple into a mobile virtual network operator and puts Apple, not the carrier, in control of the customer. It changes everything. Here’s how. Read more »
President Barack Obama Thursday unveiled his plan to provide 98 percent of Americans 4G wireless coverage. The plan is a mix of programs costing $18.2 billion, but the president believes a new spectrum auction will cover the costs and even help reduce the deficit. Read more »
LTE-Advanced, which would actually be an acceptable 4G wireless standard under the original definition of 4G, has gigabit wireless speeds and even more. I’ll detail the 10 things you need to know about the next gen wireless standard that will follow LTE in a few years. Read more »
When Verizon announced Apple’s iPhone, the operator appeared confident that its data network was robust enough to handle the anticipated increase in network traffic. Here’s how: data optimization and bandwidth throttling after 5 GB of use, which can slow data speeds down for nearly two months. Read more »
Alcatel-Lucent this morning announced fiber technology to deliver 10 Gigabits per second, but this won’t be used for residential connections anytime soon. This is for beefing up the back end of mobile broadband networks, especially as operators add components such as picocells in congested areas. Read more »
With a complete shut-down of Internet access in Egypt, the next drastic step would be the closure of voice communication networks. But researchers in Australia have demonstrated the use of mesh networks on smartphones, which enable voice calls in areas without a working cellular infrastructure. Read more »
Ericsson said it has achieved downlink speeds of 168 Mbps on HSPA wireless networks using technology that would require operators to have more spectrum and some slightly tweaked consumer devices. Is HSPA set to become to wireless networks what copper is to wired ones? Read more »
Verizon added 872,000 wireless contract customers, and 75 percent bought smartphones and the lucrative plans they use. Data ARPU is up nearly 20 percent, and only one-quarter of Verizon customers have smartphones. That fact, combined with a fast 4G network is priming the pump for Verizon. Read more »
Carriers in several countries are providing the data used by new Facebook app for feature phones for free, while Microsoft today is investigating a third-party app for rogue downloads. Together, these stories about different apps on different platforms expose the love-hate relationship carriers have with applications. Read more »
With more chips, our cars are getting smarter. That paves the road for more mobile apps that work between a phone and a vehicle: 129 million will use such apps by 2016, up from the 3.2 million consumers this year. What will the apps look like? Read more »
As mobile broadband subscribers are about to surpass those on wires, you’d think that sales revenue for Novatel Wireless’s MiFi would be up. But it’s not and it’s about to face challenges from an increasing number of smartphones that will double as personal mobile broadband hotspots. Read more »
Only six months after introducing a $40 unlimited prepaid 3G data plan, Virgin Mobile is adding a 5 GB soft-cap of data each billing period. Users that reach the limit will see their bandwidth slowed until the next month of service begins. Read more »
Globally, mobile broadband subscriptions are set to double in 2011, up to 1 billion from 500 million last year. This growth rate is increasing and it corresponds very highly to another growth rate: that of smartphone sales, which recently jumped 93 percent per year. Read more »
T-Mobile started slow with mobile broadband but is chugging down the tracks: today the carrier detailed plans to double HSPA+ speeds to 42 Mbps in 2011 as it races against the growing demand for data. A live speed test at CES today impressed at 28 Mbps. Read more »
Japan joins the LTE party courtesy of NTT DoCoMo, who just launched a fast 4G network in major urban areas of the country. The carrier says outdoor downloads are up to 37.5 Mbps, while indoor areas, such as Tokyo International Airport, will enjoy double those speeds. Read more »
As 2010 closes out, it’s time took forward and see what advancements in mobile technology and gadgets that 2011 will bring. ARM chips will still dominate, and Android will keep closing the usability gap with Apple’s iOS but will tablets be the talk of the town? Read more »
The FCC implementation of rules around network neutrality on Tuesday may open up a change in the way carriers price mobile broadband — and it’s not going to get cheaper. Uncertainly over network neutrality has held U.S. operators back when it comes to new pricing plans. Read more »
Britian’s mobile operator 3 UK has launched an unlimited broadband plan for smartphone subscribers, going against the tide of operators that are trying to both manage network congestion and squeeze out the most profits from subscribers who are itching for mobile data. It might work. Read more »
