EC picks Inmarsat, Solaris for mobile satellite services May 15, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Europe, Inmarsat, Mobile, Solaris Mobile, Telecom, Wireless.Tags: Europe, Inmarsat, Mobile, Solaris Mobile, Telecom, Wireless
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The European Commission has selected Inmarsat and Solaris Mobile to provide mobile satellite services across Europe. The services, such as high-speed internet access, mobile television and radio or emergency communications, will be provided over a specifically reserved spectrum. Mobile satellite services (MSS) are expected to offer wireless communications to millions of EU consumers and businesses with portable terminals carried by a person or mounted on a car or a ship. They can also help bridge the digital divide in the availability of high-speed internet coverage by reaching rural and less populated regions. Member states now have to ensure that Inmarsat Ventures and Solaris Mobile have the right to use the specific radio frequencies identified in the Commission’s decision and the right to operate their respective mobile satellite systems. These providers have to be authorised to use their satellite systems all over Europe for 18 years from the selection decision.
UK report recommends spectrum caps ahead of auctions May 14, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Europe, Mobile, Mobile Industry News, Mobile News, Telecom, UK, WiMAX, Wireless.Tags: Europe, Mobile, Mobile Industry News, Mobile News, Telecom, UK, WiMAX, Wireless
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The UK government has issued an independent report on dividing existing and future mobile network spectrum. After the mobile operators were unable to reach an industry agreement on their existing spectrum holdings, the government asked former Ofcom director Kip Meek to act as an independent broker and develop a plan for the 2G and 3G spectrum. His proposals also incorporate the 2.6GHz spectrum for Wimax and LTE and the so-called digital dividend in the 800 MHz band, which still must be auctioned. According to the report, the goal is to give network operators certainty on their future investments, encourage further take-up of mobile broadband and use new technologies to achieve the government’s goal of near universal broadband access. A quick and efficient division of the spectrum could mean all of the UK enjoying mobile broadband at 4 Mbps within five years, while many urban years would see up to 50 Mbps.
On the spectrum to be auctioned, Meek proposes an auction of the TDD 2.6GHz spectrum for Wimax services by year-end, and a later auction combining the FDD 2.6GHz and 800 MHz frequencies. Meek would like to see regional and speed obligations on services deployed in the 800 MHz band to enhance broadband access, while the current 3G licence holders would receive incentives for expanding broadband access, such as indefinite licence terms and relaxed rules on rural infrastructure sharing.
To enhance competition, Meek proposes a temporary cap on spectrum holdings, at 2 x 60MHz for overall mobile FDD spectrum. Existing holders of sub-1GHz frequencies would also face a cap, so as to obtain 800MHz frequencies they must give up 900MHz holdings. The caps would expire a year after the combined spectrum auction. The latter cap applies to Vodafone UK and O2 UK, who each already have 2 x 17.2MHz in the 900MHz band. Orange UK and T-Mobile UK each have 2 x 30MHz at 1800 MHz. While they could bid freely for 800MHz or any 900MHz given up by the other two operators, they would only be able to bid for 2 x 10Mhz of the 2.6GHz frequencies in order to remain under the cap. They would have to give up 1800MHz or 2.1GHz frequencies to gain more in the 2.6GHz band. 3 UK and any new entrants would be able to bid freely for any of the spectrum, within the limits of the auctions. Meek’s proposals will go to the department for business and regulatory reform, which will formulate a government decision for Ofcom to enact.
Mobile Phones Rule In Haiti May 11, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Haiti, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless.Tags: Haiti, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless
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Mobile phones are likely to remain the main form of telecommunications in Haiti for the short-to-medium term, a new report says. A new report on the state of Haiti`s telecommunications by Research and Markets, claims that `given the stagnating fixed-line infrastructure and poor fixed-line penetration rates, mobile is likely to remain the principal form of telecommunications,` at least for now. Citing hurricane damage to fixed lines and the fact that the privatization of Telco seems to have slipped from the government’s agenda, the report, `Haiti: Telecoms, Mobile and Broadband,` insists that more and more, people are turning to mobile phone service. Researchers also cite the fact that political and economic turmoil has kept Haiti’s telecommunications sector as one of the least developed in the world, so mobile phone service is a welcome option.
CSR expands in GPS market with Sirf takeover February 11, 2009
Posted by aikservices in CSR, GPS, Mobile, Sirf, Telecom, Wireless.Tags: CSR, GPS, Mobile, Sirf, Telecom, Wireless
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Bluetooth chip specialist CSR has agreed to merge with Sirf, a maker of GPS semiconductors. The merger is expected to diversify CSR’s product base and strengthen its position in the mobile phone market. Around 20 percent of mobile phones had GPS in 2008, and this is expected to double by 2012, CSR said. Under the terms of the deal, Sirf shareholders will receive 0.741 share in CSR for each Sirf share they hold. This will give Sirf shareholders 27 percent of the new company. Sirf’s executive chairman Diosdado P. Banatao and founder Kanwar Chadha will join the CSR board as non-executive director and executive director respectively; they have also both agreed to vote their shares in the merger. CSR expects annual cost savings of USD 35 million within two months of closing the deal. Sirf generated revenues of USD 232 million in 2008 and is expected to contribute immediately to profits. The merger is expected to close late in the second quarter of 2009.
Mobile Linux Group Selects Wind River As Systems Integrator February 9, 2009
Posted by aikservices in LiMo, Mobile Linux, Telecom, Wind River, Wireless.Tags: LiMo, Mobile Linux, Telecom, Wind River, Wireless
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The Mobile Linux organisation, the LiMo Foundation has selected Wind River as the systems integrator to deliver the common infrastructure, tools, testing and integration services for the LiMo platform. A Board member of LiMo Foundation, Wind River will now be LiMo’s chosen systems integrator providing technology and services to combine, harden and validate code contributions of LiMo members through a Common Working Environment (CWE).
As the mobile industry now breaks out of its traditional, controlled development environments and embraces collaborative approaches that unlock innovation, operators and device manufacturers are turning to vendors they can trust to guide them through the evolving mobile software landscape, said Morgan Gillis, executive director of LiMo Foundation. Through its selection of Wind River as a company with a legacy of world-class embedded software, LiMo expects to be able to accelerate its goal of reducing Linux fragmentation while intensifying platform development through the rapid adoption of member contributions.
Samsung launches online mobile app store February 6, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Mobile Application, Samsung, Telecom, UK, Wireless.Tags: Mobile Application, Samsung, Telecom, UK, Wireless
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Samsung has launched an online mobile applications store. The online store called Samsung Mobile Applications allows innovator members to sell their applications via the website. The online store is initially focussed on the UK. The store will be officially launched at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona with 1,100 applications. The store will support both Symbian S60 and Windows Mobile applications, with further upgrades planned for later this year.
Femtocell Group Signs Up 100th Member February 6, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Femtocell, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless.Tags: Femtocell, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless
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The Femto Forum, the independent industry and operator association that supports femtocell deployment, has announced that is has reached 100 members. The body now boasts as members, all of the top 5 infrastructure vendors and 17 of the world’s top 20 operators covering more than 2.3 billion subscribers.The Forum was launched just 18 months ago with only seven specialist femtocell members and has since multiplied rapidly to over 100 companies which read like a Who’s Who of the industry. This momentum allows us to continue to overcome barriers as operators carry out advanced consumer trials and early deployments this year ahead of mass deployment in 2010, said Simon Saunders. At the beginning of 2008 we set ourselves some tough challenges – not least turning around a femtocell standard in record time. We’ve no intention of slowing down this year, which will be a critical period as operators start deployments.
Now that the 3GPP has committed to completing the WCDMA femtocell standard by the end of March the Forum will be working to ensure that devices from different vendors are fully interoperable, as well as supporting the 3GPP’s release 9 and its planned provision for IMS femtocells. There will also be a focus on developing ‘Home Zone services’, creating new mobile applications that take advantage of the ‘presence’ capabilities of femtocells and the ability to easily connect mobile phone users to the home network and the web.
French Mobile Download Speeds Doubled Over Past Year February 5, 2009
Posted by aikservices in 2G, 3G, ARCEP, France, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless.Tags: 2G, 3G, ARCEP, France, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless
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The French telecoms regulator, ARCEP has published a report on the quality of service of mobile networks in Metropolitan France, after testing each operator’s 2G and 3G networks. As required by their authorisations, the operators help finance this study.Mobile network speeds in France have doubled in one year.File transfer tests were held in the twelve largest cities in Metropolitan France, using USB keys or PCMCIA cards connected to laptop computers. The results of these tests show bitrates more than double those measured in 2007.
Results show speeds one and a half times higher than those obtained in 2007 for average speeds, and up to two times higher for the highest speeds: bitrates for downloading were1 450 kbit/s on average, and over 4 Mbit/s for the fastest, while speeds observed when sending files reached 400 kbit/s on average, and over 740 kbit/s for the fastest. These speeds were reached using each operator’s highest performing offers, available in shops.These speeds are comparable to the bitrates offered by entry-level ADSL.
Lebanon to lower mobile prices in April February 4, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Financial, Lebanon, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless.Tags: Financial, Lebanon, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless
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The Lebanese government has reached an agreement to lower mobile calling rates in April. Telecommunications minister Jebran Bassil told a media briefing that the cuts will save the Lebanese USD 225 million annually, the Daily Star reports. But the minister did not expect a drastic fall in the revenues of the state-owned networks, as the price cuts are offset by an increase in subscribers thanks to planned capacity expansions. According to the new scheme, the monthly subscriptions for postpaid mobile cards will fall to USD 15 from the current USD 25 and the per-minute rate for postpaid users will drop to USD 0.11 from USD 0.13. The minister expects that more consumers will be encouraged to switch from prepaid to postpaid cards after the price cuts. More than 80 percent of the country’s mobile subscribers use prepaid cards. The price of a one-month prepaid card will drop to USD 25 from USD 45, while the cost of a one-minute call will fall to USD 0.36 from USD 0.50.
Asia Pacific Subscriber Percentage Growth Crashes to 3 Years Low February 2, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Asia Pacific, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless.Tags: Asia Pacific, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless
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Quarterly mobile connection growth in Asia Pacific crashed to a three-year low of 5.8% in Q3 2008, even though net additions figures, at 89.4m, were the second best ever seen in the region. The result left rolling annual growth down at 28.6% – the lowest level recorded since the 12 months period ending 31st December 2006 – although rolling annual net additions set a new record for the 14th successive quarter, reaching 364.5bn.
The reason for this seemingly paradoxical result was that net additions were up year on year by 10% from 81.2m, but down quarter on quarter by 10% from the record 98.8m posted in Q2 2008, the increase in the total number of mobile connections in the region in the meantime being enough to cause the effects we have seen.
Motorola survey shows wireless devices are still at risk February 2, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Mobile, Motorola, Telecom, Wireless.Tags: Mobile, Motorola, Telecom, Wireless
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Motorola today announced results of its second annual Motorola AirDefense Retail Shopping Wireless Security Survey, which shows 44 percent of the wireless devices used by retailers – such as laptops, mobile computers and barcode scanners – could be compromised. While this is a surprisingly high percentage, it is significantly lower than results from the same retail shopping survey conducted in 2007 which showed security vulnerabilities in 85 percent of wireless devices.Survey research included a review of wireless data security at more than 4,000 stores in some of the world’s busiest shopping cities including Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, London, Los Angeles, New York City, San Francisco, Paris, Seoul and Sydney.
Security vulnerabilities in wireless networks typically are the result of weak encryption, data leakage, mis-configured access points and outdated access point (AP) firmware. One of the more overlooked issues with large retailers is a “cookie-cutter” approach to wireless technology. By using the same technology, configuration, security and/or naming conventions at all retail locations, vulnerabilities repeat themselves across the entire store chain, rendering them susceptible to attacks as well as Payment Card Industry (PCI) non-compliance.
Gartner Reveals Eight Mobile Technologies to Watch in 2009 and 2010 February 2, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Gartner, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless.Tags: Gartner, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless
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Gartner, Inc. has identified eight mobile technologies that will evolve significantly through 2010, impacting short-term mobile strategies and policies. All mobile strategies embed assumptions about technology evolution so it’s important to identify the technologies that will evolve quickly in the life span of each strategy, said Nick Jones, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner. The eight mobile technologies that we have pinpointed as ones to watch in 2009 and 2010 will have broad effects and, as such, are likely to pose issues to be addressed by short-term strategies and policies.
Consumers Want Citywide Wi-Fi – And Are Willing to Pay for It January 30, 2009
Posted by aikservices in 3G, Google, iPhone, Mobile, Nokia, Telecom, UK, USA, Wi-Fi, Wireless.Tags: 3G, Google, iPhone, Mobile, Nokia, Telecom, UK, USA, Wi-Fi, Wireless
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A report commissioned by Wi-Fi application vendor, Devicescape has found that most respondents want citywide Wi-Fi (84%) and, surprisingly, many are willing to pay for it (56%) as they would a utility. The report also found that an overwhelming number of Wi-Fi users expect Wi-Fi while on the road (91%) and when traveling, the most-often used device for accessing Wi-Fi was the smartphone, such as an iPhone (vs. laptops). The overwhelming majority of smartphone users (81%) prefer using Wi-Fi over 3G for browsing Web sites, downloading data, Google searches and sending e-mail. Also, 86% of respondents want OEMs to build Wi-Fi into their handsets and 82% of respondents want the service provider to provide an overall 3G/Wi-Fi data package.Many of the statistics within the UK and mainland Europe were similar to the US, but one significant difference is that Nokia is the most used device tapping into Wi-Fi, more than laptops and iPhone users.
Afghanistan to Boost Mobile Coverage in Underserved Areas January 30, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Afghanistan, Asia, GSM, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless.Tags: Afghanistan, Asia, GSM, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless
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Afghanistan’s government has announced plans to start spending the income from a Telecom Development Fund (TDF) which will be used to expand mobile and landline services into underserved rural areas.According to the licenses issued to the current GSM operators, they should pay 2.5% from their net revenues to this fund to facilitate the communications services to remote and under services districts of the country, said Eng. Barialai Hassam Deputy Minister Technical in a news conference.The mentioned money should be paid by the operators to this fund quarterly and at the moment, the fund has nearly US$26 million available to it.
Afghanistan Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (ATRA) is the only Governmental Administration that regulates the telecom services in the country and also manages the procedure of expending the Telecom Development Fund (TDF) to extend the telecom services to rural areas.
Asia Pacific Subscriber Percentage Growth Crashes to 3 Years Low January 30, 2009
Posted by aikservices in Asia Pacific, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless.Tags: Asia Pacific, Mobile, Telecom, Wireless
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Quarterly mobile connection growth in Asia Pacific crashed to a three-year low of 5.8% in Q3 2008, even though net additions figures, at 89.4m, were the second best ever seen in the region. The result left rolling annual growth down at 28.6% – the lowest level recorded since the 12 months period ending 31st December 2006 – although rolling annual net additions set a new record for the 14th successive quarter, reaching 364.5bn.
The reason for this seemingly paradoxical result was that net additions were up year on year by 10% from 81.2m, but down quarter on quarter by 10% from the record 98.8m posted in Q2 2008, the increase in the total number of mobile connections in the region in the meantime being enough to cause the effects we have seen.
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