ROW Short Takes

Maxlink purchase to close soon, insiders sayApparently a prospective buyer has stepped up to the plate and made a bid for the embattled 28 GHz licence holder, Maxlink Communications Inc. The receiver Ernst & Young has been reluctant to provide any information to Report on Wireless. Industry Canada is keeping a close eye on the deal, as the licence that Maxlink currently holds comes up for renewal in a year. Wi-LAN signs outsourcing deal with SolectronCalgary-based Wi-LAN Inc has signed a manufacturing supply agreement with Solectron Corp which will produce Wi-LAN’s W-OFDM-based broadband wireless access systems. This outsourcing agreement with one of the world’s largest contract electronics manufacturers will give Wi-LAN the ability to quickly ramp up production of equipment when sales become more robust. In other Wi-LAN news, the company has signed an OEM agreement with Symbol Technologies, a provider of wireless and mobile data transactions systems. Under terms of the agreement Symbol will begin offering Wi-LAN’s extensive portfolio of broadband access products to its customer base. Wi-LAN’s products will be used to complement Symbol’s wireless LAN and point-of-sale offering for the retail, healthcare, education, manufacturing and government markets. MDSI and Webb Interactive strike marketing dealMDSI Mobile Data Solutions Inc and Webb Interactive Services Inc have signed a joint marketing agreement under which both companies will market each other’s products and services. Brad Phillips, marketing head of MDSI’s eService.com platform says the web strengths of Webb Interactive made the joint marketing deal a natural and will help both companies grow and expand business opportunities. Celltech Research expands R&D operations in BCCelltech Research Inc, the R&D subsidiary of Globus Wireless Ltd, has secured additional facilities to expand R&D operations in the BC area. The new building is located at the Landmark Technology Centre in Kelowna BC. PMC extends power of wireless infrastructure gearPMC-Sierra has released an enhanced version of its PALADIN digital signal processor controlled power amplifier architecture for wireless infrastructure equipment. The product dramatically increases efficiency in wireless base transceiver stations at lower power consumption and costs than existing implementations. Key features of the new DSP are that it supports 15 MHz multi-carrier WCDMA and cdma2000 applications without costly, power-hungry feed-forward RF amplifiers. Rogers Wireless expands coverage in New BrunswickResidents in Meductic, Geary and Miramichi will all now be able to get the benefits of digital PCS service as Rogers Wireless Inc has recently completed expansion of its network in those regions of New Brunswick. Rogers has also improved coverage in Rogersville and Oromocto. Meductic: coverage along highway #2 and route #105 from Woodstock to the outskirts of Temple has been enhanced. Geary: improved coverage in Haney Town and a portion of CFB Gagetown; enhanced coverage along highway #7 between Fredericton and Saint John, and along routes #660, #665 and #101. Miramichi: along highway #11 Kent county, St. Ignace and Chatham; coverage along route #440 towards Rogersville and route #117 towards Baie St. Anne. Rogersville: enhanced coverage from Barnaby River to the the town of Rogersville; along highway #126 from Nelson to Kent Junction and on route #440 towards highway #11. Oromocto: improved coverage in both Oromocto and CFB Gagetown; increased coverage along highway #7 from Fredericton South to Geary and along highway #2 from Fredericton West to Jemseg. Cell-Loc releases commercial version of BeaconCell-Loc Inc has introduced the Cellocate Beacon I, a low-cost wireless device that enables the provision of wireless location services over the company’s two wireless location networks in Calgary and Austin TX. The Beacon meets Federal Communications Commission Phase II guidelines for E911 compliance. 01 Communique and Glenayre join forces in distribution dealToronto-based 01 Communique Laboratory Inc has announced that Glenayre Technologies, Charlotte NC, will begin to distribute 01 Communique’s unified communications solutions with the @ctiveLink product. The two companies will also work together to develop interfaces between 01 Communique’s I’m InTouch unified communications system and Glenayre’s @ctiveLink two-way wireless messaging module. Each will provide product marketing and support expertise and promote the interoperability of their products. C1 Communications gets protection from creditorsStruggling CLEC C1 Communications, which announced earlier this year a merger agreement with Wispra Networks, has filed for protection from its creditors. The proposed merger between the two companies into XO Communications Canada has been shelved and Joe Church once again retains control of the LMCS spectrum auction winner. In a related announcement, Group Telecom’s acquisition of C1’s Atlantic assets has gone through and it paid full price, despite the precarious financial situation of C1.PowerLOC enters into partnership with iVitaThe location subsidiary of Paradigm Advanced Technologies Inc, PowerLOC Technologies, has entered into a strategic partnership with iVita Corp, a provider of asset value management software. Under terms of the agreement, the two companies will work together to create a secure, automated interface to integrate location data from PowerLOC’s L-Biz location tracking architecture with the iVita Commander software. The goal is to provide customers automated asset visibility and management tools across a wide range of mobile assets. The new product will be set for commercial delivery by the end of 2001Q2. WaveRider wins contract in U.S.WaveRider Communications Inc has sold its LMS 3000 system to the City of Roseville MN. The system will be the start of a smart community offering. RAMTelecom lights up service in the far North of CanadaRAMTelecom, an ISP based in Ottawa, has turned on service to a high-speed Internet access service offering in the country’s far North. The company will be leasing capacity from Canada’s most experienced satellite operator Telesat Canada. RAMTelecom will be offering both one-way and two-way high-speed Internet service to residents and business across the vast and expansive territory. Voice Mobility opens U.S. office to target eastern customersVancouver-based Voice Mobility International Inc has opened an office in Dallas TX to serve existing and new customers in the eastern and central time zones. The company says it gains access to 200 service providers in Texas alone and that 10 per cent of its primary market is located in the state. SiGEM signs deal with Wireless-Car to market telematicsOttawa-based SiGEM Inc and WirelessCar will form a strategic alliance to serve the growing world market for telematics products and services. Analysts project that the telematics industry will grow into an $8 billion global market by 2004 from its current level of $1 billion in 2000. The two companies plan to combine their respective strengths to be able to offer the best-in-breed telematics system to vehicle manufacturers and fleet owners. NewTel Mobility expands service on the RockNewTel Mobility has added an analog cellular site in Newfoundland to enhance service on the Burin Peninsula. The site is the most recent addition as part of the company’s planned $1-million expansion during this year.Mitec sign $70-M supply dealMitec Telecom has signed a $70-million supply agreement with a major European network provider. The name of the company has not yet been publicly released. Under terms of the agreement, BEVE – Mitec’s most recent acquisition – will manufacture the microwave components used in point-to-point wireless networks.

ROW Short Takes

News | April 17, 2001

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