ROW Short Takes

Ericsson disputes Nortel’s numbersSwedish wireless titan Ericsson is arguing with Nortel Networks Corp over who got the greater portion of a deal with VoiceStream Wireless. Ericsson maintains it won a $300-million contract to upgrade VoiceStream systems. Nortel asserts that it got the $300 million and that the Scandinavian company only received $150 million. eDispatch gets approval to merge with AirIQShareholders of eDispatch.com Wireless Data Inc approved by a 14% margin the proposed merger with AirIQ. The merger had been opposed by Proprietary Industries Inc. It had filed a petition seeking an injunction against the annual meeting on Sept 28, but that was thrown out of court. The Supreme Court of British Columbia dismissed the application. Rogers unveils GSM/GPRS partnershipsRogers Wireless Communications Inc has introduced a new roster of technology partners as it prepares to launch its GSM/GPRS network. The Canadian firm has made deals with Ericsson Canada, Openwave Software Inc, Comverse, Schlumberger and Go.America Inc. Rogers completed the installation of the network last July and is now in the testing phase. Microcell, Suite Systems win CLEC statusThe CRTC has granted CLEC status to Microcell Connexions Inc of Montreal and to Suite Systems Inc of Calgary. Microcell is a WSP while SSI provides cable and telephony services to customers of its realty business. Wireless Matrix inks letter of intent with major shareholderCalgary’s Wireless Matrix Corp has signed a letter of intent with Telenor Mobile Communications AS, its major shareholder. The letter relates to the $5.4 million held in escrow since February when Wireless Matrix bought Norcom Networks Corp. Telenor owned 91% of Norcom. Wi-LAN offers demonstration at wireless conferenceDelegates at the recent Wireless Vision Conference in St. John’s NF were treated to a display by Wi-LAN Inc of Calgary. The company showed how its products might be used for community access. The firm used three advanced wireless Ethernet bridges to illustrate how tele-medicine can best be deployed. RIM named Company of the Year at awards presentationThe inaugural edition of the Branham Awards were held in Ottawa in late September. Research in Motion Ltd of Waterloo ON was named Company of the Year, while SureFire Commerce Inc of Montreal was dubbed Turnaround Company of the Year. The Alliance award went to AXIA NetMedia Corp of Calgary and Toronto’s T4G Ltd received the Top Service Launch citation. Burntsand Inc of Toronto won the E-Business Enablement prize with the Top Product Launch going to Toronto’s Castek Software Factory Inc. The product Up and Comer honour went to e2ms of Whitby ON while the service Up and Comer was awarded to Toronto’s Navantis Inc. House of Windsor goes wirelessQueen Elizabeth appears to be the latest person to join the wireless revolution. A report in Conrad Black’s Daily Telegraph says Prince Andrew, the most technology-advanced royal, gave his mother a compact phone as a gift. Even though she had once banned the use of wireless devices at Balmoral, Windsor Castle and Buckingham Palace, the Queen is now using the phone on her various estates. The service at Balmoral is reported to suffer drop offs. Manitoba Telecom continues to roll out digital networkManitoba Telecom Services Inc is rolling out its digital PCS network throughout the western part of the province. Residents of Neepawa, Minnedosa, Woodside and Polonia will soon have access to the MTS grid. The move ensures continuous digital coverage from Portage La Prairie along the Yellowhead Route and the No. 16 highway. Ottawa companies unveil EAS-wireless messagingEDUCOM TS Inc and AmikaNow! Corp have joined forces to provide an EAS-Wireless Mobile Messaging Server for mobile email management. The device permits users to filter incoming email so they are notified only about relevant messages and can customize the summarization. EDUCOM is a software developer while AmikaNow! is a wireless email manager. Both firms are based in Ottawa. WaveRider restructures and refinancesToronto’s WaveRider Communications Inc has restructured and introduced a refinancing plan. Large shareholders are buying $500,000 in promissory notes while company directors will buy $1 million in notes. The notes are repayable after one year and bear 8% interest and a 15% premium. Cell-Loc hands out pink slips Calgary wireless locator Cell-Loc Inc has reduced its staff by 44%. This will leave the firm with about 36 employees. The company is also looking for new financing, including a US$40-million staged equity line of credit. Nokia buys into QC companyTelecom giant Nokia Corp has taken a minority stake in a Montreal voice- and multimedia-compression firm. VoiceAge Corp, a spin-off of Sipro Lab Telecom Inc, hopes the new arrangement will boost sales sixfold. It also expects to increase its staff in response to the added business. Vancouver company wins Australian orderCHK Wireless Technologies of Vancouver has received a purchase order from the Electricity Trust of South Australia. Over the next two months, the Canadian company will be sending POWERmonic power quality analyzers Down Under. The deal is worth $400,000 in Australian dollars. Perot opts for Entrust packageEntrust Technologies Inc is selling a bundle of security services to Perot Systems Corp of Dallas TX. Entrust will provide a VPN, web portal, wireless and desktop-enhanced Internet safety. Perot is owned by former EDS boss and onetime presidential candidate Ross Perot.

ROW Short Takes

News | October 2, 2001

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