ROW Short Takes

Wireless operators make surprising turnaround in third quarterThe country’s four national wireless service providers have made a healthy turnaround in third-quarter subscriber additions, making considerable gains compared to Q2 figures. The following table illustrates the primary figures for measuring the health of the wireless industry. Sierra Wireless to provide wireless element for Casio PDASierra Wireless Inc. and Casio are teaming up to provide a number of wireless connectivity systems to mobile device users. Sierra Wireless’ AirCard wireless modem will be integrated into Casio’s Cassiopeia BE-300 and the E-200 Pocket PC 2002 model. Both companies have also agreed to collaborate on integrating wireless connectivity into other PDAs developed by Casio. The deal also names Sierra Wireless the exclusive provider of CDMA and GPTRS PC wireless modem cards for Casio in North America. In other Sierra Wireless news, the company is refuting a claim by Novatel Wireless that it is the first-to-market with a CMDA2000 1X wireless PC modem card. Sierra Wireless claims that it was the first company to release such a product back in September. RIM to integrate enterprise analysis on BlackBerryResearch in Motion Ltd., Waterloo ON, has signed an agreement with Informatica to integrate its enterprise analysis software, Informatica Analytics Delivery Platform, into the BlackBerry wireless email system. The addition of this type of software will greatly enhance the productivity of BlackBerry users while out of the office. In other RIM news, the company has signed a supply agreement with VoiceStream Wireless Corp. Under terms of the agreement, VoiceStream has committed to purchase the BlackBerry Wireless Handhelds with associated software, which will operate on the company’s GSM/GPRS network. VoiceStream will distribute the devices throughout the United States. Lemay-Yates releases new telecom research reportReleased earlier this month and published by Lemay-Yates Associates Inc., Canadian Telecoms Market 2001 provides extensive analysis of the telecommunications services market in Canada and offers up five-year forecasts for the business, residential, Internet, cable television, direct-to-home satellite and mobile services markets. Despite the current economic turmoil, the report’s author Johanne Lemay projects industry-wide revenue of more than $35 billion this year, and predicts an annual growth rate of nine per cent to 2006. However the report raises concerns over the recent failure rate of competitive providers, which have decreased in number by 50 per cent. Majority of Newfoundland companies plan to expand According to a new report published by the Newfoundland and Labrador Association of Technology Industries (Nati), more than three-quarters of Newfoundland-based companies plan to expand operations within the next 12 months. The results are based on consultations conducted with a substantial number of technology companies in the province. While the preliminary results of the report highlights continued opportunities for the technology industry, it also points out several barriers to business expansion. Essentially, companies need better access to high-speed Internet access and wireless communications technologies. Yankee Group projects healthy wireless data industryWireless data is here and will continue to grow as technology advances and the need for always on connectivity drives consumer demand, according to the Yankee Group. The market research firm predicts that there will be close to 100 million wireless data users in the United States alone by 2006. But according to Knox Bricken, an analyst with the wireless/mobile and services research and consulting practice, the question remains how carriers are going to make money from wireless data services. Radarsat becomes reseller and distributor of satellite dataRichmond BC-based Radarsat International has been selected by DigitalGlobe, Longmont CO, as the sole Canadian distributor and reseller of data from the QuickBird 2 satellite. The distribution rights also include the United States. QuckBird 2 is one of the world’s highest resolution commercial satellites providing imagery with a 61 cm resolution. Applications for this type of data include detailed mapping and resource management, urban planning, telecommunications and agriculture. Wireless ASP will continue to struggle this yearContinued growth of wireless services usage throughout this year will not be enough to jump start the wireless application service providers industry in 2001, according to market research firm Cahners In-Stat Group. It reports that limited bandwidth in today’s wireless networks, and the less than stellar usability of wireless devices for accessing applications will make it difficult on the industry. The future of the WASP industry rests on the growth and evolution of the wireless Internet and the comfort level of corporate users. MDSI lands deal major with utility company in MichiganMobile Data Solutions Inc. (MDSI) has landed a contract for its Advantex r7 mobile workforce management system with the fifth-largest natural gas utility and the 12th largest electric utility. Consumers Energy is Michigan’s largest electric and natural gas utility company providing electricity and natural gas to more than six million of the state’s residents.

ROW Short Takes

News | 10/30/2001 5:00 am EST

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