ROW Short Takes

Rogers Wireless releases Q4 2003 figures, 2004 guidanceRogers Wireless Inc. has released preliminary Q4 and 2003 fiscal year subscriber numbers. In Q4, the company recorded 172,100 net additions and added 402,000 new subscribers for the entire fiscal year. Rogers Wireless now has nearly 3.8 million subscribers. The company expects to add between 350,000 and 400,000 new voice and data subscribers in 2004. Capital expenditures for 2004 are anticipated to be between $400 million and $425 million. Approximately $30 million of this amount will be allocated for the national rollout of EDGE capabilities, expected to be completed mid-year. TIW operating companies surpass 5M subscribersMobiFon S.A. and Cesky Mobil a.s., two of Telesystem International Wireless Inc.’s operating companies, have surpassed the 5-million subscriber mark. The companies are located in central and eastern Europe. MobiFon, which operates under the Connex brand in Romania, added 495,000 new subscribers in Q4 to reach 3,457,000 total subscribers. Cesky Mobil, operating under the Oskar brand in the Czech Republic, posted 109,000 net additions to surpass the 1.5-million subscriber mark. Mitec Telecom inks OEM contract extension Montreal-based Mitec Telecom Inc. has signed a multi-year contract extension with a major equipment manufacturer. This agreement replaces an earlier agreement the two parties signed in mid-2003 and calls for the supply of a range of both new third-generation and re-engineered second-generation products. Infowave agrees to acquire Telispark; opens line of creditInfowave Software Inc. has signed an agreement that will see the company acquire 100% of Telispark Inc., a provider of enterprise mobility applications, in a stock deal worth US$8.4 million. Shell Oil, the U.S. Navy and Hydro One are a few of Telispark’s customers. In conjunction with the proposed acquisition, Infowave has opened a US$3-million line of credit with Gerald Trooien, who has agreed to provide the facility until December 31, 2005. ATI unveils 3D chip for gaming on cell phonesATI Technolgies Inc. has unveiled the Imageon 2300, a new family of multimedia and graphics co-processors that will allow visually rich game playing on cell phones. The microchip was designed to integrate with new generations of primary microprocessors. A key selling point of the chip will be power consumption levels aren’t dramatically increased. Bell West to use Nextair gear for mobile employeesBell West has inked an agreement with Nextair Inc. for the implementation of its mobile workforce system. The entire system includes the use of Bell Mobility’s 1X network, AIRIX Wireless Environment, DispatchForce workforce management software and associated professional services. AirIQ receives trademarks for new consumer serviceAirIQ Inc. has received several trademarks relating to its consumer telematics service MobileIQ (RoW, Nov. 5/03). The Toronto-based company received approval for VEHICLECONNECT, MOBILEIQ, MOBILEIQ VEHICLECONNECT, and AIRIQ VEHICLECONNECT. C-COM works with ShowNet in Middle EastOttawa-based C-COM Satellite Systems Inc. has signed a memorandum of understanding with Kuwait-based ShowNet Internet Solutions Ltd., a reseller of Hughes Network Systems’ DIRECWAY satellite broadband services. ShowNet will distribute C-COM’s iNetVu mobile antenna platform in the Middle East region. The two companies will be showcasing the system at the Canadian Pavilion of the Rebuild Iraq 2004 International Trade Exhibition taking place between January 19 and 23. Unity Wireless to develop subsystems for OEMUnity Wireless Corp. has inked an agreement with a North American tier one equipment manufacturer for the development and manufacture of integrated wireless subsystems for base stations. The identity of the equipment maker was not provided in the news release. The agreement follows proof of concept last year. fSONA to participate at WCA symposiumFree-space optics (FSO) equipment provider fSONA Communications will participate in two significant sessions at the Wireless Communications Association’s 10th Annual Technical Symposium and Business Expo in San Jose CA. Michael Corcoran, senior VP of fSONA, will participate in a panel titled, FSO & Wi-Fi: Transforming Homeland Security and Military Zone Networks. Michael Jung, the company’s director of marketing, will discuss new business models for FSO in a special event hosted by the FSO Alliance titled, FSO for the Real World. Nextel to offer BlackBerry with push-to-talk capabilities Nextel Communications Inc. and Research in Motion Ltd. have announced commercial availability of the BlackBerry 7510, which comes equipped with a speaker phone and push-to-talk capabilities, commonly referred to as the walkie-talkie feature. The 7510 is also equipped with a colour screen, allows users to view attachments, among other standard features. 724 Solutions expands into Asia Pacific market724 Solutions Inc. is expanding into the Asia Pacific market through a partnership with Anabatic Technologies. Anabatic will resell 724 Solutions’ X-treme Service Authority Manager (XSAM) to mobile wireless operators in the region. The two companies will also work to launch a series of service support centres throughout the region to assist mobile operators with their XSAM investment. The first of such centres will be opened in the Philippines and Singapore. Agilent supports new computer language in design toolsAgilent Technologies Inc. has announced its device and network design tools now support models designed in Verilog-A computer language. These models are used to verify RF chip designs for products such as cell phones, pagers, broadband and satellite communications systems. Support for this language allows models to be accessed regardless of simulation technology used.

ROW Short Takes

News | 01/13/2004 5:00 am EST

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