ROW Short Takes

Sirit wins $5.9 million contract in CaliforniaToronto-based RFID provider Sirit Inc. has secured an order valued at up to $5.9 million from the Bay Area Toll Authority (BATA) in California. Beginning next month and running for one year, the contract requires Sirit to deliver a combination of its traditional sealed and new battery replaceable Title-21-based toll transponders at retail locations. "We are working to increase the use of electronic toll collection in the Bay area," said Linda Lee, FasTrak project manager for BATA, in a news release. "Sirit continues to be a partner in that effort. Electronic tolling allows us to maximize throughput on Bay Area bridges. Approximately 120 million toll-paying vehicles cross the seven state-owned bridges in a year." BATA expects to begin distributing the transponders in late August or early September. Globalstar petitions FCC for ATC authorityMobile satellite voice and data services provider Globalstar Inc. has filed an application with the Federal Communications Commission for authority to use all of its assigned mobile satellite service spectrum for Ancillary Terrestrial Component (ATC) services in the US. "Currently Globalstar is the only MSS operator that is not permitted to use its entire spectrum for ATC," said Globalstar’s chairman and CEO Jay Monroe in a press release. "This unequal treatment in the FCC’s rules places us at a disadvantage relative to our competitors and undermines the very goals that the FCC sought to advance when it adopted the ATC rules, which were to encourage the flexible use of the spectrum and provide ubiquitous wireless coverage in the US, especially during times of emergency." Presently, Globalstar can use 11 MHz of its 1.6/2.4 GHz satellite radio frequencies for ATC. ATC solutions can potentially provide wireless solutions for a wide variety of voice, broadband data and multimedia wireless applications. TelePlus buys Maximo ImpactTelePlus Enterprises Inc., a wireless and telecommunications product provider with offices in Barrie ON, has acquired Maximo Impact Inc., a company that specializes in marketing and distribution as a mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) in the US. As part of the deal, Maximo will launch its own wireless brand called MX Mobile, which will cater to mass merchandisers and retailers. The company will also distribute Liberty Wireless products, which are primarily dispersed online. "This acquisition enables TelePlus to combine the synergies between Liberty Wireless and MX Mobile," said Marius Silvasan, CEO of TelePlus, in a press release. "We now operate two wireless brands, each catering to different market segments, thus enabling TelePlus to capture a bigger piece of the $32 billion pie that is the prepaid wireless industry." Vocel receives funding from TorstarCanadian media company Torstar Corp. has provided Vocel with a second infusion of funding to fuel the company’s growth after the launch of its Interactive Commerce Accelerator (INCA) mobile marketing and promotion engine with Qualcomm and Midwest Wireless at the beginning of June. INCA lets mobile phone users purchase content such as ringtones, wallpaper and games with one click. Said Lorenzo DeMarchi, managing director corporate development for Torstar, in a news release: "We are...excited about the rapid evolution of INCA and the opportunities it presents both carriers and consumers for the accelerated adoption of purchasing content over mobile phones." Mobile games market to increase more than five fold by 2011: JuniperAccording to a report by Juniper Research Ltd. the global mobile games market – both subscriptions and downloads – should grow from $3.1 billion in 2006 to $17.6 billion by 2011. Juniper also states the Asia Pacific region is forecast to contribute 38% of the nearly $57 billion in cumulative revenues from 2006 to 2011, with Europe contributing 31%, North America 22% and the rest of the world 9%. The report predicts that leading-edge game technology will focus on 3D and multiplayer games, but the greatest growth will come from the casual game sector, with female game players growing as a proportion of the market and bringing more balance to the genders using mobile games. Fujitsu, BelAir provide metro wireless mesh solutionFujitsu Network Communications Inc. has announced the availability of a new metro wireless mesh solution for North American telecom carriers, cable/MSO operators, utilities and municipalities using Wi-Fi mesh products from BelAir Networks. Under the terms of the agreement, Fujitsu will resell BelAir’s entire portfolio of carrier-class Wi-Fi products, which includes a diverse set of environmentally hardened outdoor Wi-Fi devices with single-, dual-, and multi-radio products that provide uniform, high-density and high-bandwidth broadband wireless capabilities. The multi-radio product solution offers a true wireless mesh, which is capable of providing solutions across a wide area network and in which carriers can offer applications such as virtual private networking and Voice over Internet Protocol. Mobile Suite now available from AliantAtlantic Canadian ICT provider Aliant has unveiled its new wireless email and messaging service called Mobile Suite. The service offers small and medium-sized business customers wireless email and messaging on devices using Palm and Microsoft Pocket PC operating systems. Mobile Suite uses push technology to send email directly to the device enabling customers to easily manage mail, meeting requests, calendar entries, contacts, tasks and other data. "Aliant recognizes that business mobility is paramount to businesses large and small, in urban and rural areas alike," said Tom Libretto, director of enterprise solutions at Nokia, the firm hosting Mobile Suite. Nokia, Siemens to mergeNokia and Siemens announced they intend to merge the networks business group of Nokia and the carrier-related operations of Siemens into a new company called Nokia Siemens Networks. The combined company, which will be a 50-50 joint venture, is positioned to develop and implement revenue-generating and cost-saving products and services via its scale and global reach. "We believe the partnership with Siemens is the most effective way to build the scale and broad product portfolio necessary to compete globally and create value for shareholders," said Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, CEO of Nokia, in a news release. Nokia Siemens Networks will have its operational headquarters in Helsinki Finland.

ROW Short Takes

News | June 29, 2006

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