Microsoft and Sprint, have announced a strategic alliance through which the companies will develop and deliver a range of innovative new service offerings for Sprint’s business and consumer customers. The first consumer offering in this collaboration enables Sprint customers to use Windows Live Search for mobile on their wireless phones to conveniently search location-based content from the Internet, such as nearby stores and restaurants, as well as Sprint’s catalog of ring tones, games, screen savers and related services. The service also provides new opportunities for highly relevant and targeted local advertising, which will benefit businesses and consumers alike.
“Microsoft and Sprint share a vision that mobility is about helping customers access the information they need while on the go. The new alliance will deliver on that vision for consumers and businesses,” said Mark Schweitzer, chief marketing officer at Sprint. “By adding Windows Live Search for mobile to Sprint devices, customers now carry with them a depth of relevant local search information, in addition to quick and easy access to their favorite Sprint content. Microsoft’s innovation in search and advertising makes them a logical choice for us to work with to realize this vision.”
The new Sprint mobile search service powered by Windows Live aims to provide one-stop access to relevant online content associated with a given keyword or phrase. For example, consumers who search for “sports” on their wireless phone can search all of Sprint’s content relating to sports, such as ringtones, wallpapers and applications with “sports” in the title, as well as local information available online such as business listings for sports stores, maps, directions and relevant advertisements from local businesses. The service is immediately available at no additional cost to Sprint PCS VisionSM and Sprint Power VisionSM subscribers on all currently available data-capable phones, along with many popular older models.*
“In recent years the search box has fundamentally changed the way people interact with the Internet, but we have only just begun to scratch the surface for what search and live Internet services can do in the mobile space,” said Steve Berkowitz, senior vice president of the Online Services Group at Microsoft. “Today’s announcement is a positive step forward in enhancing the mobile search experience for consumers and advertisers alike, by putting locally relevant information in the hands of consumers. And with Sprint’s strong history of enabling Internet services on phones and Microsoft’s expertise in delivering software plus services, we are excited about the opportunities this alliance can bring to further promote live services across devices that help people get the information they want, when they want it, where they are.”
Windows Live Search for mobile combines Microsoft Windows Live Local Search features, such as maps and directions, with capabilities allowing the indexing and discovery of highly relevant mobile content. This approach brings simplicity for users by delivering search results grouped in useful categories and in a format appropriate for a user’s specific mobile device.
The location-based offering available today from Sprint and Microsoft requires users to input their location by entering their ZIP code, address, or city and state. Future versions of the service are planned to enable consumers to give permission to automatically locate them and show the nearest businesses that match their search.
Companies Target New Integrated Services in Strategic Alliance
Today’s mobile search release is evidence of the success Microsoft and Sprint expect to continue in developing integrated solutions that bring together products and services from both companies, and which target business and consumer subscribers.
“Sprint is excited about the successful collaboration with Microsoft thus far. Besides mobile search for the consumer, our business customers are benefiting significantly from the ease and enhanced functionality of Windows Mobile 5.0 as well as robust managed security solutions based on Microsoft Exchange Hosted Services,” said Susan Nelson, vice president of strategic alliances, Sprint. “This holistic relationship aligns our companies in joint development, marketing and sales efforts, which allows us to move quickly to combine our expertise and deliver innovative solutions to our customers.”
Future initiatives in the alliance will explore leveraging new Microsoft technologies in the development of a differentiated portfolio of rich and seamless information experiences for Sprint customers. The service aggregation enabled through Microsoft’s Connected Services Framework will help to reduce integration costs and accelerate time to market as the two companies introduce new revenue-generating services that marry traditional telecommunications offering with Web services, from Windows Live beyond.
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Saturday, October 07, 2006
Sprint shares rise, some see bullish technicals
Shares rose on Thursday in a rally some analysts said was spurred by bullish technical signals that the wireless provider's stock may recover ground it lost after reporting disappointing earnings two months ago.
Shares of the No. 3 U.S. wireless company rose as much as 5 percent before yielding ground to finish up 2.9 percent, or 51 cents, at $17.86 on the New York Stock Exchange.
In addition, many option investors turned to bullish strategies such as buying calls, hoping to profit from share gains.
Analysts said there did not appear to be any fundamental reasons why Sprint shares were up, but investors could be becoming more interested in the wireless sector in general or pushing Sprint's stock up for technical reasons.
"The whole wireless space is extremely strong today," said Stanford Group analyst Michael Nelson. who also noted that Sprint announced plans to sell three new popular cell phones earlier this week.
"In general Sprint has been really beaten up and some people are saying that at this level there may be some real value here," said Jefferies analyst Jonathan Schildkraut.
On October 4, smaller wireless rival Dobson Communications Corp. (DCEL.O: Quote, Profile, Research) posted subscriber growth that beat analyst expectations. Its shares rose over 19 percent on Thursday.
One analyst said Dobson's news was not necessarily a good sign for Sprint but it may have boosted interest in wireless stocks in general. Another small cellular provider, Leap Wireless International Inc. (LEAP.O: Quote, Profile, Research), saw its shares rise 4.4 percent on Thursday
Shares of the No. 3 U.S. wireless company rose as much as 5 percent before yielding ground to finish up 2.9 percent, or 51 cents, at $17.86 on the New York Stock Exchange.
In addition, many option investors turned to bullish strategies such as buying calls, hoping to profit from share gains.
Analysts said there did not appear to be any fundamental reasons why Sprint shares were up, but investors could be becoming more interested in the wireless sector in general or pushing Sprint's stock up for technical reasons.
"The whole wireless space is extremely strong today," said Stanford Group analyst Michael Nelson. who also noted that Sprint announced plans to sell three new popular cell phones earlier this week.
"In general Sprint has been really beaten up and some people are saying that at this level there may be some real value here," said Jefferies analyst Jonathan Schildkraut.
On October 4, smaller wireless rival Dobson Communications Corp. (DCEL.O: Quote, Profile, Research) posted subscriber growth that beat analyst expectations. Its shares rose over 19 percent on Thursday.
One analyst said Dobson's news was not necessarily a good sign for Sprint but it may have boosted interest in wireless stocks in general. Another small cellular provider, Leap Wireless International Inc. (LEAP.O: Quote, Profile, Research), saw its shares rise 4.4 percent on Thursday
Tuesday, September 12, 2006
AT&T to offer DSL customers cable plan
AT&T Inc. is offering its broadband DSL subscribers a new service where they can watch live cable TV channels on any computer connected to the Internet at home or on the road for an extra $20 per month
.
The AT&T Broadband TV service will feature about 20 channels of live and made-for-broadband content. The lineup includes the History Channel, the Weather Channel, the Food Network, Bloomberg, and Oxygen. Channels will be added soon, the company said without elaborating.
The content is being provided by MobiTV Inc., a company that has specialized in delivering live cable channels to cellphones through wireless carriers such as Sprint Nextel Corp. and Cingular Wireless, which is majority owned by AT&T.
As compared with many Internet-based video services, where the viewing window is considerably smaller than most computer monitors, the new AT&T offering will allow users to expand the picture to full screen. The service requires Microsoft Corp.'s Windows Media Player for playback.
Viewers will see whatever commercials are being shown on the live broadcast, but no ads are planned for the browser window and control panel frame.
AT&T Broadband TV will be available to all 7.8 million subscribers of AT&T Yahoo High Speed Internet and AT&T WorldNet, though WorldNet users will not receive the Fox News channel.
While live TV feeds over the Internet are relatively uncommon so far, online downloading of video clips and TV programs has hit the mainstream over the past year.
Tuesday, September 05, 2006
Microsoft's Windows Live and Office Live raised a few eyebrows
Microsoft's Windows Live and Office Live raised a few eyebrows back when they were first announced. Was Microsoft simply trying to cash in on all the "Web 2.0" hype and show that it was able to match Google? Since that time, the Redmond giant has been working furiously to add more features to the "Live" stable of products, and has even been preparing to add features from its original namesake, Xbox Live.
Now, Microsoft has announced that they will be partnering with Verizon to bundle various Windows Live services with subscriptions to Verizon's DSL and FiOS Internet services. Verizon customers will have the option of a cobranded Verizon/Live.com home page, a Verizon/Live.com search page, and e-mail access through Windows Live Mail. They will also receive a Windows Live Toolbar, a cobranded version of Windows Live Messenger, and Windows Live OneCare.
This deal enhances an earlier partnership that Verizon and Microsoft entered into in 2002, when the Internet service provider agreed to bundle MSN 8 with new accounts. In many cases, products that used to fall under the MSN umbrella, such as MSN Messenger, have been rebranded as Windows Live services instead. Verizon seems happy with the deal. John Wimsatt, a senior vice president at the telco, gushed: "We're delighted to move forward with Microsoft in offering our broadband customers an enhanced, more-personalized Internet experience through a combination of Windows Live services and innovative features from Verizon."
The contract is not exclusive: other ISPs can also jump on the Windows Live bandwagon if they so choose. Nor are the Windows Live services forced upon new users. Upon signing up for a Verizon account, customers are given a list of menu options that allow customization of e-mail, home page, and search engine preferences. If customers make no choice, the default for many of these options is set to Yahoo, based on an earlier agreement between Verizon and the exclamation point-enjoying search engine company.
Will deals such as this boost Windows Live's popularity? So far, reaction to many of the Live services has been mixed—few people are rushing to replace Google with Live.com and its slow, if fancy user interface. However, with Vista still on track for its ship date next January, much of Windows' default infrastructure will incorporate Live services, and my contacts at Microsoft assure me that the sluggish performance of many of the Live tools will be fixed by the switch to Vista's new graphics architecture, although it remains to be seen whether these performance gains will be noticeable on existing hardware.
Now, Microsoft has announced that they will be partnering with Verizon to bundle various Windows Live services with subscriptions to Verizon's DSL and FiOS Internet services. Verizon customers will have the option of a cobranded Verizon/Live.com home page, a Verizon/Live.com search page, and e-mail access through Windows Live Mail. They will also receive a Windows Live Toolbar, a cobranded version of Windows Live Messenger, and Windows Live OneCare.
This deal enhances an earlier partnership that Verizon and Microsoft entered into in 2002, when the Internet service provider agreed to bundle MSN 8 with new accounts. In many cases, products that used to fall under the MSN umbrella, such as MSN Messenger, have been rebranded as Windows Live services instead. Verizon seems happy with the deal. John Wimsatt, a senior vice president at the telco, gushed: "We're delighted to move forward with Microsoft in offering our broadband customers an enhanced, more-personalized Internet experience through a combination of Windows Live services and innovative features from Verizon."
The contract is not exclusive: other ISPs can also jump on the Windows Live bandwagon if they so choose. Nor are the Windows Live services forced upon new users. Upon signing up for a Verizon account, customers are given a list of menu options that allow customization of e-mail, home page, and search engine preferences. If customers make no choice, the default for many of these options is set to Yahoo, based on an earlier agreement between Verizon and the exclamation point-enjoying search engine company.
Will deals such as this boost Windows Live's popularity? So far, reaction to many of the Live services has been mixed—few people are rushing to replace Google with Live.com and its slow, if fancy user interface. However, with Vista still on track for its ship date next January, much of Windows' default infrastructure will incorporate Live services, and my contacts at Microsoft assure me that the sluggish performance of many of the Live tools will be fixed by the switch to Vista's new graphics architecture, although it remains to be seen whether these performance gains will be noticeable on existing hardware.
Wednesday, August 23, 2006
No price cuts for Verizon, BellSouth DSL customers
Verizon Communications' and BellSouth's DSL customers won't see a reduction in their broadband bills, even though a special fee that had been tacked on to bills to pay for a federal program has been eliminated.
Last year, the Federal Communications Commission changed how it classifies DSL (digital subscriber line) services, thus eliminating a fee that had been charged to all DSL subscribers to help pay into the Universal Service Fund. USF is a federal program that helps subsidize rural telephone service and provide Internet access to schools and libraries.
Verizon DSL customers subscribing to its 768Kbps (kilobits per second) service paid about $1.25 into USF every month, and customers of its 3Mbps (megabits per second) service paid about $2.83 per month, the company said. BellSouth customers were charged $2.97 per month for USF, according to the BellSouth Web site.
But now that the fee has been eliminated, as of Aug. 14, neither Verizon nor BellSouth plan to pass the savings on to consumers. Instead, Verizon has added a new "supplier surcharge" starting Aug. 26 that's $1.20 per month for the slower service and $2.70 for the faster service. BellSouth said it will keep its $2.97 fee, which it continues to call a "regulatory cost recovery fee."
Verizon said it is charging its new supplier surcharge to offset the cost of offering its standalone, or "naked," DSL service, which allows customers to subscribe to DSL without subscribing to Verizon's local phone service.
The company said that because it's losing revenue from those voice subscriptions, it must make up the difference in other ways. But instead of simply recovering those costs in the price of the actual service, Verizon has chosen to spread the cost of naked DSL across its entire DSL customer base.
Customers subscribing to standalone DSL pay $5 more per month for their broadband service than customers who buy DSL bundled with a voice service.
"We didn't think the standalone DSL service would be competitively priced if we put all of the cost on the service," said Bobbi Henson, a Verizon spokeswoman. "So we spread the cost across the entire base of our DSL customers. Doing this as another fee was coming off the bill seemed like good timing, since it will have little impact on what customers are actually paying per month."
Meanwhile, AT&T and Qwest Communications International, which also offer standalone DSL, are not adding new fees in lieu of the USF fee. AT&T charges about $10 more per month for the standalone DSL service than it does for its bundled DSL services.
BellSouth had a different explanation for keeping its $2.97 fee. It explained in a statement sent to CNET News.com via e-mail that the charge is "to offset costs incurred in complying with regulatory obligations and other expenses. The fee also recovers costs associated with additional systems necessitated by federal regulation, as well as costs associated with monitoring, participating in and complying with regulatory proceedings, and other network and servicing requirements."
But consumer groups don't buy either explanation.
"Verizon and BellSouth are using the situation to pocket more revenue from every customer by labeling this fee, which customers are already used to paying, something else," said Jeannine Kenney, senior policy analyst for Consumers Union. "BellSouth is clearly misrepresenting what the fee will pay for. I mean how can this be a 'regulatory cost recovery' when DSL is no longer regulated?"
Mark Cooper, director of research at the Consumer Federation of America, believes that Congress should take the phone companies' recent actions as a warning of what could happen if lawmakers do not impose Net Neutrality regulation, a hot topic being debated in Washington. Without Net Neutrality legislation, network owners, such as the phone companies, could charge third parties, like Vonage or Google, extra fees for offering services over the phone companies' broadband networks. Phone companies have argued that if they could provide Internet companies premium services for a fee, broadband customers could ultimately benefit through lower-priced and more innovative services.
Last year, the Federal Communications Commission changed how it classifies DSL (digital subscriber line) services, thus eliminating a fee that had been charged to all DSL subscribers to help pay into the Universal Service Fund. USF is a federal program that helps subsidize rural telephone service and provide Internet access to schools and libraries.
Verizon DSL customers subscribing to its 768Kbps (kilobits per second) service paid about $1.25 into USF every month, and customers of its 3Mbps (megabits per second) service paid about $2.83 per month, the company said. BellSouth customers were charged $2.97 per month for USF, according to the BellSouth Web site.
But now that the fee has been eliminated, as of Aug. 14, neither Verizon nor BellSouth plan to pass the savings on to consumers. Instead, Verizon has added a new "supplier surcharge" starting Aug. 26 that's $1.20 per month for the slower service and $2.70 for the faster service. BellSouth said it will keep its $2.97 fee, which it continues to call a "regulatory cost recovery fee."
Verizon said it is charging its new supplier surcharge to offset the cost of offering its standalone, or "naked," DSL service, which allows customers to subscribe to DSL without subscribing to Verizon's local phone service.
The company said that because it's losing revenue from those voice subscriptions, it must make up the difference in other ways. But instead of simply recovering those costs in the price of the actual service, Verizon has chosen to spread the cost of naked DSL across its entire DSL customer base.
Customers subscribing to standalone DSL pay $5 more per month for their broadband service than customers who buy DSL bundled with a voice service.
"We didn't think the standalone DSL service would be competitively priced if we put all of the cost on the service," said Bobbi Henson, a Verizon spokeswoman. "So we spread the cost across the entire base of our DSL customers. Doing this as another fee was coming off the bill seemed like good timing, since it will have little impact on what customers are actually paying per month."
Meanwhile, AT&T and Qwest Communications International, which also offer standalone DSL, are not adding new fees in lieu of the USF fee. AT&T charges about $10 more per month for the standalone DSL service than it does for its bundled DSL services.
BellSouth had a different explanation for keeping its $2.97 fee. It explained in a statement sent to CNET News.com via e-mail that the charge is "to offset costs incurred in complying with regulatory obligations and other expenses. The fee also recovers costs associated with additional systems necessitated by federal regulation, as well as costs associated with monitoring, participating in and complying with regulatory proceedings, and other network and servicing requirements."
But consumer groups don't buy either explanation.
"Verizon and BellSouth are using the situation to pocket more revenue from every customer by labeling this fee, which customers are already used to paying, something else," said Jeannine Kenney, senior policy analyst for Consumers Union. "BellSouth is clearly misrepresenting what the fee will pay for. I mean how can this be a 'regulatory cost recovery' when DSL is no longer regulated?"
Mark Cooper, director of research at the Consumer Federation of America, believes that Congress should take the phone companies' recent actions as a warning of what could happen if lawmakers do not impose Net Neutrality regulation, a hot topic being debated in Washington. Without Net Neutrality legislation, network owners, such as the phone companies, could charge third parties, like Vonage or Google, extra fees for offering services over the phone companies' broadband networks. Phone companies have argued that if they could provide Internet companies premium services for a fee, broadband customers could ultimately benefit through lower-priced and more innovative services.
Verizon Communications' and BellSouth's DSL customers won't see a reduction in their broadband bills, even though a special fee that had been tacked on to bills to pay for a federal program has been eliminated.
Last year, the Federal Communications Commission changed how it classifies DSL (digital subscriber line) services, thus eliminating a fee that had been charged to all DSL subscribers to help pay into the Universal Service Fund. USF is a federal program that helps subsidize rural telephone service and provide Internet access to schools and libraries.
Verizon DSL customers subscribing to its 768Kbps (kilobits per second) service paid about $1.25 into USF every month, and customers of its 3Mbps (megabits per second) service paid about $2.83 per month, the company said. BellSouth customers were charged $2.97 per month for USF, according to the BellSouth Web site.
But now that the fee has been eliminated, as of Aug. 14, neither Verizon nor BellSouth plan to pass the savings on to consumers. Instead, Verizon has added a new "supplier surcharge" starting Aug. 26 that's $1.20 per month for the slower service and $2.70 for the faster service. BellSouth said it will keep its $2.97 fee, which it continues to call a "regulatory cost recovery fee."
Verizon said it is charging its new supplier surcharge to offset the cost of offering its standalone, or "naked," DSL service, which allows customers to subscribe to DSL without subscribing to Verizon's local phone service.
The company said that because it's losing revenue from those voice subscriptions, it must make up the difference in other ways. But instead of simply recovering those costs in the price of the actual service, Verizon has chosen to spread the cost of naked DSL across its entire DSL customer base.
Customers subscribing to standalone DSL pay $5 more per month for their broadband service than customers who buy DSL bundled with a voice service.
"We didn't think the standalone DSL service would be competitively priced if we put all of the cost on the service," said Bobbi Henson, a Verizon spokeswoman. "So we spread the cost across the entire base of our DSL customers. Doing this as another fee was coming off the bill seemed like good timing, since it will have little impact on what customers are actually paying per month."
Meanwhile, AT&T and Qwest Communications International, which also offer standalone DSL, are not adding new fees in lieu of the USF fee. AT&T charges about $10 more per month for the standalone DSL service than it does for its bundled DSL services.
BellSouth had a different explanation for keeping its $2.97 fee. It explained in a statement sent to CNET News.com via e-mail that the charge is "to offset costs incurred in complying with regulatory obligations and other expenses. The fee also recovers costs associated with additional systems necessitated by federal regulation, as well as costs associated with monitoring, participating in and complying with regulatory proceedings, and other network and servicing requirements."
But consumer groups don't buy either explanation.
"Verizon and BellSouth are using the situation to pocket more revenue from every customer by labeling this fee, which customers are already used to paying, something else," said Jeannine Kenney, senior policy analyst for Consumers Union. "BellSouth is clearly misrepresenting what the fee will pay for. I mean how can this be a 'regulatory cost recovery' when DSL is no longer regulated?"
Mark Cooper, director of research at the Consumer Federation of America, believes that Congress should take the phone companies' recent actions as a warning of what could happen if lawmakers do not impose Net Neutrality regulation, a hot topic being debated in Washington. Without Net Neutrality legislation, network owners, such as the phone companies, could charge third parties, like Vonage or Google, extra fees for offering services over the phone companies' broadband networks. Phone companies have argued that if they could provide Internet companies premium services for a fee, broadband customers could ultimately benefit through lower-priced and more innovative services.
Last year, the Federal Communications Commission changed how it classifies DSL (digital subscriber line) services, thus eliminating a fee that had been charged to all DSL subscribers to help pay into the Universal Service Fund. USF is a federal program that helps subsidize rural telephone service and provide Internet access to schools and libraries.
Verizon DSL customers subscribing to its 768Kbps (kilobits per second) service paid about $1.25 into USF every month, and customers of its 3Mbps (megabits per second) service paid about $2.83 per month, the company said. BellSouth customers were charged $2.97 per month for USF, according to the BellSouth Web site.
But now that the fee has been eliminated, as of Aug. 14, neither Verizon nor BellSouth plan to pass the savings on to consumers. Instead, Verizon has added a new "supplier surcharge" starting Aug. 26 that's $1.20 per month for the slower service and $2.70 for the faster service. BellSouth said it will keep its $2.97 fee, which it continues to call a "regulatory cost recovery fee."
Verizon said it is charging its new supplier surcharge to offset the cost of offering its standalone, or "naked," DSL service, which allows customers to subscribe to DSL without subscribing to Verizon's local phone service.
The company said that because it's losing revenue from those voice subscriptions, it must make up the difference in other ways. But instead of simply recovering those costs in the price of the actual service, Verizon has chosen to spread the cost of naked DSL across its entire DSL customer base.
Customers subscribing to standalone DSL pay $5 more per month for their broadband service than customers who buy DSL bundled with a voice service.
"We didn't think the standalone DSL service would be competitively priced if we put all of the cost on the service," said Bobbi Henson, a Verizon spokeswoman. "So we spread the cost across the entire base of our DSL customers. Doing this as another fee was coming off the bill seemed like good timing, since it will have little impact on what customers are actually paying per month."
Meanwhile, AT&T and Qwest Communications International, which also offer standalone DSL, are not adding new fees in lieu of the USF fee. AT&T charges about $10 more per month for the standalone DSL service than it does for its bundled DSL services.
BellSouth had a different explanation for keeping its $2.97 fee. It explained in a statement sent to CNET News.com via e-mail that the charge is "to offset costs incurred in complying with regulatory obligations and other expenses. The fee also recovers costs associated with additional systems necessitated by federal regulation, as well as costs associated with monitoring, participating in and complying with regulatory proceedings, and other network and servicing requirements."
But consumer groups don't buy either explanation.
"Verizon and BellSouth are using the situation to pocket more revenue from every customer by labeling this fee, which customers are already used to paying, something else," said Jeannine Kenney, senior policy analyst for Consumers Union. "BellSouth is clearly misrepresenting what the fee will pay for. I mean how can this be a 'regulatory cost recovery' when DSL is no longer regulated?"
Mark Cooper, director of research at the Consumer Federation of America, believes that Congress should take the phone companies' recent actions as a warning of what could happen if lawmakers do not impose Net Neutrality regulation, a hot topic being debated in Washington. Without Net Neutrality legislation, network owners, such as the phone companies, could charge third parties, like Vonage or Google, extra fees for offering services over the phone companies' broadband networks. Phone companies have argued that if they could provide Internet companies premium services for a fee, broadband customers could ultimately benefit through lower-priced and more innovative services.
Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Sprint Extends Cable Deal
Sprint Nextel said Thursday it has expanded its agreement with Time Warner Cable, the second-largest cable operator in the United States, to offer voice services to the cable firm’s customers.
The new five-year agreement adds another 14 service areas in which Time Warner will use Sprint’s wireline network to offer VoIP services to the cable company’s voice subscribers.
Sprint currently connects more than 1.2 million cable VoIP customers, and the Reston, Virginia-based carrier is expected to double that number to 2.5 million in a year.
Despite the deal, shares of Sprint Nextel fell $2.77 to $17.36 in recent trading, while Time Warner shares dropped $0.17 to $16.50.
Time Warner, the New York-based parent of Time Warner Cable, announced on Wednesday that it added more than 234,000 new VoIP subscribers in the second quarter, bringing its total to 1.6 million.
That places Time Warner Cable in the third spot among cable companies offering voice services.
Cox Communications, which has more than 1.8 million voice customers, continues to lead, barely, followed by Comcast in second place with 1.7 million.
Handing off Traffic
The deal between Sprint and Time Warner Cable will involve the handoff of long-distance traffic from Time Warner’s network to the Sprint network.
Sprint will also provide Emergency 911 services to Time Warner Cable’s voice customers.
Until it sold off much of its local phone business, Sprint used to be one of the largest wireline telephone companies in the U.S.
The company, which operates the third-largest wireless network in the U.S. after Cingular and Verizon Wireless, has built an extensive business around the cable industry.
Last November Sprint teamed with cable leaders Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cox Communications, and Advanced/Newhouse in a joint venture that will allow the cable firms to resell Sprint’s wireless services.
Sprint invested $100 million in the deal while the cable operators together added another $100 million.
The $200-million investment is going toward the development of integrated voice, data, video, and wireless services, and marketing efforts.
Phone Company Incursions
Cable companies are facing incursions into their pay-TV distribution businesses by phone companies. AT&T and Verizon Communications are now offering all four services in much of their coverage areas.
Both AT&T and Verizon own wireless carriers and they resell satellite TV services as part of their voice, data, video, and wireless packages.
But both phone companies are also upgrading their networks to offer IPTV services. Verizon has already begun rolling out its IPTV services in a number of markets across the country.
Offering multiservice packages has proven to be quite popular among customers. Surveys have shown that customers favor the discounts inherent in these packages, and the single-bill option.
By reselling Sprint’s wireless services, the cable operators can match the phone companies in their ability to offer the full complement of four services.
“Our vision for the cable initiative, whether it’s wireline or wireless, is to deliver compelling, integrated services that provide unique value to customers,” said Gary Forsee, Sprint Nextel’s chief executive.
“This expanded agreement with Time Warner Cable is illustrative of our company’s growing importance in the cable sector,” he concluded.
The new five-year agreement adds another 14 service areas in which Time Warner will use Sprint’s wireline network to offer VoIP services to the cable company’s voice subscribers.
Sprint currently connects more than 1.2 million cable VoIP customers, and the Reston, Virginia-based carrier is expected to double that number to 2.5 million in a year.
Despite the deal, shares of Sprint Nextel fell $2.77 to $17.36 in recent trading, while Time Warner shares dropped $0.17 to $16.50.
Time Warner, the New York-based parent of Time Warner Cable, announced on Wednesday that it added more than 234,000 new VoIP subscribers in the second quarter, bringing its total to 1.6 million.
That places Time Warner Cable in the third spot among cable companies offering voice services.
Cox Communications, which has more than 1.8 million voice customers, continues to lead, barely, followed by Comcast in second place with 1.7 million.
Handing off Traffic
The deal between Sprint and Time Warner Cable will involve the handoff of long-distance traffic from Time Warner’s network to the Sprint network.
Sprint will also provide Emergency 911 services to Time Warner Cable’s voice customers.
Until it sold off much of its local phone business, Sprint used to be one of the largest wireline telephone companies in the U.S.
The company, which operates the third-largest wireless network in the U.S. after Cingular and Verizon Wireless, has built an extensive business around the cable industry.
Last November Sprint teamed with cable leaders Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cox Communications, and Advanced/Newhouse in a joint venture that will allow the cable firms to resell Sprint’s wireless services.
Sprint invested $100 million in the deal while the cable operators together added another $100 million.
The $200-million investment is going toward the development of integrated voice, data, video, and wireless services, and marketing efforts.
Phone Company Incursions
Cable companies are facing incursions into their pay-TV distribution businesses by phone companies. AT&T and Verizon Communications are now offering all four services in much of their coverage areas.
Both AT&T and Verizon own wireless carriers and they resell satellite TV services as part of their voice, data, video, and wireless packages.
But both phone companies are also upgrading their networks to offer IPTV services. Verizon has already begun rolling out its IPTV services in a number of markets across the country.
Offering multiservice packages has proven to be quite popular among customers. Surveys have shown that customers favor the discounts inherent in these packages, and the single-bill option.
By reselling Sprint’s wireless services, the cable operators can match the phone companies in their ability to offer the full complement of four services.
“Our vision for the cable initiative, whether it’s wireline or wireless, is to deliver compelling, integrated services that provide unique value to customers,” said Gary Forsee, Sprint Nextel’s chief executive.
“This expanded agreement with Time Warner Cable is illustrative of our company’s growing importance in the cable sector,” he concluded.
Saturday, July 22, 2006
Wireless, Web seen driving AT&T, Verizon earnings
Telecommunications giants AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T - news) and Verizon Communications Inc. (NYSE:VZ - news) are expected to report solid second-quarter earnings, buoyed by growth in wireless and Internet subscribers.
Analysts said cost savings from mergers between AT&T and SBC Communications, as well as Verizon and MCI last year, should also soothe investor concerns over falling traditional phone revenues and competition from cable operators' all-in-one packages of voice, Internet and phone services.
"Strong broadband and wireless customer growth should offset continued access line losses in Q2," said Tom Watts, an analyst at Cowen & Co.
"Cable competition and increased (capital expenditure) remain near-term concerns. However, long-term prospects for the free cash flow generation, EPS growth and share buybacks should offset these issues," said Watts.
In a first sign of how telecom companies will perform, Cingular Wireless, a joint venture of AT&T and BellSouth Corp. (NYSE:BLS - news), said on Thursday its quarterly net income rose to $540 million from $147 million. Cingular said it added a higher-than-expected 1.5 million customers while cancellations, known as churn, fell to a record-low 1.7 percent.
Analysts on average forecast AT&T to report on Tuesday adjusted earnings of 53 cents a share for the second quarter, up from 43 cents a year ago, according to Reuters Estimates. AT&T posted earnings of 52 cents a share in the first quarter.
Verizon, due to report on August 1, was seen posting earnings of 63 cents a share before merger costs, flat with the year-ago quarter and up from 60 cents in the first quarter.
Analysts said that both companies were benefiting from their wireless operations, but they were slightly more cautious on Verizon as it was spending more heavily on a fiber optic network to deliver Web-based television and other services.
BROADBAND AND VIDEO
AT&T shares have risen about 16 percent from a year earlier, while Verizon has fallen about 7 percent. Both companies are trading at about 12 times forecast 2007 earnings excluding special items, according to Reuters Estimates.
Verizon has been investing heavily in deploying high-speed Internet connections. Aside from its digital subscriber line service, it has also been expanding its fiber-optic service network, FiOS, the backbone of Verizon's newly-launched, Web-based TV service.
AT&T has also recently launched new video services. But both telecoms firms are struggling to compete with cable providers such as Comcast (Nasdaq:CMCSA - news) and Time Warner Cable (NYSE:TWX - news), who have had a head start and an advantage of already being connected to living rooms.
"We expect Verizon to have another strong quarter in broadband, with 445,000 net additions... 130,000 in FiOS data and 315,000 in legacy DSL subscribers," UBS analyst John Hodulik said in a research report.
Analysts said cost savings from mergers between AT&T and SBC Communications, as well as Verizon and MCI last year, should also soothe investor concerns over falling traditional phone revenues and competition from cable operators' all-in-one packages of voice, Internet and phone services.
"Strong broadband and wireless customer growth should offset continued access line losses in Q2," said Tom Watts, an analyst at Cowen & Co.
"Cable competition and increased (capital expenditure) remain near-term concerns. However, long-term prospects for the free cash flow generation, EPS growth and share buybacks should offset these issues," said Watts.
In a first sign of how telecom companies will perform, Cingular Wireless, a joint venture of AT&T and BellSouth Corp. (NYSE:BLS - news), said on Thursday its quarterly net income rose to $540 million from $147 million. Cingular said it added a higher-than-expected 1.5 million customers while cancellations, known as churn, fell to a record-low 1.7 percent.
Analysts on average forecast AT&T to report on Tuesday adjusted earnings of 53 cents a share for the second quarter, up from 43 cents a year ago, according to Reuters Estimates. AT&T posted earnings of 52 cents a share in the first quarter.
Verizon, due to report on August 1, was seen posting earnings of 63 cents a share before merger costs, flat with the year-ago quarter and up from 60 cents in the first quarter.
Analysts said that both companies were benefiting from their wireless operations, but they were slightly more cautious on Verizon as it was spending more heavily on a fiber optic network to deliver Web-based television and other services.
BROADBAND AND VIDEO
AT&T shares have risen about 16 percent from a year earlier, while Verizon has fallen about 7 percent. Both companies are trading at about 12 times forecast 2007 earnings excluding special items, according to Reuters Estimates.
Verizon has been investing heavily in deploying high-speed Internet connections. Aside from its digital subscriber line service, it has also been expanding its fiber-optic service network, FiOS, the backbone of Verizon's newly-launched, Web-based TV service.
AT&T has also recently launched new video services. But both telecoms firms are struggling to compete with cable providers such as Comcast (Nasdaq:CMCSA - news) and Time Warner Cable (NYSE:TWX - news), who have had a head start and an advantage of already being connected to living rooms.
"We expect Verizon to have another strong quarter in broadband, with 445,000 net additions... 130,000 in FiOS data and 315,000 in legacy DSL subscribers," UBS analyst John Hodulik said in a research report.
Wednesday, June 21, 2006
Sprint Nextel gives customers access in Canada, Mexico
Sprint Nextel Corp. announced Wednesday that its customers will have access to wireless phone services in Canada and Mexico.
These services are available as part of reciprocal agreements with wireless service providers Bell Canada and Iusacell in Mexico. With this deal, Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) becomes the only U.S. operator to provide high-speed wireless services throughout Canada and Mexico.
John Dubois, director of global roaming for Sprint Nextel, said this deal was something the company had been planning for a while and is part of a larger expansion of international services. Within the next year, Sprint Nextel plans to be offering high-speed wireless service in major markets around the world, he said.
These services are available as part of reciprocal agreements with wireless service providers Bell Canada and Iusacell in Mexico. With this deal, Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) becomes the only U.S. operator to provide high-speed wireless services throughout Canada and Mexico.
John Dubois, director of global roaming for Sprint Nextel, said this deal was something the company had been planning for a while and is part of a larger expansion of international services. Within the next year, Sprint Nextel plans to be offering high-speed wireless service in major markets around the world, he said.
Wednesday, June 07, 2006
Sprint Nextel expresses concern about AT&T-BellSouth merger
Less than a year after federal regulators blessed its $35 billion mega-merger, Sprint Nextel Corp. has filed opposition against AT&T Inc.'s $67 billion acquisition of BellSouth Corp.
A prime concern of Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) is that an AT&T-BellSouth would control 99 percent of the wireline access at Sprint Nextel's wireless towers in the AT&T and BellSouth service territories. Sprint Nextel must pay the wireline companies to access those high-capacity lines and route wireless calls.
In a filing with the Federal Communications Commission on Monday, Sprint Nextel noted that AT&T and BellSouth also jointly own rival Cingular Wireless, "thereby increasing the merged company's incentive to use its special access pricing flexibility to benefit Cingular."
Sprint Nextel outlined a dozen conditions the FCC should place on the merger before approving it. Those conditions include prohibiting AT&T from increasing certain access rates for 30 months.
Sprint Nextel, the No. 3 wireless carrier nationally, did not disclose in the filing how much money it spends with AT&T and BellSouth on the access fees for wireless calls.
A prime concern of Sprint Nextel (NYSE: S) is that an AT&T-BellSouth would control 99 percent of the wireline access at Sprint Nextel's wireless towers in the AT&T and BellSouth service territories. Sprint Nextel must pay the wireline companies to access those high-capacity lines and route wireless calls.
In a filing with the Federal Communications Commission on Monday, Sprint Nextel noted that AT&T and BellSouth also jointly own rival Cingular Wireless, "thereby increasing the merged company's incentive to use its special access pricing flexibility to benefit Cingular."
Sprint Nextel outlined a dozen conditions the FCC should place on the merger before approving it. Those conditions include prohibiting AT&T from increasing certain access rates for 30 months.
Sprint Nextel, the No. 3 wireless carrier nationally, did not disclose in the filing how much money it spends with AT&T and BellSouth on the access fees for wireless calls.
Thursday, May 25, 2006
AT&T, BellSouth, Sprint May Win End to Long-Distance Excise Tax
More than a century after the Spanish- American War, AT&T Inc., BellSouth Corp. and Sprint Nextel Corp. may be close to being rid of the tax created to pay for it.
In the past year, five appeals courts with jurisdiction over 13 states have said the 108-year-old U.S. excise tax on long- distance calls is illegal, and Republican lawmakers in both chambers of Congress have introduced legislation to abolish it. In February, Treasury Secretary John Snow told a congressional panel that ``the handwriting is on the wall'' for the levy.
``Secretary Snow has led me to believe they're just about ready to throw in the towel,'' said Representative Gary Miller, a California Republican who is sponsoring repeal legislation in the House. ``It's time we just eliminate it.''
The Treasury Department said Snow would make an announcement today about the telephone tax. Snow's spokesman, Sean Kevelighan, said this week that ``IRS, Treasury and Justice are considering all the options, and we will hopefully have some sort of conclusion or decision in the future.''
The driving force behind the push for abolition of the tax comes from successful legal challenges by corporate phone-service customers such as Itasca, Illinois-based OfficeMax Inc. and Palo Alto, California-based Hewlett-Packard Co. The 3 percent excise tax, which carriers are required to collect from their clients and remit to the government, would generate $67 billion in government revenue over the next 10 years, according to estimates by the congressional Joint Committee on Taxation.
The telephone companies say the court rulings have put them in an untenable position: stuck between customers in those states who may sue them for collecting the levy and a government that may penalize them for failing to pass it on.
`Obligated'
``We are obligated to continue to collect the tax because the IRS hasn't issued any guidance telling us we don't have to,'' said Caroline Graves Hurley, director of tax, finance, and business policy for the Washington-based U.S. Telecommunications Association, an industry group that represents 1,200 companies, including San Antonio-based AT&T, Atlanta-based BellSouth and Reston, Virginia-based Sprint Nextel.
At issue is whether a 1965 version of the law, first enacted in 1898 to fund the war with Spain, permits the government to tax long-distance calls based on elapsed time, distance, or both. The IRS in 2005 insisted both types of calls are taxable; the courts have ruled the tax doesn't apply to calls billed in time increments or those covered by a flat-rate plan, as most calls currently are.
Refunds
More than a dozen companies, including St. John's, Newfoundland-based Fortis Inc. and Amtrak, the national passenger railroad based in Washington, have won more than $2 million in refunds from the government in the past two years. On May 16, Downers Grove, Illinois-based ServiceMaster Co., owner of the Terminix, TruGreen ChemLawn and Merry Maids brands, won a refund of $880,000 collected by AT&T and Sprint.
Those victories have led to dozens more suits, including a class-action claim filed by Fort Worth, Texas-based RadioShack Corp. that seeks as much as $9 billion in refunds on behalf of telephone users around the country.
Individual consumers may soon join the fray, too. BellSouth is already fighting a class-action lawsuit brought in April by a long-distance customer in Alabama.
``We believe anyone who wants to challenge the tax needs to challenge it with the taxing authority,'' said Bill McCloskey, a BellSouth spokesman. About 14 million of BellSouth's 19.8 million customers reside in states where the appellate courts have ruled the tax illegal, he said. Other telephone companies referred calls to the U.S. Telecommunications Association.
``With several appellate court losses already on the books, the IRS is clearly aware of the legal challenges they face,'' Hurley said. ``We hope they will act quickly to resolve these conflicts.''
Tax Cuts
The courts' involvement may deliver a victory to tax-cutting Republicans in Washington who are running out of taxes to cut and are facing a projected $300 billion budget deficit for this year.
Congress in 2000 voted overwhelmingly to abolish the levy, though then-President Bill Clinton vetoed the broader spending legislation that contained the repeal. The Bush administration hasn't revived the measure.
Since then, Republican lawmakers -- including Miller, Minnesota Representative James Ramstad, Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum and Virginia Senator George Allen -- have led efforts to pass a new repeal.
`The Time Has Come'
``The time has come for the IRS to stop applying this unfair, and apparently illegal, tax,'' said Santorum, whose state is covered by the Third Circuit's ruling that the levy is illegal.
J. Leigh Griffith, a partner with the law firm Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis LLP in Nashville who is preparing to file as many as 100 refund lawsuits against the government on behalf of mid-sized companies, said lawyers are watching the results of two cases pending in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.
A victory there by Time Warner Corp.'s Dulles, Virginia- based America Online unit or Morris Township, New Jersey-based Honeywell International Inc. would have national ramifications, he said. ``There is a reasonable chance the government will ultimately throw in the towel,'' Griffith said.
McCloskey, the BellSouth spokesman, said his company has been fighting the telephone tax for years and is tired of acting as a tax collector.
``We'd like to see it resolved in favor of the customer,'' he said. ``We've been in middle since the Spanish-American War.''
In the past year, five appeals courts with jurisdiction over 13 states have said the 108-year-old U.S. excise tax on long- distance calls is illegal, and Republican lawmakers in both chambers of Congress have introduced legislation to abolish it. In February, Treasury Secretary John Snow told a congressional panel that ``the handwriting is on the wall'' for the levy.
``Secretary Snow has led me to believe they're just about ready to throw in the towel,'' said Representative Gary Miller, a California Republican who is sponsoring repeal legislation in the House. ``It's time we just eliminate it.''
The Treasury Department said Snow would make an announcement today about the telephone tax. Snow's spokesman, Sean Kevelighan, said this week that ``IRS, Treasury and Justice are considering all the options, and we will hopefully have some sort of conclusion or decision in the future.''
The driving force behind the push for abolition of the tax comes from successful legal challenges by corporate phone-service customers such as Itasca, Illinois-based OfficeMax Inc. and Palo Alto, California-based Hewlett-Packard Co. The 3 percent excise tax, which carriers are required to collect from their clients and remit to the government, would generate $67 billion in government revenue over the next 10 years, according to estimates by the congressional Joint Committee on Taxation.
The telephone companies say the court rulings have put them in an untenable position: stuck between customers in those states who may sue them for collecting the levy and a government that may penalize them for failing to pass it on.
`Obligated'
``We are obligated to continue to collect the tax because the IRS hasn't issued any guidance telling us we don't have to,'' said Caroline Graves Hurley, director of tax, finance, and business policy for the Washington-based U.S. Telecommunications Association, an industry group that represents 1,200 companies, including San Antonio-based AT&T, Atlanta-based BellSouth and Reston, Virginia-based Sprint Nextel.
At issue is whether a 1965 version of the law, first enacted in 1898 to fund the war with Spain, permits the government to tax long-distance calls based on elapsed time, distance, or both. The IRS in 2005 insisted both types of calls are taxable; the courts have ruled the tax doesn't apply to calls billed in time increments or those covered by a flat-rate plan, as most calls currently are.
Refunds
More than a dozen companies, including St. John's, Newfoundland-based Fortis Inc. and Amtrak, the national passenger railroad based in Washington, have won more than $2 million in refunds from the government in the past two years. On May 16, Downers Grove, Illinois-based ServiceMaster Co., owner of the Terminix, TruGreen ChemLawn and Merry Maids brands, won a refund of $880,000 collected by AT&T and Sprint.
Those victories have led to dozens more suits, including a class-action claim filed by Fort Worth, Texas-based RadioShack Corp. that seeks as much as $9 billion in refunds on behalf of telephone users around the country.
Individual consumers may soon join the fray, too. BellSouth is already fighting a class-action lawsuit brought in April by a long-distance customer in Alabama.
``We believe anyone who wants to challenge the tax needs to challenge it with the taxing authority,'' said Bill McCloskey, a BellSouth spokesman. About 14 million of BellSouth's 19.8 million customers reside in states where the appellate courts have ruled the tax illegal, he said. Other telephone companies referred calls to the U.S. Telecommunications Association.
``With several appellate court losses already on the books, the IRS is clearly aware of the legal challenges they face,'' Hurley said. ``We hope they will act quickly to resolve these conflicts.''
Tax Cuts
The courts' involvement may deliver a victory to tax-cutting Republicans in Washington who are running out of taxes to cut and are facing a projected $300 billion budget deficit for this year.
Congress in 2000 voted overwhelmingly to abolish the levy, though then-President Bill Clinton vetoed the broader spending legislation that contained the repeal. The Bush administration hasn't revived the measure.
Since then, Republican lawmakers -- including Miller, Minnesota Representative James Ramstad, Pennsylvania Senator Rick Santorum and Virginia Senator George Allen -- have led efforts to pass a new repeal.
`The Time Has Come'
``The time has come for the IRS to stop applying this unfair, and apparently illegal, tax,'' said Santorum, whose state is covered by the Third Circuit's ruling that the levy is illegal.
J. Leigh Griffith, a partner with the law firm Waller Lansden Dortch & Davis LLP in Nashville who is preparing to file as many as 100 refund lawsuits against the government on behalf of mid-sized companies, said lawyers are watching the results of two cases pending in the U.S. Court of Federal Claims.
A victory there by Time Warner Corp.'s Dulles, Virginia- based America Online unit or Morris Township, New Jersey-based Honeywell International Inc. would have national ramifications, he said. ``There is a reasonable chance the government will ultimately throw in the towel,'' Griffith said.
McCloskey, the BellSouth spokesman, said his company has been fighting the telephone tax for years and is tired of acting as a tax collector.
``We'd like to see it resolved in favor of the customer,'' he said. ``We've been in middle since the Spanish-American War.''
Tuesday, May 16, 2006
Sprint Announces Plans to Be First to Offer Mobile Broadband-Capable Palm Treo Running Palm OS
Sprint Power Vision(SM) Smart Device Treo(TM) 700P By Palm Features
Industry-Unique Multimedia Capabilities Powered by the Nation's
Largest Mobile Broadband Network That Allows Users to Do More in More
Places
Sprint (NYSE:S) today announced plans to be the first carrier tooffer the Sprint Power Vision(SM) Smart Device Treo(TM) 700P by Palm -the latest PDA/Phone combo to deliver broadband-like download speedsof Sprint Mobile Broadband Services operating on the Sprint PowerVision Network(1). Sprint has the largest mobile broadband network ofany carrier today and is expected to extend its leadership role toreach an estimated 190 million people nationwide and in Puerto Rico byyear end and concurrently implement second-generation upgrades tobring additional mobility benefits to users in 1Q 2007. The Treo 700Pwill be available at the end of May at Sprint Stores, Sprint businesschannels and online at www.sprint.com at $399.99 after availablediscounts and promotions.
Ideal for customers who want to extend their workplace and stayconnected for personal needs, the Treo 700P builds upon the success ofearlier models offering enhancements in several areas includingbroadband-like download speeds, an enhanced Blazer Web browser and anupdated Palm OS (version 5.4.9). Sprint is enabling the Treo 700P withflexible connectivity options like phone-as-modem that takes advantageof the devices capability to be used with a laptop to providehigh-speed data access. Sprint is also expected to be the onlywireless carrier to offer live TV capabilities - via Sprint TV - onthe Treo 700P at launch.
"Sprint realizes that every business customer is also a consumerand uses mobility for productivity, social connections, entertainmentand news," said Danny Bowman, vice president of product marketing forSprint. "The Treo 700P is ideal for customers who are looking for adevice that provides a combination of power and elegance to satisfythe need for owning a stylish, cutting-edge device while still helpingthem to be more efficient and productive."
The Treo 700P allows Sprint customers to do more in more placesand provide a powerful productivity and entertainment experience.Features include:
-- Support for Sprint Mobile Broadband Service on the nation's largest mobile broadband network.
-- Support for Sprint TV(SM) - Emmy-award winning service providing more than 50 channels of video and audio for TV on the go, including live TV with full motion video and vivid sound.
-- Support for On Demand - retrieve personalized information for local news, sports, weather, movies and more.
-- Support for Sprint PCS Picture Mail(SM), Messaging, Games, Ringers, Screensavers
-- Email and Web capable
-- Phone as modem capability
-- Palm OS organizer
-- Bluetooth(R) Wireless technology
-- 1.3 megapixel digital camera with video capabilities
-- Built-in MP3 player
-- Speakerphone
-- 128 MB Memory - (60 MB available for end user storage)
-- Enhanced attachment capabilities - Documents to Go (version 8.0) including a new PDF viewer
-- Voice memo application
"The new Sprint Treo 700P delivers on Palm's commitment to providebusiness and mobile professionals with the tools they need to stayproductive while on the road," said John Hartnett, senior vicepresident worldwide sales and customer relations for Palm. "The Treo700P provides a world-class email and Web experience and, combinedwith Sprint's high-speed EV-DO network, gives businesses more reasonsto extend their corporate information with a Treo mobile solution."
For content, the Treo 700P has access to Sprint downloadablegames, ringers, screensavers and other Palm OS productivity andentertainment applications applied directly on a customer's Sprintbill. Additional content is available via the Sprint PCS SoftwareStore provided by Handango(TM), an intelligent on-device catalog ofapplications and digital media, allowing users to find, download andbuy software, games, ringtones, graphics and other applications simplyand securely. The store can also be visited online athttp://sprint.handango.com.
For complete details on the Treo 700P, visithttp://www.sprint.com/treo.
Sprint customers can currently use several devices on the SprintPower Vision Network to access various audio, video and dataapplications at average download speeds of 400-700 kbps and peakspeeds up to 2Mbps(2). Sprint today has the most wireless broadbandcoverage of any carrier. The Sprint Power Vision Network now coversmore than 150 million people and services customers in 220 majormetropolitan areas as well as 470 airports across the nation, the mostof any carrier. The Sprint Power Vision Network is expected to reachan estimated 190 million people nationwide by the end of the year.
About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of communicationsservices bringing mobility to consumer, business and governmentcustomers. Sprint Nextel is widely recognized for developing,engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including tworobust wireless networks offering industry leading mobile dataservices; instant national and international walkie-talkiecapabilities; and an award-winning and global Tier 1 Internetbackbone. For more information, visit www.sprint.com.
Broadcast Video
Press can register, browse, preview, download and order b-roll forfree at Palm's Multimedia Library at www.palm.com/multimedialibrary, aweb-based news and video archive.
This news release includes "forward-looking statements" within themeaning of the securities laws. The statements in this news releaseregarding the business outlook, expected performance, as well as otherstatements that are not historical facts, are forward-lookingstatements. The words "estimate," "project," "forecast," "intend,""expect," "believe," "target," "providing guidance" and similarexpressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements.Forward-looking statements are estimates and projections reflectingmanagement's judgment based on currently available information andinvolve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actualresults to differ materially from those suggested by theforward-looking statements. With respect to these forward-lookingstatements, management has made assumptions regarding, among otherthings, customer and network usage, customer growth and retention,pricing, operating costs, the timing of various events and theeconomic environment.
(1) Within EV-DO data wireless service coverage area only. Actualdata speeds vary based on network capacity and application design.Backward-compatible with 1xRTT and IS95 networks. Email and webrequire data services from a mobile service provider at an additionalcost. VPN may also be required.
(2) Speed claims based on Sprint network tests. Actual speeds andcoverage on the Treo 700P vary. Palm's independent field tests showthat the Treo 700P can deliver speeds of between 400-600 kilobits persecond.
Industry-Unique Multimedia Capabilities Powered by the Nation's
Largest Mobile Broadband Network That Allows Users to Do More in More
Places
Sprint (NYSE:S) today announced plans to be the first carrier tooffer the Sprint Power Vision(SM) Smart Device Treo(TM) 700P by Palm -the latest PDA/Phone combo to deliver broadband-like download speedsof Sprint Mobile Broadband Services operating on the Sprint PowerVision Network(1). Sprint has the largest mobile broadband network ofany carrier today and is expected to extend its leadership role toreach an estimated 190 million people nationwide and in Puerto Rico byyear end and concurrently implement second-generation upgrades tobring additional mobility benefits to users in 1Q 2007. The Treo 700Pwill be available at the end of May at Sprint Stores, Sprint businesschannels and online at www.sprint.com at $399.99 after availablediscounts and promotions.
Ideal for customers who want to extend their workplace and stayconnected for personal needs, the Treo 700P builds upon the success ofearlier models offering enhancements in several areas includingbroadband-like download speeds, an enhanced Blazer Web browser and anupdated Palm OS (version 5.4.9). Sprint is enabling the Treo 700P withflexible connectivity options like phone-as-modem that takes advantageof the devices capability to be used with a laptop to providehigh-speed data access. Sprint is also expected to be the onlywireless carrier to offer live TV capabilities - via Sprint TV - onthe Treo 700P at launch.
"Sprint realizes that every business customer is also a consumerand uses mobility for productivity, social connections, entertainmentand news," said Danny Bowman, vice president of product marketing forSprint. "The Treo 700P is ideal for customers who are looking for adevice that provides a combination of power and elegance to satisfythe need for owning a stylish, cutting-edge device while still helpingthem to be more efficient and productive."
The Treo 700P allows Sprint customers to do more in more placesand provide a powerful productivity and entertainment experience.Features include:
-- Support for Sprint Mobile Broadband Service on the nation's largest mobile broadband network.
-- Support for Sprint TV(SM) - Emmy-award winning service providing more than 50 channels of video and audio for TV on the go, including live TV with full motion video and vivid sound.
-- Support for On Demand - retrieve personalized information for local news, sports, weather, movies and more.
-- Support for Sprint PCS Picture Mail(SM), Messaging, Games, Ringers, Screensavers
-- Email and Web capable
-- Phone as modem capability
-- Palm OS organizer
-- Bluetooth(R) Wireless technology
-- 1.3 megapixel digital camera with video capabilities
-- Built-in MP3 player
-- Speakerphone
-- 128 MB Memory - (60 MB available for end user storage)
-- Enhanced attachment capabilities - Documents to Go (version 8.0) including a new PDF viewer
-- Voice memo application
"The new Sprint Treo 700P delivers on Palm's commitment to providebusiness and mobile professionals with the tools they need to stayproductive while on the road," said John Hartnett, senior vicepresident worldwide sales and customer relations for Palm. "The Treo700P provides a world-class email and Web experience and, combinedwith Sprint's high-speed EV-DO network, gives businesses more reasonsto extend their corporate information with a Treo mobile solution."
For content, the Treo 700P has access to Sprint downloadablegames, ringers, screensavers and other Palm OS productivity andentertainment applications applied directly on a customer's Sprintbill. Additional content is available via the Sprint PCS SoftwareStore provided by Handango(TM), an intelligent on-device catalog ofapplications and digital media, allowing users to find, download andbuy software, games, ringtones, graphics and other applications simplyand securely. The store can also be visited online athttp://sprint.handango.com.
For complete details on the Treo 700P, visithttp://www.sprint.com/treo.
Sprint customers can currently use several devices on the SprintPower Vision Network to access various audio, video and dataapplications at average download speeds of 400-700 kbps and peakspeeds up to 2Mbps(2). Sprint today has the most wireless broadbandcoverage of any carrier. The Sprint Power Vision Network now coversmore than 150 million people and services customers in 220 majormetropolitan areas as well as 470 airports across the nation, the mostof any carrier. The Sprint Power Vision Network is expected to reachan estimated 190 million people nationwide by the end of the year.
About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of communicationsservices bringing mobility to consumer, business and governmentcustomers. Sprint Nextel is widely recognized for developing,engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including tworobust wireless networks offering industry leading mobile dataservices; instant national and international walkie-talkiecapabilities; and an award-winning and global Tier 1 Internetbackbone. For more information, visit www.sprint.com.
Broadcast Video
Press can register, browse, preview, download and order b-roll forfree at Palm's Multimedia Library at www.palm.com/multimedialibrary, aweb-based news and video archive.
This news release includes "forward-looking statements" within themeaning of the securities laws. The statements in this news releaseregarding the business outlook, expected performance, as well as otherstatements that are not historical facts, are forward-lookingstatements. The words "estimate," "project," "forecast," "intend,""expect," "believe," "target," "providing guidance" and similarexpressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements.Forward-looking statements are estimates and projections reflectingmanagement's judgment based on currently available information andinvolve a number of risks and uncertainties that could cause actualresults to differ materially from those suggested by theforward-looking statements. With respect to these forward-lookingstatements, management has made assumptions regarding, among otherthings, customer and network usage, customer growth and retention,pricing, operating costs, the timing of various events and theeconomic environment.
(1) Within EV-DO data wireless service coverage area only. Actualdata speeds vary based on network capacity and application design.Backward-compatible with 1xRTT and IS95 networks. Email and webrequire data services from a mobile service provider at an additionalcost. VPN may also be required.
(2) Speed claims based on Sprint network tests. Actual speeds andcoverage on the Treo 700P vary. Palm's independent field tests showthat the Treo 700P can deliver speeds of between 400-600 kilobits persecond.
Tuesday, May 09, 2006
Sprint and Altell sign roaming agreement
Sprint Nextel and Altell agreed to a 10-year roaming agreement that will allow customers from both companies to roam on each other's network. The agreement is effective starting July 1 and extends through 2016. Both CDMA voice services and EV-DO data are covered .
Altell already has roaming agreements with Verizon Wireless and Cingular. Its deal with Cingular was just extended to last through 2012. Since most Altell customers are using CDMA devices, the GSM Cingular network has little impact.
Altell already has roaming agreements with Verizon Wireless and Cingular. Its deal with Cingular was just extended to last through 2012. Since most Altell customers are using CDMA devices, the GSM Cingular network has little impact.
Sunday, April 30, 2006
Who has the best cell coverage? It depends on where you are
Cingular Wireless is running ads saying it has ''the fewest dropped calls," and Verizon Wireless is running ads calling itself ''the nation's most reliable wireless network," but Mort Rosenthal says no one company has the best coverage everywhere.
Breaking News Alerts Rosenthal, the chief executive of IMO, a new breed of retailer that sells every major wireless brand, knows what he's talking about. The Waltham company has done its own road testing and, unlike the cellular companies, makes the test data available to customers so they can tell town by town, or block by block, which carrier has the strongest signal coverage.
''It's kind of silly what they're all doing," Rosenthal said of the sweeping ad campaigns by some wireless companies. ''Consumers only care if their calls get through. It all comes down to the personal patterns of the end user who has the best coverage."
IMO's signal strength data shows all the carriers have fairly strong signals in downtown Boston, but in outlying areas there are color-coded gaps in every carrier's coverage.
In Wellesley, for example, the Verizon map is nearly all green (for strong coverage) with a few tiny blotches of red indicating the weakest coverage. The Cingular map has a substantial amount of yellow (weaker coverage), Sprint has even more yellow, and Nextel the most.
On Morrissey Boulevard in Dorchester, the IMO maps are all uniformly green except for Nextel's, which is sprinkled with yellow.
In Milton, along the expressway, the IMO maps indicate Cingular has the best coverage, followed by Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Nextel.
Rosenthal says it's impossible to say one carrier's signal is always superior to another, but that's what the wireless companies are doing with their advertising campaigns. As the Globe reported last week, the claims are often accompanied with little or no evidence to back them up.
Cingular cites an unnamed research firm for its claim that it has the fewest dropped calls. Verizon cites internal testing for its reliability claims, but the backup data it makes available on its website is sketchy and dated. Sprint claims it has the most powerful network but offers no support for that claim.
Many readers last week said the Cingular claim about fewest dropped calls didn't seem to encompass them.
Ray Harrold of Northborough said he has trouble making calls with his Cingular phone in the Interstate 495/Route 20 area. ''I don't have dropped calls because I can only make so few calls," he said.
IMO, shorthand for Independent Mobile, tries to help consumers such as Harrold steer clear of such situations. Unlike a store owned by an individual wireless company, IMO sells the plans and phones of every company, so it doesn't have any particular ax to grind. It attempts to sift through its extensive database to find what phone and service plan best matches each customer's needs.
''This is not an industry that's consumer focused," Rosenthal said. ''We're trying to address that."
The IMO store in Framingham at Shopper's World is bright and colorful, combining hands-on testing of phones and personal digital assistants with sophisticated computer analysis.
At a sleek service bar along one wall, customers can pull up a comfy stool and, with the help of a customer service person, review on a computer screen phones, service plans, and coverage for Cingular, Nextel, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon.
Pick the features you want and the screen displays the phones that have them. Pick the ZIP codes and, moving the map's focus point around, you can see how the different carriers compare on signal strength where you live, work, or along your commuting route.
Because prices and plans are changing constantly, IMO employs four people just to keep its database up to date.
IMO earlier this year also hired an independent firm to track the signal strength of the various carriers along 5,500 miles of roads in Boston and its surrounding suburbs, with a heavy focus on those areas west of the city.
Rosenthal said IMO will update the road testing every six months and expand it as more stores are added. IMO opened its first Boston-area store in February and plans to add six more in the next year. Ultimately, he said, IMO hopes to operate a national chain with 20 stores in Boston.
Breaking News Alerts Rosenthal, the chief executive of IMO, a new breed of retailer that sells every major wireless brand, knows what he's talking about. The Waltham company has done its own road testing and, unlike the cellular companies, makes the test data available to customers so they can tell town by town, or block by block, which carrier has the strongest signal coverage.
''It's kind of silly what they're all doing," Rosenthal said of the sweeping ad campaigns by some wireless companies. ''Consumers only care if their calls get through. It all comes down to the personal patterns of the end user who has the best coverage."
IMO's signal strength data shows all the carriers have fairly strong signals in downtown Boston, but in outlying areas there are color-coded gaps in every carrier's coverage.
In Wellesley, for example, the Verizon map is nearly all green (for strong coverage) with a few tiny blotches of red indicating the weakest coverage. The Cingular map has a substantial amount of yellow (weaker coverage), Sprint has even more yellow, and Nextel the most.
On Morrissey Boulevard in Dorchester, the IMO maps are all uniformly green except for Nextel's, which is sprinkled with yellow.
In Milton, along the expressway, the IMO maps indicate Cingular has the best coverage, followed by Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Nextel.
Rosenthal says it's impossible to say one carrier's signal is always superior to another, but that's what the wireless companies are doing with their advertising campaigns. As the Globe reported last week, the claims are often accompanied with little or no evidence to back them up.
Cingular cites an unnamed research firm for its claim that it has the fewest dropped calls. Verizon cites internal testing for its reliability claims, but the backup data it makes available on its website is sketchy and dated. Sprint claims it has the most powerful network but offers no support for that claim.
Many readers last week said the Cingular claim about fewest dropped calls didn't seem to encompass them.
Ray Harrold of Northborough said he has trouble making calls with his Cingular phone in the Interstate 495/Route 20 area. ''I don't have dropped calls because I can only make so few calls," he said.
IMO, shorthand for Independent Mobile, tries to help consumers such as Harrold steer clear of such situations. Unlike a store owned by an individual wireless company, IMO sells the plans and phones of every company, so it doesn't have any particular ax to grind. It attempts to sift through its extensive database to find what phone and service plan best matches each customer's needs.
''This is not an industry that's consumer focused," Rosenthal said. ''We're trying to address that."
The IMO store in Framingham at Shopper's World is bright and colorful, combining hands-on testing of phones and personal digital assistants with sophisticated computer analysis.
At a sleek service bar along one wall, customers can pull up a comfy stool and, with the help of a customer service person, review on a computer screen phones, service plans, and coverage for Cingular, Nextel, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon.
Pick the features you want and the screen displays the phones that have them. Pick the ZIP codes and, moving the map's focus point around, you can see how the different carriers compare on signal strength where you live, work, or along your commuting route.
Because prices and plans are changing constantly, IMO employs four people just to keep its database up to date.
IMO earlier this year also hired an independent firm to track the signal strength of the various carriers along 5,500 miles of roads in Boston and its surrounding suburbs, with a heavy focus on those areas west of the city.
Rosenthal said IMO will update the road testing every six months and expand it as more stores are added. IMO opened its first Boston-area store in February and plans to add six more in the next year. Ultimately, he said, IMO hopes to operate a national chain with 20 stores in Boston.
Tuesday, April 25, 2006
Sprint launches text to landline service
Sprint Nextel announced Text to Landline, a clever service that allows Sprint customers to SMS any landline phone in the US. The text message is converted into a voice message which gets played back for the reciepient. At that point they can reply with a preset text message or record a voice message.
Text to Landline automatically kicks in if the number an SMS is going to is not a mobile phone. Standard text message rates apply.
Text to Landline automatically kicks in if the number an SMS is going to is not a mobile phone. Standard text message rates apply.
Saturday, April 22, 2006
OUTLOOK - Lucent, AT&T, Sprint, Tellabs on telecom roll call
Investors on both sides of the Atlantic will keep a close tab on Lucent Technologies Inc. when the company reports first-quarter results Tuesday. The sluggish-growing U.S. network vendor recently agreed to merge with France''s Alcatel.
Lucent is one of several major telecommunications companies set to unveil quarterly results next week. Others include the Sprint Nextel Corp., the newly constituted AT&T Inc. and Tellabs Inc.
Earlier this year, Lucent cut its 2006 sales forecast, citing lower orders in the U.S. and China. The company has been under pressure to improve growth and its stock performance, and the merger with the financially stronger Alcatel of France is viewed by Lucent executives as a way to accomplish those goals. The merged company would become a global giant in the network-equipment market.
For the fiscal second quarter, Lucent is expected to post a profit, excluding onetime items, of 3 cents a share on revenue of $2.24 billion, down from $2.34 billion a year ago, according to the consensus of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call.
Executives have said they expect growth to accelerate in the second half of the fiscal year, so investors will look for clues that the rebound is underway.
AT&T Inc. , meanwhile, is slated to report its first full quarter of results since SBC Communications acquired the old AT&T Corp. in November. SBC then took the famed AT&T name as its own.
Investors already know that AT&T''s wireless business performed well. Cingular Wireless, which is jointly owned by AT&T and BellSouth Corp. , has reported net income of $354 million on a 9% increase in revenue to $8.98 billion. The nation''s largest wireless carrier added 1.7 million net customers in the first quarter.
What less clear is how well the company''s wireline business performed, particularly the long-distance operations of the former Ma Bell. AT&T''s ability to integrate acquired assets and to halt the decline in the voice business is crucial to the company''s goal of quickly making the huge acquisition add to profits.
AT&T is projected to earn 48 cents a share, excluding onetime costs and benefits, on revenue of $21.53 billion, including results from the old Ma Bell. AT&T reports Tuesday morning.
The company has led the way in the phone industry in signing up high-speed Internet customers. Wall Street will look for additional gains in data and Internet subscribers as well as broadband revenue.
If the results of Cingular Wireless are any indication, Sprint Nextel is also likely to show solid growth. The company, whose wireless business accounts for the lion''s share of revenue, is expected to earn 37 cents a share on revenue of $11.4 billion, up from $10.59 billion a year ago.
Analyst Todd Rethemeier estimates Sprint will add 1.5 million net new wireless subscribers.
Sprint is still a company in transition. The carrier plans to spin off its local phone business in the current quarter and aims to expand its partnership with the cable industry under which big cable operators would use Sprint''s network to offer wireless-calling plans of their own. Analysts believe the company could announce other initiatives to restructure operations and cut costs.
Sprint reports results Wednesday morning.
Tellabs , a supplier of phone-networking gear to AT&T and others, caps off a busy week with its quarterly report Thursday morning.
The vendor is likely to show a profit of 13 cents a share on revenue of $494.7 million, according to the consensus of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call. What investors want to know is whether the spate of mergers among phone carriers and the recent Lucent-Alcatel deal will hurt the company''s revenue growth.
Big phone companies have paused some spending while a combined Lucent-Alcatel could provide stiffer competition. Some analysts believe Tellabs could also become an acquisition target.
Lucent is one of several major telecommunications companies set to unveil quarterly results next week. Others include the Sprint Nextel Corp., the newly constituted AT&T Inc. and Tellabs Inc.
Earlier this year, Lucent cut its 2006 sales forecast, citing lower orders in the U.S. and China. The company has been under pressure to improve growth and its stock performance, and the merger with the financially stronger Alcatel of France is viewed by Lucent executives as a way to accomplish those goals. The merged company would become a global giant in the network-equipment market.
For the fiscal second quarter, Lucent is expected to post a profit, excluding onetime items, of 3 cents a share on revenue of $2.24 billion, down from $2.34 billion a year ago, according to the consensus of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call.
Executives have said they expect growth to accelerate in the second half of the fiscal year, so investors will look for clues that the rebound is underway.
AT&T Inc. , meanwhile, is slated to report its first full quarter of results since SBC Communications acquired the old AT&T Corp. in November. SBC then took the famed AT&T name as its own.
Investors already know that AT&T''s wireless business performed well. Cingular Wireless, which is jointly owned by AT&T and BellSouth Corp. , has reported net income of $354 million on a 9% increase in revenue to $8.98 billion. The nation''s largest wireless carrier added 1.7 million net customers in the first quarter.
What less clear is how well the company''s wireline business performed, particularly the long-distance operations of the former Ma Bell. AT&T''s ability to integrate acquired assets and to halt the decline in the voice business is crucial to the company''s goal of quickly making the huge acquisition add to profits.
AT&T is projected to earn 48 cents a share, excluding onetime costs and benefits, on revenue of $21.53 billion, including results from the old Ma Bell. AT&T reports Tuesday morning.
The company has led the way in the phone industry in signing up high-speed Internet customers. Wall Street will look for additional gains in data and Internet subscribers as well as broadband revenue.
If the results of Cingular Wireless are any indication, Sprint Nextel is also likely to show solid growth. The company, whose wireless business accounts for the lion''s share of revenue, is expected to earn 37 cents a share on revenue of $11.4 billion, up from $10.59 billion a year ago.
Analyst Todd Rethemeier estimates Sprint will add 1.5 million net new wireless subscribers.
Sprint is still a company in transition. The carrier plans to spin off its local phone business in the current quarter and aims to expand its partnership with the cable industry under which big cable operators would use Sprint''s network to offer wireless-calling plans of their own. Analysts believe the company could announce other initiatives to restructure operations and cut costs.
Sprint reports results Wednesday morning.
Tellabs , a supplier of phone-networking gear to AT&T and others, caps off a busy week with its quarterly report Thursday morning.
The vendor is likely to show a profit of 13 cents a share on revenue of $494.7 million, according to the consensus of analysts surveyed by Thomson First Call. What investors want to know is whether the spate of mergers among phone carriers and the recent Lucent-Alcatel deal will hurt the company''s revenue growth.
Big phone companies have paused some spending while a combined Lucent-Alcatel could provide stiffer competition. Some analysts believe Tellabs could also become an acquisition target.
Wednesday, April 12, 2006
Sprint CEO says more firms to join cable pact
More cable television companies are expressing interest in joining Sprint Nextel's joint venture to combine cable TV and mobile phone services, Sprint CEO Gary Forsee said.
Quoted in Reuters report, the executive said "there are others in the cable industry ready to sign on."
Sprint earlier said it will form a cable venture which will begin selling its services in three pilot markets, including Raleigh, North Carolina, and Austin, Texas, in the second half of this year.
The Reuters report said four to five more markets are expected by the end of this year, according to Sprint executives.
Last November, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cox Communications, and Advance/Newhouse Communications signed on to the venture, hoping it would help them better compete against regional telephone providers that are starting to sell TV services in some markets.
Initially, the venture plans to offer access to home email through wireless phones and integrated voicemail for subscribers who already pay for digital home phone service, the report said.
New subscribers will also be able to use their mobile phones to view TV shows that are owned by the cable operator in its region.
Quoted in Reuters report, the executive said "there are others in the cable industry ready to sign on."
Sprint earlier said it will form a cable venture which will begin selling its services in three pilot markets, including Raleigh, North Carolina, and Austin, Texas, in the second half of this year.
The Reuters report said four to five more markets are expected by the end of this year, according to Sprint executives.
Last November, Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Cox Communications, and Advance/Newhouse Communications signed on to the venture, hoping it would help them better compete against regional telephone providers that are starting to sell TV services in some markets.
Initially, the venture plans to offer access to home email through wireless phones and integrated voicemail for subscribers who already pay for digital home phone service, the report said.
New subscribers will also be able to use their mobile phones to view TV shows that are owned by the cable operator in its region.
Thursday, March 09, 2006
Sprint Offers an Industry First with Unlimited Mobile Calls To and From a Home or Business
Marking a first-of-its-kind offering from a national U.S. carrier, Sprint (NYSE:S) today announced the availability of Sprint to Home(SM) and Sprint Mobile to Office(SM). These wireless service features allow customers to make or receive unlimited voice calls between their Sprint wireless phone and a pre-designated ten-digit home or office number while on the Nationwide Sprint PCS Network or National Nextel Network, regardless of their wireline carrier, without deducting minutes from their wireless service plans.
"Sprint is the only national carrier to offer its customers the unique convergence and flexible features found in Sprint to Home and Sprint Mobile to Office," said Tony Krueck, vice president, product development and management, for Sprint. "With these options, busy families and mobile professionals alike can experience a new level of convenience and affordability with their communications."
Consumers
Sprint to Home will allow Sprint wireless subscribers to get unlimited calling to and from their home phone regardless of their local provider. For just $5 per month, customers can stay connected with their families without using any of the minutes in their wireless service plans. The home number provided must be a residential landline number. To sign up, customers can visit a Sprint retail store or call 888-823-4666.
Coming soon, Sprint will also offer Sprint to Home with Long Distance(SM), a free offer for customers who subscribe to both Sprint wireless services and long distance services
Businesses
Sprint Mobile to Office provides unlimited voice calls to a pre-identified landline business phone number. Business customers with a monthly wireless service plan of $49.99 or greater can select the Sprint Mobile to Office option for $8 per month, ensuring that the workplace can be extended beyond a traditional office for increased productivity. Sprint Mobile to Office is a valuable option for those companies with a remote sales or field service force or for those with a high level of telecommuting and traveling employees who need to stay connected to a key resource. To sign up, customers can contact their local Sprint Sales Representative, visit a Sprint or Nextel retailer or call 888-703-9514.
Sprint plans to expand the value of this offer later this year to allow business customers to pre-identify a range of landline numbers - up to 30,000 DIDs - that can be called without pulling from the subscriber's bucket of anytime minutes.
Sprint is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying state-of-the-art network technologies, including two robust wireless networks offering reliable, seamless and superior service to its customers and the United States' first nationwide-all-digital, fiber-optic network and an award-winning Tier 1 Internet backbone. These new offers demonstrate Sprint's leadership in providing services that make communication reliable, flexible and affordable. Sprint was the first to offer a nationwide Service Level Agreement to business customers on its wireless voice and data services and was the first to offer consumers wireless voice calling plans with no huge overage charges by introducing Sprint Fair & Flexible(R) plans.
"Sprint is the only national carrier to offer its customers the unique convergence and flexible features found in Sprint to Home and Sprint Mobile to Office," said Tony Krueck, vice president, product development and management, for Sprint. "With these options, busy families and mobile professionals alike can experience a new level of convenience and affordability with their communications."
Consumers
Sprint to Home will allow Sprint wireless subscribers to get unlimited calling to and from their home phone regardless of their local provider. For just $5 per month, customers can stay connected with their families without using any of the minutes in their wireless service plans. The home number provided must be a residential landline number. To sign up, customers can visit a Sprint retail store or call 888-823-4666.
Coming soon, Sprint will also offer Sprint to Home with Long Distance(SM), a free offer for customers who subscribe to both Sprint wireless services and long distance services
Businesses
Sprint Mobile to Office provides unlimited voice calls to a pre-identified landline business phone number. Business customers with a monthly wireless service plan of $49.99 or greater can select the Sprint Mobile to Office option for $8 per month, ensuring that the workplace can be extended beyond a traditional office for increased productivity. Sprint Mobile to Office is a valuable option for those companies with a remote sales or field service force or for those with a high level of telecommuting and traveling employees who need to stay connected to a key resource. To sign up, customers can contact their local Sprint Sales Representative, visit a Sprint or Nextel retailer or call 888-703-9514.
Sprint plans to expand the value of this offer later this year to allow business customers to pre-identify a range of landline numbers - up to 30,000 DIDs - that can be called without pulling from the subscriber's bucket of anytime minutes.
Sprint is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying state-of-the-art network technologies, including two robust wireless networks offering reliable, seamless and superior service to its customers and the United States' first nationwide-all-digital, fiber-optic network and an award-winning Tier 1 Internet backbone. These new offers demonstrate Sprint's leadership in providing services that make communication reliable, flexible and affordable. Sprint was the first to offer a nationwide Service Level Agreement to business customers on its wireless voice and data services and was the first to offer consumers wireless voice calling plans with no huge overage charges by introducing Sprint Fair & Flexible(R) plans.
Friday, March 03, 2006
2005 A Good Year for DSL Providers
A new report from Leichtman Research Group says that 2005 was a record year for the twenty largest U.S. cable and DSL providers—making up 94 percent of the market—who together signed on a net of more than 9.6 million new subscribers.
According to the report, that exceeds 2004’s record by more than 1 million subscribers.
Price competition among DSL subscribers helped grow that segment of the market especially, the report says.
The top DSL providers during 2005 were: SBC, Verizon, Bell South, Qwest, Sprint, Covad, ALLTEL, Century Tel, and Cincinnati Bell.
Those providers netted 53 percent of broadband additions during 2005, adding over 5.2 million subscribers to their rolls.
Additionally, “The fourth quarter of 2005 was the best quarter ever for DSL providers, adding nearly 1.5 million net additional DSL subscribers, capturing 57 percent of the net 2.64 million high-speed Internet additions for the quarter. Cable operators added virtually the same number of subscribers during the quarter as a year ago, while DSL providers added about 350,000 more subscribers than in the fourth quarter of 2004,” the report said.
According to the report, that exceeds 2004’s record by more than 1 million subscribers.
Price competition among DSL subscribers helped grow that segment of the market especially, the report says.
The top DSL providers during 2005 were: SBC, Verizon, Bell South, Qwest, Sprint, Covad, ALLTEL, Century Tel, and Cincinnati Bell.
Those providers netted 53 percent of broadband additions during 2005, adding over 5.2 million subscribers to their rolls.
Additionally, “The fourth quarter of 2005 was the best quarter ever for DSL providers, adding nearly 1.5 million net additional DSL subscribers, capturing 57 percent of the net 2.64 million high-speed Internet additions for the quarter. Cable operators added virtually the same number of subscribers during the quarter as a year ago, while DSL providers added about 350,000 more subscribers than in the fourth quarter of 2004,” the report said.
Wednesday, March 01, 2006
Sprint Awarded Contract Modification to Enhance Federal Government Wireline and Wireless Service Offerings
Sprint (NYSE:S) announced today that government agenciesnow have more choice and flexibility for their security, messaging anddata communications needs through Sprint's FTS2001 contract.
The General Services Administration (GSA) awarded Sprint amodification to enhance Sprint's FTS2001 contract effective Dec. 23,2005, to include:
-- Multi-Protocol Labeling Switching (MPLS) Virtual Private Network (VPN) Over Peerless Internet Protocol (PIP) - a network-based solution over a peerless IP backbone that is segregated from the public Internet
-- GoodLink - a secure, FIPS-certified wireless messaging and data access system
"In today's increasingly fast-paced, security-focused world,Sprint is dedicated to providing U.S. government agencies with accessto secure, reliable communications when they need it, wherever theyneed it," said Tony D'Agata, vice president of federal government forSprint. "These enhancements provide a tangible, affordable way forfederal agencies to keep connected in a secure manner in order toperform their jobs and meet their critical requirements."
Sprint's Peerless IP Network is a network-based solution that issecure, scalable and cost effective. Sprint offers government agenciesunique solutions over its Peerless IP network, leveraging the sametechnical architecture as the industry-leading SprintLink IP backbonewhile removing connectivity to the public Internet. The service isavailable throughout the continental United States at T1 through OC-12speeds.
"Many agencies that have been concerned about IP securitypreviously had taken advantage of our Peerless IP through GSA'scustomized modification process," D'Agata added. "This blanketmodification process to the FTS2001 will hopefully facilitatetransition to the Networx contract should we be successful."
GoodLink provides secure mobile access to agency e-mail,attachments, calendars, contacts, notes and tasks. Goodlink alsooffers continuous two-way real time synchronization to ensure thatchanges on handheld devices are automatically synchronized with auser's desktop and vice versa. GoodLink currently supports the Palm(R)Treo and Microsoft Windows Mobile Pocket PCs. The service offersend-to-end encryption, remote handheld erase, Advanced EncryptionStandard (AES), Triple-Data Encryption Standard (DES) encryption withVeriSign(R) security and Federal Information Processing Standards(FIPS) 140-2 certification.
In addition, Sprint's FTS2001 contract modification provides lowerservice initiation charges for some existing wireless access devicesand defines service initiation charges for new forms of wirelessaccess devices.
Sprint was awarded the FTS2001 contract in 1998. The GSA FederalTechnology Service (FTS) contract offers federal agencies wireline andwireless communications services from Sprint, including voice, dataand video, at a competitive price to help provide faster, more secure,collaborative communications between agencies, with businesses andwith consumers.
About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless andwireline communications services to consumer, business and governmentcustomers. Sprint Nextel is widely recognized for developing,engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including tworobust wireless networks offering industry leading mobile dataservices; instant national and international walkie-talkiecapabilities; and an award-winning and global Tier 1 Internetbackbone.
The General Services Administration (GSA) awarded Sprint amodification to enhance Sprint's FTS2001 contract effective Dec. 23,2005, to include:
-- Multi-Protocol Labeling Switching (MPLS) Virtual Private Network (VPN) Over Peerless Internet Protocol (PIP) - a network-based solution over a peerless IP backbone that is segregated from the public Internet
-- GoodLink - a secure, FIPS-certified wireless messaging and data access system
"In today's increasingly fast-paced, security-focused world,Sprint is dedicated to providing U.S. government agencies with accessto secure, reliable communications when they need it, wherever theyneed it," said Tony D'Agata, vice president of federal government forSprint. "These enhancements provide a tangible, affordable way forfederal agencies to keep connected in a secure manner in order toperform their jobs and meet their critical requirements."
Sprint's Peerless IP Network is a network-based solution that issecure, scalable and cost effective. Sprint offers government agenciesunique solutions over its Peerless IP network, leveraging the sametechnical architecture as the industry-leading SprintLink IP backbonewhile removing connectivity to the public Internet. The service isavailable throughout the continental United States at T1 through OC-12speeds.
"Many agencies that have been concerned about IP securitypreviously had taken advantage of our Peerless IP through GSA'scustomized modification process," D'Agata added. "This blanketmodification process to the FTS2001 will hopefully facilitatetransition to the Networx contract should we be successful."
GoodLink provides secure mobile access to agency e-mail,attachments, calendars, contacts, notes and tasks. Goodlink alsooffers continuous two-way real time synchronization to ensure thatchanges on handheld devices are automatically synchronized with auser's desktop and vice versa. GoodLink currently supports the Palm(R)Treo and Microsoft Windows Mobile Pocket PCs. The service offersend-to-end encryption, remote handheld erase, Advanced EncryptionStandard (AES), Triple-Data Encryption Standard (DES) encryption withVeriSign(R) security and Federal Information Processing Standards(FIPS) 140-2 certification.
In addition, Sprint's FTS2001 contract modification provides lowerservice initiation charges for some existing wireless access devicesand defines service initiation charges for new forms of wirelessaccess devices.
Sprint was awarded the FTS2001 contract in 1998. The GSA FederalTechnology Service (FTS) contract offers federal agencies wireline andwireless communications services from Sprint, including voice, dataand video, at a competitive price to help provide faster, more secure,collaborative communications between agencies, with businesses andwith consumers.
About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless andwireline communications services to consumer, business and governmentcustomers. Sprint Nextel is widely recognized for developing,engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including tworobust wireless networks offering industry leading mobile dataservices; instant national and international walkie-talkiecapabilities; and an award-winning and global Tier 1 Internetbackbone.
Tuesday, February 28, 2006
Sprint Nextel Completes Acquisition of Velocita Wireless
Sprint Nextel Corp. (NYSE:S) has completed its acquisition of Velocita Wireless, based in Woodbridge, New Jersey. Velocita Wireless will operate as a subsidiary of Sprint Nextel, which intends to use some of Velocita's 900 MHz spectrum to supplement Sprint Nextel's capacity and coverage for its iDEN(R)-based Nextel National Network.
"Sprint Nextel is excited about the opportunity to offer Velocita's customers a broader suite of wireless and wireline, data and voice products and services," said Mark Hull, general manager for Velocita Wireless.
About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services to consumer, business and government customers. Sprint Nextel is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including two robust networks offering industry leading mobile data services; instant national and international walkie-talkie capabilities; and an award-winning and global Tier 1 Internet backbone.
"Sprint Nextel is excited about the opportunity to offer Velocita's customers a broader suite of wireless and wireline, data and voice products and services," said Mark Hull, general manager for Velocita Wireless.
About Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services to consumer, business and government customers. Sprint Nextel is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including two robust networks offering industry leading mobile data services; instant national and international walkie-talkie capabilities; and an award-winning and global Tier 1 Internet backbone.
Monday, February 27, 2006
MTV Networks and Sprint Offer Hit Music, Comedy and Entertainment Programming on Sprint TV
MTV Networks, a division of Viacom (NYSE:VIA, VIA.B), and Sprint (NYSE:S) today announced that hit music, comedy and entertainment programming from the nation's premier music brands - CMT, MTV and VH1 - and the only all-comedy network, COMEDY CENTRAL, is now available on-demand on the Emmy Award-winning Sprint TV(SM) lineup. In addition to offering subscribers select clips from such hit MTV Networks programs as 'CMT Insider,' 'The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,' 'Laguna Beach' and 'Best Week Ever,' Sprint becomes the first domestic wireless service to stream the CMT, MTV and VH1 radio stations.
"Sprint continues to lead the industry in bringing the best lineup of entertainment and mobile content to our customers," said Jeff Hallock, vice president of wireless product strategy and marketing for Sprint. "Now our customers have the flexibility to view compelling programming from CMT, COMEDY CENTRAL, MTV and VH1. They can also listen to streaming audio channels from CMT, MTV and VH1 - a service that currently only Sprint offers to its customers."
"Our diverse networks air many of the most popular - and creative - shows on television that define the ever-changing pop-culture landscape," said Greg Clayman, MTV Networks' vice president of wireless strategy and operations. "No matter where they are, Sprint customers can now stay connected to the short-form programming they love on CMT, COMEDY CENTRAL, MTV and VH1 and remain plugged into the latest trends in music, fashion, movies, comedy and more."
The full roster of MTV Networks' video and audio programming now available on the Sprint network includes:
CMT - Channel 46
-- CMT Radio, featuring artists like Toby Keith, Martina McBride and Tim McGraw;
-- 'CMT Insider,' highlights from the weekly series that explores the hot topics in entertainment and country-music news, including the latest in movies, music, fashion and sports;
-- 'CMT Most Shocking,' revealing amazing, harrowing and sometimes-terrifying stories from America's small towns and outposts;
-- 'CMT Uncorked,' spotlighting country's hottest videos in their entirety, available first on CMT's mobile network; and
-- 'Studio 330 Sessions,' featuring stripped down, spontaneous performances of signature hits and new material streamed exclusively on CMT.com.
COMEDY CENTRAL - Channel 15
-- 'The Colbert Report,' featuring "Truthiness" highlights and the most intense interviews from the previous night's episode;
-- 'COMEDY CENTRAL Stand-Up,' featuring video and audio from today's hottest comedians;
-- 'The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,' featuring fresh highlights and interviews from this Emmy-Award winning fake news series;
-- 'Jump Cuts,' a collection of cutting-edge claymation, live action and animation shorts from up-and-coming filmmakers;
-- 'South Park,' the Emmy-Award winning show, soon to begin its tenth season and the network's highest rated series; and
-- 'What's On,' highlighting hot programming airing on COMEDY CENTRAL.
MTV - Channel 36
-- MTV Radio offers chart-topping hits from the hip-hop, rock, pop and indie worlds as well as exclusive interviews, concerts and celebrity play lists from MTV and MTV2 artists;
-- Music, showcasing MTV's music franchises, including 'Advance Warning,' 'A.D.D. Bio' and 'First Ladies,' as well as full-length music videos;
-- Shows, including select clips from current and upcoming programs such as 'The Real World: Key West,' 'Made,' 'Wildboyz,' 'The Shop,' 'Wild 'N Out,' 'Run's House,' and 'Punk'd;' clips from past MTV shows including 'Beavis & Butt-Head' and 'Viva La Bam' and upcoming original live-action and animated made-for-mobile series;
-- MTV News, featuring made-for-mobile stories and artist interviews;
-- Movies, showcasing trailers, interviews with the Hollywood stars and behind-the-scenes action of the blockbusters; and
-- Games, featuring insider tips and tricks, as well as behind-the-scenes makings of new titles, developer interviews and sneak previews of upcoming titles.
VH1 - Channel 26
-- VH1 Radio, featuring streaming stations dedicated to soul/R&B, pop, modern rock and hip-hop;
-- VH1 Music, with interviews and videos from today's hottest artists like Green Day, Matchbox Twenty and Jewel;
-- VH1 Classic, with artist interviews and videos from the cable channel of the same name;
-- 'Best Week Ever,' featuring daily video clips from VH1's hit show that provides a review of the most entertaining news and pop culture;
-- 'Celebreality,' featuring highlights from VH1's hottest celebreality shows like, 'Celebrity Fit Club,' 'Flavor of Love' and 'The Surreal Life;'
-- VH1 Shows, a collection of "shorts" from VH1 series including 'Web Junk 20,' 'Fab Life' and 'All Access' series; and
-- VH1 News, featuring timely music and celebrity news and interviews.
CMT, COMEDY CENTRAL, MTV AND VH1 are each currently available for $5.95 per month, per channel on Sprint multimedia-capable handsets. Data usage will apply.
Sprint is a data services company in the content and media distribution business committed to delivering a seamless experience that gives customers the power to connect, share and access information instantly on a mobile phone. As wireless technology, consumer electronics and entertainment converge, Sprint is leading the industry through innovative applications, differentiated content and connectivity to consumers and businesses anywhere, anytime and always on. By using their mobile phone as a source for information, communications, personalization and entertainment, Sprint customers can realize the power of the "third screen."
Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services to consumer, business and government customers. Sprint Nextel is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including two robust wireless networks offering industry leading mobile data services; instant national and international walkie-talkie capabilities; and an award-winning and global Tier 1 Internet backbone. For more information, visit www.sprint.com.
MTV Networks
MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom (NYSE:VIA, VIA.B), is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. MTV Networks, with more than 120 channels worldwide, owns and operates the following television programming services - MTV: MUSIC TELEVISION, MTV2, VH1, mtvU, NICKELODEON, NICK at NITE, COMEDY CENTRAL, TV LAND, SPIKE TV, CMT, NOGGIN, VH1 CLASSIC, LOGO, MTVN INTERNATIONAL and THE DIGITAL SUITE FROM MTV NETWORKS, a package of 13 digital services, all of these networks are trademarks of MTV Networks. MTV Networks connects with its audiences through its robust consumer products businesses and its more than 95 interactive properties worldwide, including online, broadband, wireless and interactive television services and also has licensing agreements, joint ventures, and syndication deals whereby all of its programming services can be seen worldwide.
"Sprint continues to lead the industry in bringing the best lineup of entertainment and mobile content to our customers," said Jeff Hallock, vice president of wireless product strategy and marketing for Sprint. "Now our customers have the flexibility to view compelling programming from CMT, COMEDY CENTRAL, MTV and VH1. They can also listen to streaming audio channels from CMT, MTV and VH1 - a service that currently only Sprint offers to its customers."
"Our diverse networks air many of the most popular - and creative - shows on television that define the ever-changing pop-culture landscape," said Greg Clayman, MTV Networks' vice president of wireless strategy and operations. "No matter where they are, Sprint customers can now stay connected to the short-form programming they love on CMT, COMEDY CENTRAL, MTV and VH1 and remain plugged into the latest trends in music, fashion, movies, comedy and more."
The full roster of MTV Networks' video and audio programming now available on the Sprint network includes:
CMT - Channel 46
-- CMT Radio, featuring artists like Toby Keith, Martina McBride and Tim McGraw;
-- 'CMT Insider,' highlights from the weekly series that explores the hot topics in entertainment and country-music news, including the latest in movies, music, fashion and sports;
-- 'CMT Most Shocking,' revealing amazing, harrowing and sometimes-terrifying stories from America's small towns and outposts;
-- 'CMT Uncorked,' spotlighting country's hottest videos in their entirety, available first on CMT's mobile network; and
-- 'Studio 330 Sessions,' featuring stripped down, spontaneous performances of signature hits and new material streamed exclusively on CMT.com.
COMEDY CENTRAL - Channel 15
-- 'The Colbert Report,' featuring "Truthiness" highlights and the most intense interviews from the previous night's episode;
-- 'COMEDY CENTRAL Stand-Up,' featuring video and audio from today's hottest comedians;
-- 'The Daily Show with Jon Stewart,' featuring fresh highlights and interviews from this Emmy-Award winning fake news series;
-- 'Jump Cuts,' a collection of cutting-edge claymation, live action and animation shorts from up-and-coming filmmakers;
-- 'South Park,' the Emmy-Award winning show, soon to begin its tenth season and the network's highest rated series; and
-- 'What's On,' highlighting hot programming airing on COMEDY CENTRAL.
MTV - Channel 36
-- MTV Radio offers chart-topping hits from the hip-hop, rock, pop and indie worlds as well as exclusive interviews, concerts and celebrity play lists from MTV and MTV2 artists;
-- Music, showcasing MTV's music franchises, including 'Advance Warning,' 'A.D.D. Bio' and 'First Ladies,' as well as full-length music videos;
-- Shows, including select clips from current and upcoming programs such as 'The Real World: Key West,' 'Made,' 'Wildboyz,' 'The Shop,' 'Wild 'N Out,' 'Run's House,' and 'Punk'd;' clips from past MTV shows including 'Beavis & Butt-Head' and 'Viva La Bam' and upcoming original live-action and animated made-for-mobile series;
-- MTV News, featuring made-for-mobile stories and artist interviews;
-- Movies, showcasing trailers, interviews with the Hollywood stars and behind-the-scenes action of the blockbusters; and
-- Games, featuring insider tips and tricks, as well as behind-the-scenes makings of new titles, developer interviews and sneak previews of upcoming titles.
VH1 - Channel 26
-- VH1 Radio, featuring streaming stations dedicated to soul/R&B, pop, modern rock and hip-hop;
-- VH1 Music, with interviews and videos from today's hottest artists like Green Day, Matchbox Twenty and Jewel;
-- VH1 Classic, with artist interviews and videos from the cable channel of the same name;
-- 'Best Week Ever,' featuring daily video clips from VH1's hit show that provides a review of the most entertaining news and pop culture;
-- 'Celebreality,' featuring highlights from VH1's hottest celebreality shows like, 'Celebrity Fit Club,' 'Flavor of Love' and 'The Surreal Life;'
-- VH1 Shows, a collection of "shorts" from VH1 series including 'Web Junk 20,' 'Fab Life' and 'All Access' series; and
-- VH1 News, featuring timely music and celebrity news and interviews.
CMT, COMEDY CENTRAL, MTV AND VH1 are each currently available for $5.95 per month, per channel on Sprint multimedia-capable handsets. Data usage will apply.
Sprint is a data services company in the content and media distribution business committed to delivering a seamless experience that gives customers the power to connect, share and access information instantly on a mobile phone. As wireless technology, consumer electronics and entertainment converge, Sprint is leading the industry through innovative applications, differentiated content and connectivity to consumers and businesses anywhere, anytime and always on. By using their mobile phone as a source for information, communications, personalization and entertainment, Sprint customers can realize the power of the "third screen."
Sprint Nextel
Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services to consumer, business and government customers. Sprint Nextel is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including two robust wireless networks offering industry leading mobile data services; instant national and international walkie-talkie capabilities; and an award-winning and global Tier 1 Internet backbone. For more information, visit www.sprint.com.
MTV Networks
MTV Networks, a unit of Viacom (NYSE:VIA, VIA.B), is one of the world's leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. MTV Networks, with more than 120 channels worldwide, owns and operates the following television programming services - MTV: MUSIC TELEVISION, MTV2, VH1, mtvU, NICKELODEON, NICK at NITE, COMEDY CENTRAL, TV LAND, SPIKE TV, CMT, NOGGIN, VH1 CLASSIC, LOGO, MTVN INTERNATIONAL and THE DIGITAL SUITE FROM MTV NETWORKS, a package of 13 digital services, all of these networks are trademarks of MTV Networks. MTV Networks connects with its audiences through its robust consumer products businesses and its more than 95 interactive properties worldwide, including online, broadband, wireless and interactive television services and also has licensing agreements, joint ventures, and syndication deals whereby all of its programming services can be seen worldwide.
Wednesday, February 08, 2006
Sprint Sending Black History Month "Textoids"
Sprint Nextel plans to bring Black History Month education to the texting generation.
The company is teaming with The HistoryMakers, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving African-American history through first-person stories, to issue a series of daily "textoids" to its customers delivered via text messages during the month of February. The program allows cell phone users to opt in to receive a daily Black History factoid with a link to Sprint's Black History Month Website.
The new service is available via text message only to subscribers on the Sprint and Nextel nationwide networks. Subscribers text the message "PRIDE" to number 6101 on their phones. The messages also are available free via e-mail by signing up at www.sprint.com/black history.
Textoids feature African Americans who have made contributions in art, business, education, law, military, religion and science and will feature facts on famous Americans such as telecommunications entrepreneur William Bonaparte Jr., dancer Ruth Beckford, Negro League baseball player Carl Long, aviator Dorothy Lane McIntyre and attorney Chester L. Blair.
The company is teaming with The HistoryMakers, a national nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving African-American history through first-person stories, to issue a series of daily "textoids" to its customers delivered via text messages during the month of February. The program allows cell phone users to opt in to receive a daily Black History factoid with a link to Sprint's Black History Month Website.
The new service is available via text message only to subscribers on the Sprint and Nextel nationwide networks. Subscribers text the message "PRIDE" to number 6101 on their phones. The messages also are available free via e-mail by signing up at www.sprint.com/black history.
Textoids feature African Americans who have made contributions in art, business, education, law, military, religion and science and will feature facts on famous Americans such as telecommunications entrepreneur William Bonaparte Jr., dancer Ruth Beckford, Negro League baseball player Carl Long, aviator Dorothy Lane McIntyre and attorney Chester L. Blair.
Wednesday, January 25, 2006
Sprint Gets Awfully Chatty
Sprint Nextel appears to be raising the bar on mobile chatting. The company today announced the availability of three new ways to chat or keep in touch with friends anywhere: Jumbuck Island, The Lounges and Webdate Mobile.
Jumbuck Island, from Jumbuck Entertainmnet, is a 3D wireless chat service exclusive to Sprint for the first three months. Jumbuck Island brings elements from PC games and Internet chatrooms into one service. Users choose different avatars to represent themselves. Once on the island, users can wander around the different areas, including beaches and cruise ships, and send messages or chat with other users in private one-on-ones. Jumbuck Island is available for $3.99 per month.
The Lounges is the first segmented mobile community in North America, exclusive to Sprint for the first year, according to the carrier. Created by AirG, The Lounges lets Sprint users connect with other mobile users in any of three chat lounges - Sports, Latino and Friends - from mobile phones. The Lounges are free for the first month and $3.99 for additional months.
Webdate Mobile, enabled by Trilibis, is the world's largest mobile dating service. It gives users anytime, anywhere access to an online dating community, including complete personals with photos, profile searches and browsing and anonymous messaging to other Webdate members. Webdate Mobile is available for $4.99 per month.
"As mobile chat services become more and more popular, customers are asking for more ways to use the services to stay connected and meet new people while on the go," said John Styers, Sprint's director of data services for messaging and imaging, via a press release. "These three new services from Jumbuck, AirG and Trilibis give Sprint customers unique ways to reach others locally or around the world, whether it's to find people with common interests or find a date
Jumbuck Island, from Jumbuck Entertainmnet, is a 3D wireless chat service exclusive to Sprint for the first three months. Jumbuck Island brings elements from PC games and Internet chatrooms into one service. Users choose different avatars to represent themselves. Once on the island, users can wander around the different areas, including beaches and cruise ships, and send messages or chat with other users in private one-on-ones. Jumbuck Island is available for $3.99 per month.
The Lounges is the first segmented mobile community in North America, exclusive to Sprint for the first year, according to the carrier. Created by AirG, The Lounges lets Sprint users connect with other mobile users in any of three chat lounges - Sports, Latino and Friends - from mobile phones. The Lounges are free for the first month and $3.99 for additional months.
Webdate Mobile, enabled by Trilibis, is the world's largest mobile dating service. It gives users anytime, anywhere access to an online dating community, including complete personals with photos, profile searches and browsing and anonymous messaging to other Webdate members. Webdate Mobile is available for $4.99 per month.
"As mobile chat services become more and more popular, customers are asking for more ways to use the services to stay connected and meet new people while on the go," said John Styers, Sprint's director of data services for messaging and imaging, via a press release. "These three new services from Jumbuck, AirG and Trilibis give Sprint customers unique ways to reach others locally or around the world, whether it's to find people with common interests or find a date
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