CTIA-The Wireless Association welcomes Jaime Hjort as Director of Government Affairs

On 03.29.11, In Mobile, By Editor

CTIA-The Wireless Association announced today that Jaime Hjort has joined as its director of government affairs. Hjort’s responsibilities include educating Congressional Members and their staff about the industry’s continuously innovative and competitive nature that drives the sector’s need for more spectrum.

“With her tremendous experience on the Hill and campaigns, Jaime will be instrumental to the association’s efforts on a variety of issues, from cell tax fairness to broadcast incentive auctions,” said Jot Carpenter, vice president, government affairs of CTIA-The Wireless Association.

Hjort served on Capitol Hill as a legislative assistant with Senator George Allen (R-VA) and as a professional staff member with Chairman Tom Davis (R-VA-11) on the U.S. House Committee on Government Reform. Prior to joining CTIA, Hjort was an attorney in South Carolina. Hjort has a Juris Doctor from George Mason University School of Law and a bachelor of arts in political science from The George Washington University.

CTIA-The Wireless Association® (www.ctia.org) is an international organization representing the wireless communications industry. Membership in the association includes wireless carriers and their suppliers, as well as providers and manufacturers of wireless data services and products. CTIA advocates on behalf of its members at all levels of government. The association also coordinates the industry’s voluntary best practices and initiatives, and sponsors the industry’s leading wireless tradeshows. CTIA was founded in 1984 and is based in Washington, DC.

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Huawei aborts US security challenge (China, US)

On 02.21.11, In Mobile, By Editor

Huawei, the Chinese telecom equipment maker, has dropped its challenge to the US government over a deal  in which Washington had refused to give national security clearance to the company.

The move is the latest twist in the increasingly dramatic conflict between Chinese companies’ global expansion and some governments’ suspicions that allowing them in could make countries vulnerable to hostile action from an ever more powerful China.

According to the company, this was a difficult decision. However, they have decided to accept the recommendation of the Committee on Foreign Investment to withdraw their application to acquire specific assets of 3Leaf.

The statement is a surprise about-turn from its insistence, just four days earlier, that it would not voluntarily unwind the $2 million acquisition of patents from 3Leaf, a small US company, made last May, as proposed by Cfius, the secretive executive agency which screens foreign investments in the US for national security risks.

Huawei’s refusal, which would have forced Barack Obama, US president, to personally make a final decision on the deal, had stunned observers because most companies choose voluntary retreat when Cfius indicates that a planned deal could face rejection.

Mr Obama would have had to decide on the deal within 15 days.

It is the latest episode in Huawei’s long-running efforts to expand in the US. In 2008, the company abandoned a planned acquisition of 3Com, a US router and switch maker, after Cfius indicated that it was not ready to approve the deal.

Since then, the company had communicated with US officials, lawmakers and analysts, hiring former American government officials and industry executives and committed to unprecedented outside security checks of its products.

The measures have done little to allay suspicions about the company. US lawmakers and analysts continue to harbor the view that Huawei could be a front for the Chinese military because Ren Zhengfei, its founder, is a former People’s Liberation Army officer. Huawei denies the allegations.

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Sprint extends purchase deal with US Federal States

On 02.17.11, In Mobile, By Editor

A national association of States has selected Sprint as an approved wireless provider, extending the company’s contract to serve as a supplier of wireless products and services to state and local governments across the nation for an additional year.

The consortium — Western States Contracting Alliance (WSCA) — extended the contract with Sprint through Oct. 31, 2012.

The latest deal extension, worth an estimated US$360 million, increases the total lifetime value of the contract to US$1.4 billion since 2006.

The Western States Contracting Alliance (WSCA) enables cooperative multi-state contracting to help states acquire quality services in a cost-effective and efficient manner. States purchasing Sprint’s products and services under WSCA include Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington and Wyoming. State and local governments in most states are able to utilize this dynamic contracting vehicle.

Sprint’s Business Markets Group is composed of sales, support, marketing and operations personnel solely dedicated to enterprise, small and medium-sized business and public sector customers.

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Integra Telecom names Stephen Zimba Chief Marketing Officer (Portland)

On 12.17.10, In Mobile, By Editor

Integra Telecom Inc., a fiber-based, integrated wholesale and retail telecommunications provider for business, has hired Steve Zimba as chief marketing officer.

He will work to strengthen Integra’s long-time reputation of having innovative and user-friendly solutions that leverage Integra’s extensive fiber network and meet the needs of businesses of all sizes.”

Zimba brings 23 years of experience in the communications and technology industry where he has led the development and growth of several new products and businesses. Prior to Integra, Zimba held a variety of roles including vice president marketing and products at Cbeyond, director of strategic development at BellSouth, and managing director of the Global Telecom Business at Microsoft. He attended Syracuse University where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in economics and policy studies as well as a master’s degree in public administration and finance.

Steve brings extensive marketing expertise and telecommunications and managed services knowledge to Integra’s executive management team,” said Dudley Slater, CEO of Integra Telecom. He will work to strengthen Integra’s long-time reputation of having innovative and user-friendly solutions that leverage Integra’s extensive fiber network and meet the needs of businesses of all sizes.”

About Integra Telecom

Integra Telecom Inc. provides voice and Internet solutions to thousands of business and carrier customers in 11 Western states, including: Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, North Dakota, Oregon, Utah and Washington. It owns and operates a best-in-class fiber-optic network comprised of metropolitan access networks, nationally acclaimed Internet and data networks, and a 4,700-mile high-speed long haul network. The company has earned some of the highest customer loyalty and customer satisfaction ratings in the telecommunications industry. Primary equity investors in the company include Goldman, Sachs & Co., Tennenbaum Capital Partners, funds managed by Farallon Capital Partners and Warburg Pincus. Integra Telecom and Electric Lightwave are registered trademarks of Integra Telecom Inc. For more information, visit: www.integratelecom.com.

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High court to review Microsoft patent case (USA)

On 12.01.10, In Mobile, By Editor

Microsoft has support in its appeal from more than a dozen publicly traded companies, including Apple Inc. and Google Inc.

Apple told the justices that the patent system is tilting out of balance, giving disproportionate power to people who secure patents of questionable legitimacy.

The award stood as the largest ever supported by an appeals court in a patent case. The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in Washington concluded that Microsoft didn’t prove that the disputed patent was based on technology that was already in the marketplace.

Microsoft, which had $5.41 billion in profit in the most recent quarter, hasn’t paid any damages to I4i. The unit that sells Office is Microsoft’s biggest, with $5.13 billion in sales in the quarter that ended Sept. 30.

In its ruling, the appeals court alleged Microsoft needed to offer clear and convincing evidence to overcome the conventional belief that patents approved by the US Patent and Trademark Office are valid. Microsoft challenges that a less-demanding standard should apply when a jury is presented with evidence about preexisting technology that the patent examiner didn’t consider.

Toronto-based I4i urged the Supreme Court not to hear the appeal, arguing that the clear and convincing standard is a longstanding rule that has encouraged innovation.

I4i argued that the heightened burden benefits the public by increasing inventors’ incentive to commit the resources required for innovation and then to disclose their inventions,.

The case concerns a method developed by I4i for editing some documents using XML, a so-called markup language that tells the computer how text should appear. I4i created a way to store the content and the XML codes separately, making it easier for users to work alone with either the content or the codes.

The disputed feature is one used by large companies to add special data to Word files, such as information in forms submitted by customers. Customers including drug makers Merck & Co. and Bayer AG use I4i’s software to make sure people get the correct and most up-to-date information on the labels of their medicine.

In its 2007 lawsuit, I4i accused Microsoft of incorporating the invention into the larger company’s Word program, which is used by 500 million people worldwide.

Microsoft argued in defense that I4i had included its innovation in a product it sold to a client more than a year before it filed its patent application. That prior use would have rendered the invention ineligible for patenting under federal law.

A jury agreed with I4i and awarded $200 million. The judge overseeing the case increased that sum because of misconduct by Microsoft’s trial lawyer, and the figure has continued to grow with interest.

The court also ordered Microsoft to stop using the invention, forcing the company to update the Word software.

Microsoft also has support in its appeal from trade groups representing the financial services and wireless industries.

According to I4i Chairman Loudon Owen,Microsoft’s argument has a simplistic appeal.

If Microsoft wins, he stated, inventors would inundate the patent office with data and examiners would have to fill out more paperwork to explain their decisions.

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China announces new crackdown on product piracy

On 12.01.10, In Mobile, By Editor

China’s government has announced a new crackdown on uncontrolled illegal copying of products from software to music that has become a problem for Washington and other governments over trade and currency complaints.

According to Trade groups, Chinese piracy of software and some other goods is growing despite repeated promises to stamp it out. The World Trade Organization sided with Washington in January in a complaint that Beijing was failing to enforce patents, copyrights and trademarks aggressively enough.

According to  deputy commerce minister, Jiang Zengwei, the six-month campaign will target illegally copied or fake goods as varied as software, Internet materials, medicines and corn that is falsely labeled as organic. He promised closer cooperation with the United States, Japan and Europe.

As per Trade groups, illegal Chinese copying of music, designer clothes and other goods costs legitimate producers billions of dollars a year in lost sales. As per American officials, phony Chinese-made heart and anti-cancer drugs have been found as far away as Africa.

Jiang added that there is still a lot of room for improvement. The new crackdown will focus on encouraging companies to use more legitimate software and stamping out sales of fake drugs and mislabeled farm products.

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Apple increases legal team for Patent Showdowns with Nokia, Motorola, HTC

On 11.29.10, In Mobile, By Editor

Apple’s iPhone, one of the best-selling smartphones on the market is adding lawyers to the company.

Apple is squaring off against Nokia Oyj, the world’s largest mobile-phone maker, before the International Trade Commission. The dispute, in which each side alleges intellectual property violations, is also a precursor to Apple patent battles with Motorola Inc. and HTC Corp.

Cupertino, California-based Apple is trying to protect its right to import the iPhone, while shutting out rivals, particularly those whose phones are powered by Google Inc.’s Android operating system, the world’s most popular smartphone software. Android-based phones also are made abroad.

According to Lyle Vander Schaaf, an attorney at Brinks Hofer Gilson & Lione in Washington, who handles cases before the commission, these are very well-known, deep-pocketed, high-end manufacturers, usually you have one 800-pound gorilla going after a new entrant. Here you’ve got 800-pound gorillas fighting each other.

Apple has been the most-sued technology company since 2008; the year after the iPhone was introduced, topping Microsoft Corp., Hewlett-Packard Co. and Dell Inc., according to LegalMetric Inc., a compiler of litigation data based in St. Louis.

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Sprint 4G Rolls Out in Los Angeles, Miami, Washington, D.C., Cleveland, Cincinnati and Columbus, Ohio

On 11.29.10, In Mobile, By Editor

San Francisco Market expected to launch 4G Service on Dec. 28

Sprint today officially unleashed the power of 4G — enabling fast mobile downloads, wireless video chat and turbo-charged mobile Web browsing up to 10 times faster than 3G service(1) — in Los Angeles, Miami, Washington D.C., Cleveland, Cincinnati and Columbus, Ohio. Customers in these metropolitan areas can now take full advantage of the Sprint 4G network using a wide range of 4G-capable devices. With the addition of these six markets, Sprint 4G is now available in 68 markets(2) across the country, including Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Dallas, Houston and New York City. Additionally, the wireless carrier announced that it expects to launch the San Francisco market — home to Silicon Valley and thousands of tech enthusiasts — on Dec. 28.

How will 4G benefit Sprint customers in these areas? With the Overdrive(TM) 3G/4G Mobile Hotspot by Sierra Wireless, a visitor to Washington, D.C., (including Northern Virginia and parts of Maryland) can connect to the Internet with a laptop or any Wi-Fi enabled device to check the news at speeds that are up to 10 times faster than 3G. A hungry tourist in Miami, Fort Lauderdale or Palm Beach can search for the best food truck in their vicinity using one of the food-truck applications in the Android(TM) Market on Samsung Epic(TM) 4G. If sports fans in Cleveland, Cincinnati or Columbus are looking for up-to-date scores, no problem — it’s easy and quick to find on HTC EVO(TM) 4G. And, surfers in Los Angeles can forgo the waves and surf the Internet on-the-go using the first 3G/4G-embedded netbook and notebook from Sprint — the Dell(TM) Inspiron(TM) Mini 10 (1012) netbook and Dell(TM) Inspiron(TM) 11z notebook.

“We have witnessed a great demand from our customers for 4G speeds, power and capabilities in these cities already and today they officially have it,” said Matt Carter, president-Sprint 4G. “We are proud to deliver on our commitment to serve our customers and deliver 4G to more major metropolitan areas in 2010.”

Sprint first launched 4G in Baltimore in September 2008 and since then has delivered a comprehensive consumer, business and public sector strategy and a robust portfolio of devices, consisting of phones, USB aircards, notebook/netbook products, mobile hotspots and routers, that are being used by satisfied consumers and businesses.

To get an insider’s view about how Sprint is making sure that 4G is ready for its customers, visit the YouTube Web video series “Wiring Up 4G.” Videos are available for Los Angeles and New York City.

Sprint is delivering the power of 4G as the majority shareholder of Clearwire, the independent company that is building the WiMAX network. For more information, visit www.sprint.com/4G.

About Sprint Nextel

Sprint Nextel offers a comprehensive range of wireless and wireline communications services bringing the freedom of mobility to consumers, businesses and government users. Sprint Nextel served more than 48.8 million customers at the end of the third quarter of 2010 and is widely recognized for developing, engineering and deploying innovative technologies, including the first wireless 4G service from a national carrier in the United States; offering industry-leading mobile data services, leading prepaid brands including Virgin Mobile USA, Boost Mobile, Common Cents Mobile and Assurance Wireless; instant national and international push-to-talk capabilities; and a global Tier 1 Internet backbone. Newsweek ranked Sprint No. 6 in its 2010 Green Rankings, listing it as one of the nation’s greenest companies, the highest of any telecommunications company. You can learn more and visit Sprint at www.sprint.com or www.facebook.com/sprint and www.twitter.com/sprint.

(1) “Up to 10x faster” based on download speed comparison of 3G’s 600 kbps vs. 4G’s 6 Mbps. Industry published 3G avg. speeds (600 kbps-1.7 Mbps); 4G avg. speeds (3-6 Mbps). Actual speeds may vary by plan or based on other factors.

(2) Sprint 4G is now available in 68 markets: California — Los Angeles, Merced, Modesto, Sacramento, Stockton, Visalia; Connecticut — Hartford, New Haven; Delaware — Wilmington; District of Columbia — Washington D.C.; Florida — Daytona Beach, Jacksonville, Miami, Orlando, Tampa; Georgia — Atlanta, Milledgeville; Hawaii — Honolulu, Maui; Idaho — Boise; Illinois — Chicago; Maryland — Baltimore; Massachusetts — Boston; Michigan — Grand Rapids; Minnesota — Minneapolis-St. Paul: Missouri — Kansas City, St. Louis; New Jersey — New Brunswick, Trenton; New York — New York, Rochester, Syracuse; Nevada — Las Vegas; North Carolina — Charlotte, Greensboro (includes High Point and Winston-Salem), Raleigh (includes Cary, Chapel Hill and Durham); Ohio — Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus; Oregon — Eugene, Portland, Salem; Pennsylvania — Harrisburg, Lancaster, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Reading, York; Rhode Island — Providence; Tennessee — Nashville; Texas — Abilene, Amarillo, Austin, Corpus Christi, Dallas/Fort Worth, Houston, Killeen/Temple, Lubbock, Midland/Odessa, San Antonio, Waco, Wichita Falls; Utah — Salt Lake City; Virginia — Richmond; and Washington — Bellingham, Seattle, Tri-Cities, Yakima.

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Huawei positive over US plans

On 11.15.10, In Mobile, By Editor

Huawei executives believe that the company would eventually make huge paces in the US market, although security concerns have steadily frustrated the company’s momentum there.

The Chinese group last week met with objections in Washington to discuss a potential equipment deal with Sprint Nextel.

As per reports citing Charlie Chen, Huawei’s senior vice-president for marketing in the US, free market principles ensured that the group would work with a major US carrier, a goal that has remained elusive. It may take a long time. It may take three or five or 10 years, it doesn’t matter, the company will get there.

According to Huawei, it had not officially been notified by Sprint whether speculation in Washington that the Chinese company was no longer in contention for a major equipment contract because of US security concerns was accurate.

Bill Plummer, a Washington-based Huawei executive, insisted that US security agencies were chiefly concerned by cyber security issues in general and not about Huawei specifically. He added that the company has no visibility into Sprint’s decision making process, if some non-commercial factor comes into play it is really at detriment of competition in the US, and US jobs and US livelihood.

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Microsoft sues Motorola over Xbox royalty

On 11.10.10, In Mobile, By Editor

Microsoft Corp. has sued Motorola Inc. claiming that Motorola is charging excessive royalties on network technology used in Microsoft’s Xbox game system.

According to Microsoft, it has filed a case in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington in Seattle, arguing that Motorola breached its commitments to standards organizations to license patents related to wireless and video coding technologies under reasonable and non-discriminatory terms and conditions.

As per the company, Motorola demanded royalties that are excessive and discriminatory, and asked the court for compensation from Motorola.

It was Microsoft’s second lawsuit against Motorola in a little over a month.

Last month, the software giant filed a suit against Motorola for infringement of nine Microsoft patents by Motorola’s Android-based smartphones.

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