Dear Friends,

I have some more very interesting news for you this week, but first my regular disclaimer:

This is my weekly newsletter about Wireless Data and Radio Paging. You are receiving this message because you have either communicated with me in the past about a wireless topic, or your address was included in another e-mail that I received. This is not a SPAM. If you have received this message in error, and you are not interested in these topics, please click here, then click on "send" and you will be promptly removed from the mailing list.

A short news bulletin was sent out on last Monday with two news items which are included here again—this time with more details.

RCR Wireless reports some expected news:

QUOTE
Metrocall files for Chapter 11
April 15, 2002 1:19 PM EST
ALEXANDRIA, Va.—Metrocall Inc. said it will file for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection by the end of this month, making it the last of the independent nationwide Paging providers to seek court protection from creditors. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, the company said it would file for Chapter 11 by April 30. The company said it would fire 850 employees, almost 30 percent of its workforce, by the end of the year as part of an effort to reduce expenses."
UNQUOTE

Read the whole report here.

No PCIA Trade Show this year:
I have worked in Paging and radio communications for more years than I care to admit. I started out as a teen-age ham radio operator in the 50's and have been involved with some form of wireless communications ever since. For many of those years, I looked forward to the "main event" of the year which, in the good-ole-days, we called, "the Telocator Show."

This was the big Paging-association trade show where all the manufacturers announced and displayed their new products. It was a great time to see old friends and colleagues, to catch up on all the industry gossip, and after a lot of hard work, to have a good time too. NEC was always well-remembered for their hospitality suite and the huge bowls of shrimp. Motorola always had the best entertainment, and was usually successful in keeping the name of the Hollywood-star-entertainer a secret until the last minute. Telocator eventually changed to PCIA, the Personal Communications Industry Association, and the trade show ended up being called the GlobalXChange.

Last year's event in Los Angeles was canceled after airports were shut down during the September 11th terrorist attacks. This year's "show" was scheduled to take place in New Orleans, but it has been canceled. PCIA President Jay Kitchen told Wireless Week that the cancellation of the show last fall had a significant effect on PCIA's momentum for its initiatives that focused on mobile business agendas. Read the whole report here.

INDUSTRY RUMORS
Strong rumors circulating around closed-door high-level executive discussions indicate that Motorola is soon to acquire Enron. The new spinoff company is to be called "MO*RON." All of the employees of the new company will have MBA degrees.

TRADE ASSOCIATIONS
Information follows about two Paging industry associations that are proposing to take the place of the PCIA. This is really a good idea, since many of us believe that Paging was being seriously neglected by the PCIA.

Wireless Week reports a New Paging Industry Association has been proposed:
"A Paging industry association in California has issued a call to Paging companies and organizations around the country to create a new entity to advocate on the industry's behalf at the national level." [emphasis added]

"The organization, called Allied Personal Communications Industries Association, says the industry is bereft of national leadership because the Washington, D.C.-based PCIA, its traditional advocacy group, has assumed other interests as cellular and other wireless data services have undercut the paging industry's market base." to read the whole story in Wireless Week, click here.

I am not well acquainted with the Allied Personal Communications Industries Association of California but they have some good people on their letterhead and some well-known Paging companies who are members. We certainly need an organization to represent the interests of all the Paging carriers. The stated mission of the Allied PCIA is:

QUOTE
Our Mission
The purpose of the association is to promote and develop the personal communications services industry so that the best interests of the public and the members of the association will be served.

The specific goals of the association are to:

• Educate the public and government as to the full implications of personal communications services technology;
• Influence the development of legislation, regulations, and other public policies to enhance the industry’s potential;
• Provide a forum where member company disputes may be resolved informally through social contacts and discussions; and
• Resolve issues that are California-specific or that have national ramifications.

UNQUOTE

To find out more visit their web page here.

Another trade association, the American Association of Paging Carriers is also expanding, and proposes to represent the whole US Paging industry. You can visit their home page here. I have a friend that has joined the association recently and speaks very highly of them.

QUOTE
Their Mission Statement:
To represent paging carriers throughout the United States to ensure the success of our industry by:

• identifying issues of common concerns to its members;
• providing an effective forum for the discussion and progression of issues relating to the industry;
• monitoring and addressing regulatory and legal matters as a united organization;
• providing research into and development of our industry and its current and prospective markets;
• providing education and resources to address the challenges and trends affecting our operating environments;
• encouraging and maintaining high standards of ethics and services;
• championing the industry and representing Paging carriers with a positive voice.

UNQUOTE

YOU CHOOSE
Both organizations look good, and I have tried to present them here equally. I copied their mission statements directly from their web pages. So, the choice is up to you. It is clear that we need to do something—together—for the success of the industry.

TEXT MESSAGING
RCR Wireless reports: ". . . the GSM Association released figures showing the massive and continuing success of short message services throughout the world. According to the group, 75 billion text messages were sent globally in the first quarter of this year alone, which is an increase of more than 50 percent over the same quarter last year. The association said the total number of messages sent this year should hit 360 billion, up from 250 billion sent last year." This is more support for the premise that people prefer text messaging over voice for many types of communication. Read the whole report here. What's the point? The point is, that as the use of "texting" or text messaging, continues to grow, its popularity should help to keep traditional Paging alive. Paging uses a superior technology for transmitting the message by radio—simulcasting. That means that the message can penetrate deeper into buildings and underground garages than the various cellphone technologies, and do it at a lower cost. It should always be at a lower cost, since Paging infrastructure costs a fraction of the of wideband PCS systems.

Confusion about two-way subscriber devices—Who's on first?
For some time there has been a lot of confusion about who was really going to represent the new two-way pagers coming in from South Korea. This week a letter was sent from Nixxo to the US two-way Paging carriers, apologizing for the confusion that had existed as to whether Nixxo or Hoseo Telnet was going to distribute two-way products here. Slightly different pagers have been shown around the industry from the two companies. This letter, dated April 17, and signed by the presidents of both Hoseo Telnet and Standard Telecom says that "any two-way handset system developed by Hoseo will be marketed by Nixxo." So now that this point is clear, I want to add my apology too, since I was the one that got the US representatives of Hoseo Telnet involved in this in the first place. Sometimes your best intentions don't work out right.

Copies of my previous wireless newsletters are located at: http://braddye.com/newsletters.html.

If you have anything that you would like to add to the Buy or Sell list please send me all the details.

Please check out the following web sites and let me know if you find anything that you need.

The Wireless Watchman Wireless Telemetry with GPS localization.

WaveWare Technologies Pagers, serial port controlled Paging encoders, and Paging base stations.

Telelink Wireless Technologies Paging Terminals and Voice Mail.

Ticker Communications Wireless information delivered to LED signs.

DigitPro Communications Pagers and Paging Data Receivers.