Page 1 2 3 Page 1 2 3 | FRIDAY - JANUARY 20, 2006 - ISSUE NO. 196 |
Dear friends of Wireless Messaging, I am pleased to report that the rumors of my demise were greatly exaggerated. It looks like I am going to survive a bad cold that I have been fighting for over a week. For my friends and customers who may think I don't like them anymore—I'm back.
This week's headlines:
I am very happy that USA Mobility has joined the AAPC. With their membership and the alliance that is forming between EMMA and the AAPC, we have an unprecedented level of collaboration and teamwork in the Wireless Messaging industry—worldwide. I hope some of our friends “south of the border” decide to join one of the associations soon. Hace falta nuestras colegas en América Latina. ¡Vaminos! Please don't miss the article by Derek Banner, the chairman of EMMA, on page two—“A Call to Arms.” For the last couple of years we have been closely following Microsoft's entrance into the Wireless Messaging arena. As you may recall, their “SPOT” initiative uses one-way FM sub-carrier transmission of data on a nationwide network that rides “piggyback” on commercial FM broadcasting stations. There have been SPOT-enabled wristwatches available for about a year now. The first non-watch device has just been announced. It is a little desktop weather station from Oregon Scientific. Read all about it on page three. Now on to the news and views. |
A new issue of The Wireless Messaging Newsletter gets posted on the web each week. A notification goes out by e-mail to subscribers on most Fridays around noon central US time. The notification message has a link to the actual newsletter on the Internet. That way it doesn't fill up your incoming e-mail account. There is no charge for subscription and there are no membership restrictions. Readers are a very select group of wireless industry professionals, and include the senior managers of many of the world's major Paging and Wireless Data companies. There is an even mix of operations managers, marketing people, and engineers—so I try to include items of interest to all three groups. It's all about staying up-to-date with business trends and technology. I regularly get reader's comments, so this newsletter has become a community forum for the Paging, and Wireless Data communities. You are welcome to contribute your ideas and opinions. Unless otherwise requested, all correspondence addressed to me is subject to publication in the newsletter and on my web site. I am very careful to protect the anonymity of those who request it. NOTE: This newsletter is best viewed at screen resolutions of 800x600 (good) or 1024x768 (better). Any current revision of web browser should work fine. Please notify me of any problems with viewing. This site is compliant with XHTML 1.0 transitional coding for easy access from wireless devices. (XML 1.0/ISO 8859-1.)
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| WIRELESS NEWS |
Supreme Court may consider BlackBerry case
01/12/06
By Rob Thormeyer
GCN Staff
BlackBerry users are crossing their thumbs in hopes that the Supreme Court intervenes in the long-running patent dispute over the wireless handheld e-mail devices.
Attorneys involved in the case expect the high court to consider a petition from BlackBerry developer Research in Motion Ltd. of Waterloo, Ontario, to review an appeals court decision that ruled the company’s technology infringed upon patents owned by patent holding company NTP Inc. of Arlington, Va. The court will hold a conference to consider this petition and others Jan. 20.
A decision on whether the high court will hear the case could be announced as early as Jan. 23, attorneys for both companies said.
RIM filed the brief in December, claiming that the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit in an August decision left open for interpretation whether NTP’s patents apply to Internet technology housed outside the United States.
In this case, RIM says its Network Control Center, which processes nearly 100 million e-mails a day from BlackBerry users, should be exempt from patent infringement cases because it is in Canada.
“In its … opinions, the federal circuit clearly struggles with the important Internet Age question of whether a transnational high technology system can be used ‘within the United States’ under” the Patent Act, “even though it has very significant foreign components, here a Canadian Network Control Center, that is fundamental to the operation of the whole system,” RIM wrote.
If the high court takes up the case, it could prompt a lower court that is holding a hearing on NTP’s request for an injunction—likely to be held next month—to stay its proceedings until the Supreme Court rules, said RIM attorney Herbert Fenster of McKenna Long and Aldridge LLP of Washington.
“This could have a significant impact on the injunction case,” Fenster added.
The circuit court is expected to hold hearings on the injunction this winter, with briefs due Jan. 17.
At issue is the long-running and complicated patent infringement case that threatens the usage of BlackBerry devices worldwide.
NTP claimed in November 2001 that RIM’s BlackBerry technology infringed upon several patents the firm registered with the Patent and Trademark Office.
It sought an injunction against BlackBerry usage from the 4th U.S. District Court in Richmond, Va., while PTO determines whether NTP’s claims are legitimate.
To date, the government has rejected NTP’s claims, although a handful remain under investigation.
Threats of an injunction fueled fears in government and industry about how users will cope without their “crackberries,” as some who have become hooked on using the devices call them. Although RIM says it has a workaround plan that would exempt federal, state and local employees from any shutdown, it is unclear just how that would happen.
Source: Government Computer News
USA Mobility (ticker: USMO, exchange: Privately Held) News Release - January 16, 2006
USA Mobility Names Mark Garzone Executive Vice President for Marketing
ALEXANDRIA, Va., Jan. 16 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/—USA Mobility, Inc. (Nasdaq: USMO), a leading provider of wireless messaging services, has announced that Mark Garzone has been appointed executive vice president for marketing, effective today.
Vincent D. Kelly, president and chief executive officer, stated: "We are very pleased to have Mark join the USA Mobility team. He has an extensive background in marketing and sales support management, including more than 10 years in the wireless services industry. We believe Mark's broad experience and marketing expertise will serve us well as we continue to focus USA Mobility's sales and marketing initiatives on customers in the health services, government, corporate, and emergency service first-response sectors. In addition, as a seasoned marketing executive, his leadership ability and business skills should prove very beneficial as we continue to support our core customers and expand our service offerings."
Garzone has more than 23 years of experience in product marketing and marketing communications, successfully developing cost-effective marketing programs that have resulted in customer and revenue growth. A 10-year wireless industry veteran, Garzone most recently was a vice president of marketing for Nextel Communications, Inc. (now known as Sprint/Nextel) where he was responsible for developing and implementing innovative strategies for business and field marketing, including sales communications and channel development, that contributed to both subscriber growth and customer loyalty. Previously, he served as general manager for Market Direct America and, before that, held marketing and business development positions at McGraw-Hill Information Services Group and Dun & Bradstreet. Garzone holds a B.S. degree in marketing from Seton Hall University.
About USA Mobility
USA Mobility, Inc., headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, is a leading provider of paging products and other wireless services to the business, government, healthcare and emergency response sectors. USA Mobility offers traditional one-way and advanced two-way paging via its nationwide networks covering more than 90% of the U.S. population. In addition, the company offers mobile voice and data services through Nextel, Sprint and Cingular/AT&T Wireless, including BlackBerry and GPS location applications. The company's product offerings include wireless connectivity systems for medical, business, government and other campus environments. USA Mobility focuses on the business-to-business marketplace and supplies mobile connectivity solutions to over two-thirds of the Fortune 1000 companies. For further information visit http://www.usamobility.com.
Safe Harbor Statement under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act: Statements contained herein or in prior press releases which are not historical fact, such as statements regarding USA Mobility's expectations for future operating and financial performance, are forward-looking statements for purposes of the safe harbor provisions under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that may cause USA Mobility's actual results to be materially different from the future results expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expectations include, but are not limited to, declining demand for paging products and services, the ability to continue to reduce operating expenses, future capital needs, competitive pricing pressures, competition from both traditional paging services and other wireless communications services, government regulation, reliance upon third-party providers for certain equipment and services, the timely and efficient integration of the operations and facilities of Metrocall and Arch as well as other risks described from time to time in periodic reports and registration statements filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Although USA Mobility believes the expectations reflected in the forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that its expectations will be attained. USA Mobility disclaims any intent or obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
Contact:
Bob Lougee
703-721-3080
Source: USA Mobility, Inc.
Long Range Systems and Dynamics Direct Bring Email Marketing to Restaurant Industry
(2006-01-17) Dynamics Direct, Inc.
First-of-its-kind Distributed Solution Allows 15,000 Restaurants to Leverage Email Channel
Los Angeles, January, 17th, 2006—Dynamics Direct, Inc., a leading provider of email marketing software and ASP solutions for the enterprise market announced today that Long Range Systems, the creators of the first wireless coaster pager and worldwide leader of onsite wireless solutions, has chosen the Dynamic Messenger™ Email Relationship Management platform to add email marketing capabilities to their restaurant offerings, including Long Range Systems new Allegiant® customer loyalty products. This new line of interactive paging solutions allows customers to provide their local restaurant with an email address to receive special offers, discounts, advanced seating, and other loyalty benefits.
The new solution combines hardware, software, databases and the Internet to deliver an innovative customer loyalty solution that empowers restaurant visitors to provide instant feedback on everything from menu items, to quality of service, to reservations. In addition, restaurant owners have unprecedented visibility to customer satisfaction and the ability to immediately act on that data. The system automatically delivers personalized and localized email to subscribers, and provides a self service interface for corporate and individual restaurant owners to view reports or modify creative content. It is the first email marketing solution offered to restaurants that provides corporate control with distributed use.
“We needed a scalable solution that could be customized for each restaurant, a tough combination”, said Ken Todd, Vice President at LRS. “Dynamics Direct is the only email marketing vendor we found that provided such a complete product suite. Dynamic Messenger has a customizable interface, an open architecture that can work with our existing systems, and a sophisticated User Manager that will allow us to support thousands of restaurants and users.
“The solution we have built with LRS is a great example of the exciting future email marketing has in front of it,” says Bob Hale, Vice President of Business Development at Dynamics Direct. “Email marketing is entering its second generation. New email marketing platforms enable customer centric marketing programs that are delivered on demand, are highly integrated with other enterprise applications, and empower multiple users across the enterprise. Dynamics Direct helps market leaders like LRS turn email into a competitive weapon.”
About Long Range Systems 
Since 1993, Long Range Systems, Inc. (LRS) based in Dallas, Texas has been a leading innovator of on-premise wireless enterprise communications solutions for the retail, manufacturing, healthcare and food service industries. LRS is widely recognized for introducing coaster-style wireless customer paging systems to restaurants nationwide, visit www.pager.net for more information.
About Dynamics Direct, Inc. 
Email marketing software and ASP solution provider, Dynamics Direct, helps companies realize the benefits and ROI of email messaging across the enterprise by providing the most powerful, yet easy to use email marketing solutions available. Founded in 1998, Dynamics Direct is headquartered in Valencia , California , visit www.dynamicsdirect.com or call 661-600-2059. Media Contact: Ms. Loretta Knapp, lknapp@dynamicsdirect.com
Source: I-Newswire.com
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GTES has recently made the strategic decision to expanding its development activities to include wireless location technologies; a market that researchers forecast could reach $3.6 billion by 2010. In support of this new strategic direction, GTES has developed SHERLOC™ a complete one-stop wireless location service, providing the flexibility of being protocol neutral and network agnostic. Targeted at business customers who need to track their high-value shipments or better manage their service or delivery fleets, SHERLOC™ is a hosted application that combines configuration flexibility with ease of use. GTES is offering SHERLOC™ services both directly and through authorized resellers. If your company has an interest in finding out how location services can enhance your revenue stream, and has the contacts and expertise to make you successful in the location marketplace, please contact us for further information at www.sherlocgps.com and select “Reseller Opportunities,” or call us at 770-754-1666 for more information. www.gtesinc.com GTES is the only Glenayre authorized software support provider in the Paging industry. With over 200 years of combined experience in Glenayre hardware and software support, GTES offers the industry the most professional support and engineering development staff available. Continued Support Programs CALL US TODAY FOR YOUR SUPPORT NEEDS
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| NEW YORK SUBWAY |
AP New York Bidders submit plans to wire NYC subway stations By ADAM GOLDMAN January 18, 2006, 6:55 PM EST NEW YORK—Some of the best-known companies in the world submitted bids Wednesday to wire 277 subway stations for cell phone use, including one proposal that involves the nation's cellular carriers forming an alliance. The bids mark a significant step in a long-running effort to make cell phone service available to the millions of New Yorkers who descend into subway stations every day and lose all ability to talk on their phones. The 10-year contract calls for the winning bidder to wire only the platforms and not the moving trains. But the companies were required to discuss how they would expand the network to the tunnels. Whoever wins the contract will have to make the network available to other carriers, Metropolitan Transportation Authority spokesman Tom Kelly said. Cingular Wireless, Verizon Wireless, T-Mobile and Sprint Nextel teamed up to submit one of the bids, according to Cingular spokesman Clay Owen. Cingular will take the lead on the project if awarded the bid, Owen said. GE Capital, Time Warner Cable, Andrew Corp., Transit Technologies and Dianet Communications made up the second team that submitted a bid, according to Dianet President Jeffrey Just. "This is the right project at the right time for the MTA," Just said. "The financial model is there for the MTA to earn substantial revenue while increasing the safety, security and services to their riders." American Tower Corp. also was said to be among the bidders, but a message left with the company was not immediately returned. The fourth and final bid wasn't disclosed. Kelly said the MTA would not reveal the companies until the viability of their bids is documented. Kelly did not know how long it would take to select a winning bid. The deadline for entering a bid was Wednesday, more than three months after the original one was set for Oct. 12. It is not clear if wiring the subways will pay off. Industry experts said it made sense for the companies to form a partnership to allay the costs. "I think everyone recognizes that there is very little money to be made but they very intelligently approached it from the pool concept to offset costs," said Jonathan Spira, chief analyst at Basex, an IT research firm in New York City. Spira said the real "pot of gold at the end of the rainbow" for the companies was in the wiring of the trains _ not in merely making it possible for commuters to talk in the brief time they spend on the platforms. T-Mobile spokesman Peter Dobrow said in an e-mail that similar partnerships in Seattle and Boston have been successful in the past. He added that the wiring would be important if there was ever an emergency. "In New York, we firmly believe that installing wireless solutions throughout the subway system is an important emergency services ... initiative," he wrote. But there are also concerns about whether the wiring could allow terrorists to trigger bombs using cell phones. At least one subway rider advocacy group is taking a wait-and-see approach to the project. "We thought it was a good first step to wire the stations," said Gene Russianoff, an attorney for Straphangers Campaign. "There is a big difference between the stations and trains." Source: Newsday.com |
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