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Opponents of cell tower construction may now have an alternative to give their public officials, in the form of a Distributed Antenna System. Illinois developer ClearLinx Network Corp. has proposed to build an unobtrusive network for cellular coverage in the form of compact distributed antenna systems.

Contracts between top wireless carriers for the distributed antenna system may also be in the works, which would appease residents who demand creative alternatives for wireless network coverage expansion.

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The merger between Sprint and Nextel last August has followed by aggressive buyouts of the company's affiliates. Several of the Sprint partners have been acquired, but Nextel only has one, Nextel Partners, whose merger with Sprint Nextel has just been approved by the FCC.

Nextel Partners CEO, John Chapple, says the company will continue with business as usual, primarily serving rural markets.

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Residents of condominiums and home owner associations can now dispute decisions virtually imposed on them by their community associations. In the past, alarm has been raised over the right to lease cell phone towers on the residents' rooftops.

The passage of House Bill 2824 will make it possible for a judge to hear disputes by paying a relatively low filing fee. Previously, homeowners associations were at an advantage because disputes such as ones regarding cell tower leasing were only heard in Superior Court. Costs to pursue litigation, especially for retired residents, was out of the question.

Law makers supporting the bill believe it will balance the system for resolving homeowners association disputes.

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The telecommunications industry is once more consolidating its resources, this time with the merger of Nokia and Siemens. Analysts expect this will raise Nokia-Siemen's rank among equipment vendors to third, behind Ericsson-Marcon (the leader) and Alcatel-Lucent (second).

Strategically, Nokia-Siemens now have a broad product portfolio, which will help them compete with Sprint-Nextel and Vertizon who are slowly forming into one-stop businesses for telecommunication.

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The Sprint Nextel RFP for pseudowire has attracted bidders such as Cisco Systems Inc., Axerra Networks Inc., and RAD Data Communications Ltd. The pseudowire technology would mix TDM, ATM, and IP into a single link which makes it very attractive for wireless applications.

Lobbying efforts are underway by Sprint Nextel to implement regulations for access fees to local Ethernet lines which would make the pseudowire technology less expensive to deploy for consumer use. The Unstrung article covers the protocol and benefits of the technology as well as the reasons Sprint Nextel is pressing for Congressional regulation.

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Gary Forsee, Sprint Nextel CEO, discusses the sizable investment of his company in wireless mobility. This edited interview with the Sprint Nextel chief covers how consumer demands for wireless capability are being met and touches on services for the future.

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Sprint has expanded its EV-DO offering to routers. A new Linksys router will allow Sprint EV-DO subscribers to add wireless capabilities to any network using their EV-DO card.

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Analysts anticipate that an Apple cell phone is inevitable, but not expected to arrive until mid-2007 or 2008. Apple may choose to continue its partnership with Motorola, which currently manufactures iTunes capable cell phones, but it is more likely that it will develop its own product. This will give Apple more control over product offerings and allow them to tailor their service to compliment other Mac products.

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Channel 4 News in Nevada reports Sprint Nextel has implemented a limited Wi-Fi network in a Las Vegas suburb. It will begin as a pilot program, offered to municipal services and local businesses. As information is collected about usage of the Wi-Fi network, Sprint Nextel will consider offering it as a subscription service.

The RGJ.com reports that the Nevada Wi-Fi network will be offered in partnership with Sprint Nextel's locally owned telephone company and the city government. Coverage will be available for two-square miles of the city, which residents and businesses can use for free during the evaluation period.

Wavy.com adds that the joint Wi-Fi venture provides data speeds comparable to DSL. This testing period utilizes the resources of Sprint's local telephone companies, which will be made into separately owned local companies called Embarq.

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Cingular will stop supporting TDMA phones in 2008. At that time 2.5 million current Cingular customers will have to exchange their TDMA phones for devices that work on the GSM-network. MobileMag has the Cingular story.

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Canada launches North America's first large-scale WiMAX service, deployed by Bell Canada and Rogers Communications. The WiMAX service is projected to entice rural consumers most of all since current data connection that market is predominately dial-up. WiMAX connection speeds for urban users are less attractive due to the high speed cable connection already provided to many city residents. The WiMAX story describes the service costs and data rates as well.

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Improved 3G service will soon be offered by Verizon, called CDMA EV-DO Rev A. The Verizon EV-DO service will offer increased data rates, which the company expects will drive up demand for voice services. The coverage from Unstrung discusses EV-DO roll-out plans.

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Sprint Nextel and other mobile voice and data carriers are each deciding on the best approach for next generation development of their networks. At the end of this summer Sprint Nextel plans to announce its plans for 2.5 GHz or 4G mobile communications technology. The company licenses 85 percent of the 2.5 GHz band, and the FCC has required Sprint Nextel have 4G service offerings for 15 million Americans by 2009. The article at Unstrung gives a detailed account of the 4G development options, and InfoWorld outlines the sentiment of the major carriers for 2.5 GHz.

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The convergence of cellular phones and Wi-Fi data networks is around the corner. Soon wi-fi handsets will be the ubiquitous solution for communication. This is leading to a fixed/mobil system which would allow a user to have a cellphone as their only device for voice and data anywhere they went. While wi-fi handsets may still be a few years away from the consumer, speculation is mounting about what fixed/mobil services could mean for the communications industry.

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Consumer demand for GPS services are growing and wireless service providers are responding. Sprint Nextel, Verizon, and Cingular are now offering services that allow their customers to receive detailed navigation directions. Consumers should evalute the differences in eah provider's service based on their usage according to the GPS article from TMCnet.

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Multiple-beam radar will soon be implemented for weather systems. This would greatly improve weather analysis for the National Weather Service and local meteorologists. It would provide greater analysis of a storm, including the effects of being inside the storm. Storm predictions would also improve due to the broader detection multiple-beam radar would allow. The news story on weather radar indicates other advantages the advanced system would offer.

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While cellular phone policies are designed to improve service to customers, some parts of the country are experiencing the reverse effect of the so-called benefits. In Montana, where analog cellular reigns supreme, there is little coverage for the new digital phones. The rural terrain makes analog cellular preferable, because of the range it has over digital. However, the details about government cellular policies, as noted in the Great Falls article, indicate cellular service will get worse in Montana before it gets better.

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Cell towers in Charlotte, North Carolina have been the target of theft, putting Cingular and Verizon customers at risk of losing service. The copper bars which are installed on the towers to prevent lightening damage are being stolen because of the high market value of copper. The bars can be worth up to $3.00 a pound, giving the theives enough incentive to remove the bars so they can be recycled for cash. According to the report, wireless service providers that own the towers are considering alternatives for increasing security around the site locations.

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Cingular is recalling 3G phones sold in 2G areas and removing the UMTS phones from national resellers in 2G areas until later this year. The company has received complaints regarding the quality of service of the UMTS phones in non-3G supported parts of the country. Phone provides details on the Cingular policy.

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Global Tower Partners continues to add to its portfolio of communication towers. The recent acquisition for 78 towers from Chinook Wireless will increase Global Tower Partners holdings in the West, specifically Montana. The report about the Chinook Wireless purchase provides further details.

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South Korea's $1.5 billion investment in high speed broadband and wireless broadband has made it the most connected country on Earth. The extent that South Koreans use their broadband connection in comparison with their American counterparts is vastly different. Integrated wireless broadband services has made the Korean broadband industry a remarkable success. The wireless broadband article covers the anticipated future of South Korean's broadband infrastructure and what it means for US consumers.

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The wireless infrastructure operator, Crown Castle International, has begun proceedings to acquire Virginia based operator Mountain Union. The holdings of Mountain Union will add 468 completed sites as well as 79 towers in various stages of development to Crown Castle's interests, which currently cover 76 of the top US markets. The Crown Castle press release outlines financial details of the Mountain Union acquisition.

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The AWS Auction, scheduled for Aug. 8, has attracted both big and small players in the wireless industry. Confirmed to participate is Clearwire, a low-profile wireless communication company. Speculated to join the auction indirectly through partners are web giants Yahoo! and Google. This particular AWS auction has become attractive for industry players after it was announced that auction winners would have autonomy over how the bandwidth is used for Advance Wireless Services. Possible outcomes of the AWS auction include increasing the available wireless service providers for consumers, discussed in the BusinessWeek AWS auction article.

See also FCC auction details:
http://wireless.fcc.gov/auctions/default.htm?job=auction_summary&id=66

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The federal government's AWS auction is slated for August 8. In line to bid are the big four wireless providers, media company partnerships, and wireless start-ups. All of them hoping to build Advanced Wireless Services for their customers. New carriers to watch are Clearwire and Leap Wireless International which hope to play a pivotal role in the next generation of wireless services. To prepare they have issued additional shares of stock to raise capital for the AWS auction. Discussed in the Advanced Wireless Services article are parties who will bid and services that could evolve from their purchase.

See also FCC auction details:
http://wireless.fcc.gov/auctions/default.htm?job=auction_summary&id=66

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