May 5, 2008

T-Mobile USA launched its first commercial high-speed wireless service in New York City, and plans to expand the service to 20 to 25 other major U.S. markets by the end of the year.

April 23, 2008

The battle over cell phones in schools ended with the state's appeals court voting to uphold a ban on cell phones in public schools in New York city.

April 15, 2008

Cuban government has eased restrictions on buying cellular phones for the first time and also allowed registering those they had held illegally.

April 10, 2008

The FCC has approved a new nationwide alert system that will send text messages to cell phones to alert Americans when an emergency, disaster or attack occurs. The plan itself will deliver three different types of charge-free text alerts to mobile phone users.

April 8, 2008

The European Union has approved in-flight cell phone use for all of its 27 member nations. An on-board base station will relay phone signals to either a satellite or ground towers.

April 2, 2008

AT&T CEO Ralph de la Vega said that AT&T was expecting a 3G iPhone within the next few months., when asked about plans to sell a third-generation (3G) iPhone.

FCC To Unlock Cell Phone User Access

According to a report by the Mercuy News, the Federal Communications Commission will begin auctioning off a coveted swath of airwaves ideal for offering new high-speed Internet services next month. Companies including Google, Verizon Wireless, AT&T and some promising start-ups have signaled or confirmed they will bid for chunks of the 700 megahertz spectrum that's expected to fetch at least $15 billion for the U.S. government.

The paper said that the auction is an encouraging development that portends an era of increased freedom and choice for Internet and cell phone users. Consumers can expect more competition, innovation and lower prices, as well as a leap forward in bringing the mobile Internet to more people.

The auction results should be announced in March. Both the FCC and winning bidders must ensure that whatever changes occur in the wireless world live up to the auction's promise of greater competition and innovation.

(December 10, 2007)