telecommunications

FCC Chairman Julius Genachowksi to Leave Agency

FCC chairman Julius Genachowski, a Democrat appointed by President Obama, plans to announce his resignation Friday. His departure creates a second vacancy on the 5-member FCC.

'I Was Scammed by Phone Crammers': True Stories

Cramming: It's a multibillion dollar con that cheats millions of Americans every year. But because it uses small charges, hidden as deceptively legit sounding fees embedded on phone bills, victims may not notice for months or years. DailyFinance readers share how they got scammed -- and how they fought back.

Microsoft Unlikely to Boost Rates on Premium Skype Plan

Microsoft has a lot of plans for squeezing profits out of its $8.5 billion acquisition of Internet phone service Skype, but raising the rates on its premium VoIP service is unlikely to be among them, according to industry analysts.

Mobile Data Profits Make Sprint a Buy

Based on Sprint's improving average revenue per user for mobile data service and the growth rate of its subscriber base, Trefis has raised its outlook for the telecom giant.

Got a 500-Square-Foot Patch? Rent It for a Cellular Tower

Do you have enough unused acreage on your homestead to accommodate the equivalent of two inflatable castle bounce houses? If so, you have enough space for a monopole cellular antenna tower, and the potential to collect anywhere from $500 to approximately $5,000 per month in rent.

15 Most-Watched Telecom Stocks

When it comes to telecom, Verizon is a pretty obvious leader, but what about the rest of the pack? This look at the top fifteen telecom stocks gives a hint at where the industry is right now...and where it's headed.

Sprint and T-Mobile Are Talking Merger Again

SprintNextel and T-Mobile USA are reportedly discussing another tie-up, as both companies seek to stop the flow of customers defecting to larger cell-phone service providers. In the past, the carriers have mulled a merger but haven't been able to agree on who would acquire whom.

Four Tech Stocks to Bet On as Business Reboots IT Spending

With trillions of dollars sitting in corporate coffers, the spigots of capital flowing to technology are finally opening up again. Gartner Research projects 5.1% growth in information technology spending in 2011. So which companies' stocks should you buy to take advantage?

Tech Sector Job Cuts Fell to Lowest Level Since 2000

Tech layoffs came to just under 47,000 last year, according to employment-services firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas. Better still, during the next 10 years, the sector is forecast to have one of the fastest paces of job creation of any industry.

Gartner: IT Spending will Grow 5.1% in 2011

The outlook for IT spending this year is looking up. Research firm Gartner said Thursday it expects revenue to grow 5.1% from 2010, an increase from a previous forecast of 3.5% growth.

2011's Stealth Trend: Wireless Web Remakes the Rural World

If you want to know how the rural developing world could get cheap, easy wireless Internet access, just follow the money: Remittances to those regions total tens of billions each year, and the money flow isn't very efficient. The profits from micro-telcos taking over the business could prime the pump for an information revolution in the hinterlands.

Chinese Regulators Delay Nokia Siemens Deal to Buy Motorola Wireless Assets

Nokia Siemens's planned acquisition of the bulk of Motorola's wireless-network business likely won't happen this year. Chinese regulators are still reviewing the deal, and Nokia Siemens now expects approval -- and the completion of the purchase -- will have to wait until the first quarter of 2011.

Who Pays for Kids' Mobile Use? In the U.S., Parents

Here's one reason why U.S. teens and young adults are luckier than their international counterparts: Unlike in many other countries, most American youths don't have to pay their own cell-phone bills.

S&P Cuts Credit Ratings for AT&T and Verizon

Standard & Poor's lowered the credit ratings for AT&T and Verizon Communications on Monday, saying that increased competition will make it harder for the two largest phone companies to pay down their long-term debt.

Samsung Has Sold 3 Million Galaxy S Smartphones in the U.S.

CommScope Agrees to $3.9 Billion Carlyle Buyout

CommScope in Talks With Carlyle Group About $3 Billion Sale

Skype's New CEO Has a Tough Job Ahead of Him

Tony Bates, the incoming CEO of Skype, is a serious player aiming to crack the corporate market. But solving the many problems of wild child Skype won't be easy for the ex-Cisco exec.

Hewlett-Packard to Launch Smartphone in 2011

FCC Dives Deeper Into the Comcast-NBC Universal Deal

The questions center on how Comcast distributes content and makes decisions on which programming to offer. Regulators are also questioning NBC Universal about its contracts with other content distributors like satellite, cable and phone carriers.

EarthLink to Buy ITC DeltaCom for $516 Million

EarthLink will acquire Southeastern telecom company ITC DeltaCom in a deal valued at $516 million, the Internet service provider announced Friday. Earthlink views the acquisition as an opportunity to grow its corporate business while reducing the cost of offering consumers Internet service.

Skype and Facebook Discuss Alliance

Verizon CFO John Killian to Retire at End of This Year

Verizon Communications said that CFO John F. Killian will retire near the end of this year. No successor was named.

Korea's KT Corp Launches New Tablet With Android OS

The Google-Verizon Deal: Evil or Pragmatic?

The two companies were on opposite sides of the net neutrality debate. So they initiated talks aimed at coming up with a compromise where some progress could be achieved in the face of FCC and congressional inaction. For Google, it's a lesson in growing up.

Google Denies 'Devil's Pact' With Verizon

Google and Verizon denied reports of a proposed tiered-services deal that would allow websites to pay broadband providers for the privilege of getting content in front of users more quickly. The alleged deal had proponents of net neutrality up in arms Thursday.