Page 1 2 3 Page 1 2 3 | FRIDAY - MARCH 24, 2006 - ISSUE NO. 205 |
Dear friends of Wireless Messaging, A frequent question I remember hearing when I was a young boy was, "I wonder what they will think of next?" I also remember the first time that I realized that I had become one of the "they" (or "them"). I had just done my grocery shipping at Publix in Florida where I was working as International Market Development Manager in Motorola's Paging Division. A teen-age boy was taking my groceries out to my car for me when I noticed that he had a new Bravo pager on his belt. I asked him how he liked his pager. He said, "Yes sir I really like it. Have you seen this new one with the clear-colored case?" I told him that, yes I had seen it, in fact I was the one who decided to release that model. We had clear housings being used in the factory just to be able to inspect the integrity of the plastic molding process, and I thought it would be good to go ahead and make them available to the public. My boss always took credit for introducing colored housings into the paging market, but it was at my urging that he did so. When he interviewed me for that job, he asked what I thought Motorola could do to increase the use of pagers and I told him that more colors would help. Initially he thought varied colors was a bad idea. It was sort of like Henry Ford and his automobile, you could have any color you wanted as long as it was black. Unless, of course, you were a hospital or a fire department, then you could get white or red, but everyone else got black. I also suggested a style more appealing to women, and other models that could be worn or carried in areas like the middle east where men frequently do not use a belt. So if you will indulge my dreaming and reminiscing, I would like to suggest an Ideal Wireless Emergency Warning Device. I would call them EARs. (Thanks to Scott Forsythe for the name.) Emergency Alerting Receivers. They would be similar to the device used in Israel for homeland security alerts that I have mentioned here several times before.
This would be an alphanumeric pager-type device with a built-in GPS chip that would hang on the wall with a trickle charger. It could be quickly put into a pocket or purse if evacuation should become necessary. The GPS chip would allow the device to "know" where it is located so that emergency alert messages could be coded—with fine granularity—for specific geographic areas. One of these should be in every home, business, school, and public building in the country. This could be a part of a national emergency alerting system that would feed alerts to not only these EARs but also to cell phones, wireless PDAs, the Amber alert system, scrolling LED signs in public places and any other type of text messaging device. The US Air Force has begun modernizing the US GPS satellite system by putting up new second-generation satellites transmitting more powerful signals back to earth that will improve GPS receiver performance indoors. Both building penetration and location accuracy are being improved. The goal is to get “centimeter accuracy” indoors. That means location to within one inch inside of buildings. Giant strides have been made in just the last few years for civilian use of GPS location devices. Location accuracy has gone from about ten meters to about ten feet. My little hand-held unit routinely gives me location accuracy to 13 feet. My background in marketing tells me immediately that this product is not commercially feasible. The GPS chips, even though now greatly reduced in price would probably increase the cost of EARs too much. And how would the carriers be compensated for supporting all these millions of devices? The answer seems simple to me. In fact a following news article says in part:
So what do you think? How can we make this happen? Don't forget about the EMMA conference in Athens next month. Details on page two. I highly recommend this conference. There will be many very interesting speakers—industry leaders—in one of the world's most historic cities. Welcome to VCP International, a new advertiser helping to support the newsletter. Check out their ad for pagers following on this page. Now on to more 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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GPS NEWS
Trimble Introduces New Tiny Surface Mount GPS Receiver
 The new Copernicus GPS receiver. |
by Staff Writers
Sunnyvale CA (SPX) Mar 03, 2006
Trimble has introduced its new Copernicus GPS receiver—a thumbnail-sized, surface-mount, low power module ideal for adding Global Positioning System (GPS) capabilities to Bluetooth appliances, sport accessories, personal navigators or cameras, computer and communication peripherals as well as vehicle tracking, navigation, and security products.
With major advancements in performance, sensitivity and startup times, the Copernicus GPS module enables system integrators to easily add GPS capability to a mobile device with minimal impact on its size or battery life at a very economical price. Trimble's Copernicus GPS receiver will be showcased at CeBIT, the world's largest trade fair for digital IT and telecommunication solutions, March 9-15 in Hanover, Germany.
The Copernicus GPS module is a complete drop-in, ready-to-go receiver that provides position, velocity and time data. The receiver features the new Trimble TrimCore patented software technology that provides extremely fast startup times and high performance in foliage and urban canyon environments. Compatible with active or passive antennas, the Copernicus GPS receiver can be used in next-generation portable handheld, battery-powered applications.
Designed for the demands of automated high-volume production processes, Copernicus is a complete 12-channel GPS receiver in a 19mm x 19mm x 2.5mm shielded module. The small, thin, single-sided receiver is packaged in tape and reel for pick and place manufacturing processes. It features a 28 reflow-solderable edge castellation interface so the module can be incorporated in a product design without costly I/O and RF connectors. Each module is manufactured and factory tested to Trimble's highest quality standards. In addition, the Copernicus GPS receiver has been designed to meet restrictions on the use of hazardous substances under the RoHS European Directive.
The ultra-sensitive Copernicus GPS receiver can acquire satellite signals and generate position fixes with high accuracy in extremely challenging environments and under poor signal conditions. The receiver consumes typically 93.9 milliwatts (31.3 milliamps) at full power with continuous tracking.
The Copernicus GPS module is available in three protocols. Trimble's powerful TSIP protocol offers complete control over receiver operation and provides detailed satellite information. The TAIP protocol is an easy-to-use ASCII protocol designed specifically for track and trace applications. The bi-directional NMEA 0183 v3.0 protocol offers industry standard data messages and a command set for easy interface to mapping software.
The Copernicus Starter Kit provides everything a designer needs to begin adding state-of-the-art GPS capability into their application. The kit includes the reference interface board, which provides a visual layout of the Copernicus module on a PCB including the RF signal trace and RF connector, as well as the I/O and power connections of the 28 signal pins. Also included are a power converter, power adapter, GPS antennas, and the software to readily check out how easy it is to add Copernicus GPS to the application.
The Copernicus GPS receiver is expected to be available in the third quarter of 2006 through Trimble's Component Technologies dealer network.
Source: Space Daily
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| WIRELESS MESSAGING NEWS |
Alcatel in Talks to Buy Lucent to Challenge Cisco
March 24 (Bloomberg)—Alcatel SA, the biggest maker of broadband Internet gear, may buy Lucent Technologies Inc. to create a communications equipment company with combined sales of more than $25 billion.
"Lucent and Alcatel are engaged in discussion about a merger of equals that is intended to be priced at market," the two companies said in a joint statement. Alcatel, based in Paris, has a market value of $21.9 billion, compared with $12.6 billion for Lucent, the largest U.S. maker of phone equipment.
Previous merger talks between Alcatel and Murray Hill, New Jersey-based Lucent broke down in May 2001 after the U.S. company declined to give up control of the combined entity. Shares of Alcatel and Lucent are trading at less than they did a decade ago as the companies fell behind competitors such as San Jose, California-based Cisco Systems Inc. and Ericsson AB of Sweden.
"With Alcatel having a stronger presence in Europe and Lucent in the U.S., the merger can help them expand their channels and increase efficiency," said Naoki Sato, an analyst at Morgan Stanley Japan Ltd. in Tokyo who covers Japanese equipment makers.
Alcatel Chief Executive Officer Serge Tchuruk has spent a decade to turn around the company and will be retiring this year. Alcatel is winning orders from companies including AT&T Inc. to build networks that carry Internet, phone calls and TV, and Lucent's gear would complement its product line.
During the talks in 2001, Alcatel balked at Lucent's insistence that the company be run as a merger of equals, a person with knowledge of the talks said at the time.
Industry Consolidation
A deal may spur mergers among other equipment makers following a flurry of acquisitions by phone companies. SBC Communications Inc. bought AT&T Corp. for $16 billion last year and changed the name. Earlier this month the new AT&T bought BellSouth Corp. for $67 billion cementing its leadership position in the U.S. and giving it full control of Cingular Wireless LLC.
Cisco, the world's largest maker of networking gear, is the exception. Cisco agreed in November to buy Scientific-Atlanta Inc. for $6.9 billion to enter the growing market of Internet TV.
Alcatel and Lucent combined could challenge Cisco for the top spot. Cisco had sales in the last calendar year of $26.2 billion. It would also top Stockholm-based Ericsson, the world's largest maker of wireless networks with 2005 sales of $19.4 billion.
Lucent, whose stock dropped 29 percent last year, is facing mounting concerns of losing out in the growing market for Internet-based communications equipment. Sales unexpectedly fell last quarter, and in January Lucent said demand is slumping in the U.S. and China.
Tchuruk's Final Deal
The talks come as Tchuruk prepares to retire in June because of an age limit within Alcatel's statutes. The 68-year old Frenchman has recommended to Alcatel's board of directors that Chief Operating Officer Mike Quigley replace him.
Lucent Chief Executive Officer Patricia Russo, 53, is counting on Chinese wireless companies such as China Unicom Ltd. to receive licenses to build and operate third-generation networks, which will use Lucent's gear.
"There can be no assurances that any agreement will be reached or that a transaction will be consummated," the companies said in the statement. "We will have no further comment until an agreement is reached or the discussions are terminated."
Cingular, the largest U.S. mobile-phone company, is among operators that plan to use Lucent to help offer combined voice, video, data and multimedia services.
Lucent Plunge
After spinning off from AT&T in 1996, Lucent became among the highest flyers in the bull market. The shares soared more than sevenfold from the end of 1996 to a high of $63.22 in December 1999. They've since lost 95 percent of their value.
Shares of Lucent were unchanged at $2.82 yesterday in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. They have risen 6 percent this year. Alcatel has jumped 23 percent this year to 12.85 euros and closed yesterday at the highest in almost two years.
In January, Lucent reported a first-quarter loss of $278 million as sales fell $21 million from a year earlier to $2.05 billion.
Lucent currently trades at 17.2 times analysts' expectations for earnings in the fiscal year ending in September, based on estimates compiled by Thomson Financial. That's below the 25.3 times average for the 12-member Bloomberg U.S. Telecommunications Equipment Index, which includes Lucent.
Alcatel has turned around after losing money from 2001 to 2003, helped by orders from companies such as SBC, now AT&T, and Telstra Corp. located in Australia.
In February Alcatel said fourth-quarter profit jumped to 344 million euros ($414 million) from 7 million euros a year earlier and announced its first dividend in four years.
Should Alcatel buy Lucent, it would be the French company's biggest ever acquisition, topping a $6.9 billion purchase of Newbridge Networks Corp. in 2000.
Lucent two days ago won an auction to buy Riverstone Networks Inc., a bankrupt maker of network routers, for $207 million, outbidding Ericsson.
Source: Bloomberg
USA Mobility Sets Date to Report Fourth Quarter and 2005 Results, Plans to File Form 10-K and Amended Financial Statements
Investor Conference Call Scheduled
ALEXANDRIA, Va., March 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/—USA Mobility, Inc. (Nasdaq: USMO), a leading provider of wireless messaging services, today announced that it will report operating results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2005 on Friday, March 31, 2006 at approximately 4:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET).
In addition, prior to filing its 2005 Form 10-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission, USA Mobility will file an amended Form 10-K/A for the year ended December 31, 2004, and amended Form 10-Q/A's for the three interim quarterly periods, as previously disclosed by the company in a news release dated March 10, 2006. USA Mobility expects to make those filings on March 31, 2006 as well. The purpose of the amended filings is to amend and restate financial statements and other financial information for the years 2003 and 2004 and first three quarters of 2004 and 2005 to reflect certain adjustments.
Also, the company plans to host a quarterly conference call for investors at 11:00 a.m. ET on Tuesday, April 4, 2006. The call-in number is 800-262-1292 (toll-free) or 719-457-2680 (toll). The pass code for the call is 4879478. A replay of the call will be available from 3:00 p.m. ET on April 4 until 11:59 p.m. ET on Tuesday, April 18, 2006. The replay number is 888-203-1112 (toll-free) or 719-457-0820 (toll). The pass code for the replay is 4879478.
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 Sprint Nextel and Cingular 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.
Contact: Bob Lougee (703) 721-3080
Source: USA Mobility
Lawmakers urge government, industry to partner on emergency communications
March 15, 2006
By Michael Martinez, National Journal's Technology Daily
Two key lawmakers on Wednesday said government agencies need to establish partnerships with the private sector in order ensure that critical communications infrastructure is reliable and available during emergency situations.
Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee Chairwoman Susan Collins, R-Maine, said private entities responded faster and more effectively to Hurricane Katrina than their public counterparts at all levels of government.
Speaking at an event organized by the Harvard University Kennedy School of Government, Collins said agencies should form regional response teams with private-sector partners that could be deployed rapidly and facilitate communications systems that work across jurisdictions.
According to Collins, private organizations are invaluable in the response process because they control large portions of critical communications infrastructure and because they empower officials on the front line of disasters to make decisions in a way public bodies do not.
She also said the government needs to establish identification standards for all communications officials so private and public responders are able to deploy resources more swiftly.
Collins said she expects that her committee will release a report on its investigation of the response to Hurricane Katrina within the next month. She said there is an accord among the committee about the role that private partners should play in disaster response, but there is still disagreement about whether the Federal Emergency Management Agency should be taken out of the Homeland Security Department.
"Just taking FEMA out of the department is not the solution," she said.
House Homeland Security ranking Democrat Bennie Thompson of Mississippi, who also spoke at the event, said Katrina revealed fundamental weaknesses in government response capabilities, but the storm also demonstrated the effectiveness of private responders.
"The key to all of this is whether the private sector is adequately engaged in the process," Thompson said.
Both private and public emergency responders need to develop and deploy communications technologies based on risk, according to Thompson. He also said the Homeland Security Department needs to open more avenues for private responders to share their ideas.
Thompson said all government agencies need to be more judicious in how they incorporate technology into their overall strategies. Specifically, he said robust port security is achievable only if technology is appropriately utilized.
A group of Senate lawmakers, meanwhile, communicated similar ideas to Cabinet officials Wednesday. A letter drafted by New Hampshire Republican John Sununu was sent to White House Office Budget and Management Director Josh Bolten, Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff and Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez.
The letter urged the administration to consider grant proposals that would allow the purchase of interoperable safety communications equipment. It also singled out the potential for Internet technologies to improve communications networks.
The other signers included: George Allen, R-Va.; Conrad Burns, R-Mont.; Jim DeMint, R-S.C.; Bill Nelson, D-Fla.; and Jim Talent, R-Mo.
Source: GovExec.com
Hurricane Task Force (Texas)
03/22/06
Governor Rick Perry today issued an executive order that implements most of the recommendations of the Task Force on Evacuation Transportation and Logistics.
“Our goal is to learn from the lessons that Hurricane Rita taught us and make Texans safer in future mass evacuations,” Perry said. “These directives focus on saving lives and reducing the vulnerability of Texans – particularly those least able to fend for themselves.”
Like the Task Force report, the executive order focuses on the five key areas of command, control and communications; evacuation of people with special needs; fuel availability; traffic flow; and public awareness.
“To improve command control and communications, I have directed mayors and county judges in each the state’s 24 councils of government to establish a regional command structure and appoint an incident commander to lead each region’s efforts to prepare for disasters and execute a response like a mass evacuation,” Perry said.
The Department of Public Safety will be responsible for command, control and communications for evacuations that involve multiple regions.
The order also directs the governor’s Division of Emergency Management (DEM) to develop a statewide evacuation and shelter plan and oversee the development of local and regional plans throughout the state, as well as lead a yearly statewide evacuation exercise. The executive order emphasizes that DEM should work with school districts and public colleges and universities to ensure their buses and facilities are available for evacuation and sheltering, and address the needs of Texans with special needs during an evacuation.
“While we succeeded in evacuating thousands of Texans with special needs from the Houston and Galveston areas in advance of Hurricane Rita’s landfall, the Task Force identified steps that must be taken to improve the process,” Perry said. “I have directed my Division of Emergency Management to work with state agencies to develop a database of people with special needs and ensure evacuation plans are in place to safely evacuate Texans with special needs.”
A key challenge raised in Task Force hearings across the state was the need for improved traffic and fuel management. Perry directed the Texas Department of Transportation to work with industry partners on fuel availability plan for major evacuation routes, and asked local officials to ensure local evacuation plans also address fuel availability.
“While we will not be able to eliminate traffic when a major urban area is evacuated, we can take steps to improve the flow of traffic in future evacuations,” Perry said. “I have directed the Departments of Public Safety and Transportation to work together to develop contra-flow plans for major evacuation routes to help ease congestion.”
Legislative action is required to implement one of the Task Force’s recommendations that would give a governor the authority to order evacuations in catastrophic events that impact more than one jurisdiction.
To view a full copy of the executive order, please visit www.governor.state.tx.us.
Source: KTRE-9
LBA Technology Provides Solution to Pitt County
Triangle -
Greenville, NC—Pitt County, NC has acquired an Emergency Response Mobile (ERM) communications trailer from LBA Technology, Inc. of Greenville, NC. The ERM trailer, which includes a 15-kilowatt generator and 50-foot antenna tower, will provide first responders with critical communications ability. The communications trailer will also provide command and control and supplemental onsite communications ability.
“The most important benefit of having the LBA ERM is that it will give our ham radio operators the ability to communicate for us in the event of a natural or man-made disaster,” said Noel Lee, Director of Emergency Management in Pitt County. “It will also benefit the surrounding counties, as it can be shared with them.”
LBA Technology has been a US and international supplier of broadcast antenna systems and other radio frequency products for over 40 years. It’s innovative, digital ready AM antenna products include tuning units, HD radio directional antenna systems, multiplexers, and components for every power level. LBA Technology, Inc. is a unit of the LBA Group, Inc., a diversity company, based in Greenville, NC.
***
More information:
For more information about LBA Technology, Inc. and its product lines, visit www.lbagroup.com, or contact Jerry Brown at 252-757-0279 or by e-mail at jbrown@lbagroup.com.
contact: Jerry Brown
company: LBA Technology, Inc.
phone: 252-757-0279
email: jbrown@lbagroup.com
Source: Triangle dBusinessNews
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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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