Network access

FCC approves Google's 'white space' database operation

The Federal Communications Commission has approved Google's plan to operate a database that would allow unlicensed TV broadcast spectrum to be used for wireless broadband and shared among many users.

Google, which was granted commission approval on Friday, is the latest company to complete the FCC's 45-day testing phase. Spectrum Bridge and Telcordia completed their trials, and there are another 10 companies, including Microsoft, which are working on similar databases. The new database will keep track of the TV broadcast frequencies in use so that wireless broadband devices can take advantage of the unlicensed space on the spectrum, … Read more

T-Mobile forks over $308M for U.S. Cellular spectrum

T-Mobile customers in a swarm of cities, including St. Louis and New Orleans, are about to get a boost in coverage.

The wireless carrier has signed a deal to pay $308 million in cash for U.S. Cellular spectrum to expand its footprint in the Mississippi River Valley region, T-Mobile said Friday. Specifically, T-Mobile said it will buy 10MHz of Advanced Wireless Services (AWS) spectrum that covers 32 million people in 29 markets, including St. Louis; Nashville and Memphis, Tenn.; Kansas City; Lexington and Louisville, Ky.; Little Rock-North Little Rock, Ark.; Birmingham, Ala.; and New Orleans.

The company noted the … Read more

Defense Department building its own secure 4G network

The U.S. Department of Defense is building its own secure 4G network to improve collaboration among separate branches of the military, according to the chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The network is part of an effort dubbed "Joint Information Environment," which will consolidate 15,000 Defense Department networks in the cloud, Army Gen. Martin Dempsey said in a speech (PDF) delivered Thursday at the Brookings Institute, an influential think tank based in Washington, D.C. In addition to greater collaboration, the new network will be "significantly more secure, helping ensure the integrity … Read more

Telefonica inks deal with Microsoft to break Android, iOS 'duopoly'

Telefonica, one of the world's largest carriers, has signed a deal with Microsoft to promote far more heavily the software giant's Windows Phone 8 operating system and devices running it.

The carrier said in a statement on Wednesday that over the next year, it will enhance its marketing efforts for Windows Phone 8 and Windows Phone 8 devices. The company will focus those marketing efforts in several of its major markets, including the U.K., Germany, Spain, and Brazil.

Telefonica said that its move is designed to enhance competition in the marketplace. The company said Wednesday it wants … Read more

SK Telecom launches world's first LTE-Advanced network

South Korea is about to get a taste of what true 4G mobile broadband speed is.

SK Telecom announced Wednesday that it has launched the world's first LTE-Advanced network, a faster LTE standard that was originally deemed by the International Telecommunication Union as a true 4G standard. LTE-Advanced is capable of data transfer rates of 150Mbps, roughly twice as fast as the 4G LTE speeds available in the United States and elsewhere, and 10 times faster than 3G, SK Telecom said.

"By supporting twice faster speeds than LTE, LTE-A will not only enhance customers' satisfaction in network quality, … Read more

FAA to loosen rules on in-flight electronic devices, says WSJ

Airline passengers may be able to use their favorite electronic gadgets from takeoff to landing if new FAA guidelines come to pass.

The Federal Aviation Administration is expected to ease the restrictions on the use of certain devices at lower altitudes, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Citing "industry officials and draft recommendations prepared by a high-level advisory panel to FAA," the Journal reported on Friday that passengers would be spared from having to turn off all electronic devices, though cell phones may or may not remain on the banned list.

The FAA's current guidelines prohibit the … Read more

AT&T reportedly begins wide cellular support for FaceTime

AT&T appears to have quietly begun rolling out nationwide support for Apple's FaceTime videoconferencing app for iPhone on its cellular network.

While AT&T has made no official announcement about beginning a nationwide rollout, the move would be a major step toward fulfilling a promise it made in May that its LTE customers would be able to use video chat apps from Apple, Samsung, and BlackBerry over the AT&T network by mid-June.

Customers of the wireless service in New York, Maryland, Georgia, Louisiana, California, and Hawaii tell AppleInsider that they have verified activation of … Read more

Sprint expands LTE footprint by 22 markets

Sprint confirmed on Monday that another 22 markets have officially started seeing the network's 4G LTE data speeds.

With the addition of nearly two dozen new areas, Sprint's LTE footprint now reaches 110 markets across the United States.

The new markets are: 

Baton Rouge, La. Centralia, Wash. Clarksville, Tenn. Corsicana, Texas Dalton, Ga. Dunn, N.C. Fond du Lac, Wis. Gainesville, Fla. Henderson, N.C. Kingsport, Tenn. Lansing/East Lansing, Mich. Longview, Wash. Miami Napa, Calif. New Orleans Palatka, Fla. Raleigh, N.C. Sebring, Fla. St. Cloud, Minn. St. Joseph/Benton Harbor, Mich. Tampa, Fla. Warsaw, Ind. … Read more

Verizon Wireless eyes entry into Canada -- report

Verizon Wireless could be making its way to Canada, a new report claims.

The U.S.-based carrier is considering a plan that would see it acquire a smaller carrier in Canada and then compete to buy wireless spectrum that Canada is auctioning off this year, The Globe and Mail is reporting on Monday, citing people who claim to have knowledge of its plans. If Verizon's plan works out, the company would establish itself among the top four carriers in the country.

Canada's wireless regulation has been notoriously tight, limiting foreign company involvement. However, the country last year … Read more