Trucking Technology Report - Feb. 21
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Both the online report and e-mail are sponsored by @Track Communications, a supplier of wireless communications and dispatch services.
Today's Technology Headlines:
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Verizon Finishes $170 Million Phase in Florida Expansion
Verizon reports it has finished the first stage of the expansion of its digital network in Florida.
The network upgrades allow higher call volume on Verizon's CDMA network and provide more capacity for mobile data applications. With the upgrades, Verizon now offers coverage over 20,000 square miles in Florida. The initial upgrade increased coverage in Verizon's key markets in the state, such as Miami, Orlando, and Jacksonville. Reuters (02/21/01); McDonough, Dan Jr.
Motorola Cuts 300 More Jobs in Cell Phone Unit
Motorola cut close to 300 jobs yesterday as the company revealed plans to slash costs by $2 billion in its wireless phone operations.The move comes after the company decided to close down its domestic cell phone manufacturing business in Harvard, Ill. The June closing of its Harvard business will cut 2,500 jobs. Mike Zafirovski, president of Motorola's mobile phone division, notes that Motorola's cell phone business has cut 600 to 700 non-manufacturing jobs during the last five months.
The firm's wireless phone operations represented close to 35 percent of Motorola's revenue of $37.6 billion last year. But Motorola has higher costs than many of its rivals and has been affected by the slowing economy, Zafirovski notes. And according to Motorola officials, additional job cuts are under consideration. Motorola's share of the global cell phone market fell from 16.9 percent in 1999 to 14.6 percent last year, according to figures provided by Gartner Dataquest.
In addition, the company's profit margin for the fourth quarter ended Dec. 31 was only 2 percent, far below company forecasts of 10 percent. However, Zafirovski remains optimistic that Motorola will increase its market share when it introduces new products later this year. Chicago Tribune Online (02/21/01); Kaiser, Rob
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Philips Says May Miss 20 Million Handset Sales Goal
Philips Electronics announced today that it may fall short of its forecast of selling 20 million cell phones this year. Thom Swartsenburg, CEO of Philips Consumer Communications, says the worldwide market for cell phones will increase by between 20 percent to 25 percent this year.Philips predicted earlier this month that it would sell 20 million cell phones. But the company, the tenth largest maker of cell phones in the world, only sold 13.5 million units last year. This year, the global market for wireless phones is not expected to reach last year's growth rate of nearly 50 percent.
According to Swartsenburg, cell phone makers will sell about 500 million wireless phones this year. Reuters (02/21/01)
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Court Won't Review Limit on Cable Ownership
The U.S. Supreme Court decided not to take action yesterday in a dispute over media ownership, allowing federal guidelines to remain that prevent a single company from holding an over 30 percent stake of satellite and cable-TV connections to U.S. residences.As a result, the FCC's mandate forcing AT&T to shed its stake in a cable venture with Time Warner remains effective. AT&T surpassed the ownership cap last year when it closed its acquisition of MediaOne Group. But the court decision was based on a suit filed by Time Warner. The suit contended that the 1992 federal law allowing the FCC to place a cap on cable ownership was unconstitutional it violates the First Amendment by essentially regulating speech.
AT&T, however, is also involved in a pending lawsuit that disputes the restrictions the FCC enacted to implement the law. Arguments have been brought before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, but the court has not yet made a decision. AT&T is also pushing Congress to abolish the FCC guidelines. Washington Post (02/21/01) P. E1; Goodman, Peter S.
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