AT&T makes new offer on BellSouth deal
AT&T offered new "pro-consumer" proposals in an effort to get FCC approval this year of its proposed $85 billion merger with BellSouth. Among the new terms presented were plans to treat all content carried over Internet connections equally.  Bloomberg/ClipSyndicate (12/29), The New York Times (12/29), The Wall Street Journal (12/29)  
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Buyout firms have Alltel's number
Alltel Corp., the nation's fifth-largest wireless carrier, is a potential target among private-equity firms, The Wall Street Journal reports. The operator has a market value of $21.7 billion and low debt relative to other carriers, which makes it an attractive buyout candidate. The Wall Street Journal (12/29)
Sprint may pick Nokia as WiMAX gear supplier
Sprint Nextel Corp. is near a deal to pick Nokia as its third primary network-equipment provider for its WiMAX network, sources say. Sprint is expected to spend $3 billion on the network, which offers broadband speeds and greater range than Wi-Fi, over the next two years and has named Motorola and Samsung Electronics Co. as other partners. The Wall Street Journal (12/29)
Cingular forecasts 500 billion minutes of use
Cingular Wireless expects its network to carry more than 500 billion minutes this year. The carrier said that customers were making longer calls and that call volume had increased as a result of $13 billion in network enhancements. American City Business Journals/Atlanta (12/28)
Sprint not only distributes, but also creates, TV content
Although Sprint Nextel Corp. uses programming from News Corp. and Walt Disney Co. for its mobile network, it also is creating original content with sports agency IMG Media. The company says it needs to develop original sports and entertainment content that is regularly updated to encourage daily use. Forbes (12/29)
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Analysis: Carriers must focus on quality amid new technologies
Wireless carriers that win customer loyalty will be successful as they face challenges by new technologies such as VoIP and WiMAX, says Brian Corey, telecom practice leader at the Katzenbach Partners consultancy. Chicago Tribune (12/29)
China's phone users reach 830 million
China has 830 million fixed and mobile telephone subscribers and is expected to have more than 900 million by the end of 2007, state-run news agency Xinhua reports. The country also has 132 million Internet users, up 19% from a year ago. Yahoo!/Agence France-Presse (12/29)
China inches closer to 3G licenses: China's Ministry of Information Industry chief believes conditions are ripe for 3G, which has the market speculating that licenses will be available as soon as February, The Wall Street Journal reports. Some analysts, however, say China's homegrown TD-SCDMA technology must mature before a launch is possible. The Wall Street Journal (12/29)
Short message codes aren't just for youth anymore
Hit game show "Deal or No Deal," in which viewers can enter short message codes to be eligible for a $10,000 sweepstakes prize, is helping to popularize the category beyond its base of 13- to 34-year-old users. The short code market grew from 7 billion text messages per month in mid-2005 to 10.2 billion a month in mid-2006, and it is projected to have an even stronger year in 2007. Telephony Online (12/28)
Enterprises turn to VoIP
VoIP uptake by big industry players, such as Bank of America and Amazon.com, shows how the IP technology has forged its way into the mainstream. Enterprises spent $7.7 billion on telephony during the first nine months of this year, according to Synergy Research Group. CIO (12/2006)
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The dailyLead will not be published Monday
In observance of New Year's Day in the U.S., the dailyLead will not be published Monday, Jan. 1. Publication will resume Tuesday, Jan. 2.
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 | Youth is when you're allowed to stay up late on New Year's Eve. Middle age is when you're forced to."
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