After a decade together, one of the mobile industry’s largest remaining joint ventures has come undone. Sony agreed to pay Ericsson $1.49 billion to acquire its 50% share of Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications.

With the long-expected deal finally behind it, Ericsson exits the mobile handset business and can focus on its core infrastructure business. And now as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony, the mobile division can make better use of the Sony brand, which has always been stronger in consumer circles.

Sony has some semblance of a renewed opportunity to better integrate its mobile offering with its wide range of consumer electronics. It also gains an IP-cross licensing agreement and ownership of five patent families related to wireless device technology. Read more

**As published in RCR Wireless News**

Each and every jump from one network technology to another presents wireless infrastructure vendors with a chance for new business. And sure enough, changes are afoot in the infrastructure space again today as mobile operators make their climb to fourth-generation networks.

While recent newcomers are making significant wins outside the United States, it’s mostly the incumbents that are winning the biggest network contracts here in a country that has arguably become the early leader in 4G technology deployments.

LTE has presented telecom gear makers with a window of opportunity to shake up the space and see market shares slide every which way between competitors new and old. Read more

I have serious commitment issues when it comes to my mobile phone. Early termination fees don’t scare me as much as a phone that’s just gotten plain old boring for me. And believe me, I always find a way out.

It might be dropped calls, crap voice quality and pathetic download speeds that drive me to the edge one time. The next time, I might just get sick of the color or maybe I don’t like the way it looks at me or fits in my pocket. Either way, I’m bound to jump and run — it’s just a matter of when. Materialistic? Sure. Overindulgence? You bet.

Like any commitment-phobe, I’m all about multiples. Whether it’s the carrier(s) I do business with or the mobile device(s) I carry, I just can’t settle down and tie the knot with one or the other. I’m one of those types who has two phones usually. Although I try to keep them from knowing about each other — work and personal don’t always belong together — they inevitably cross paths. Read more