nextel

Sprint Nextel's CEO is getting a big bonus for 2008, despite the fact that the beleaguered cell phone operator is still losing customers.

A proxy filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission filed this week shows that CEO Dan Hesse will receive a bonus of $2.6 million for 2008, which is about 30 percent higher than his targeted payout, according to The Wall Street Journal. Hesse's total compensation package is valued at $15.5 million, including a base salary of $1.2 million and equity grants.

The proxy also indicates that Hesse received additional corporate perks valued … Read more

Cell phone operator Sprint Nextel reportedly plans to rent more of its wireless network to consumer electronics makers as it tries to gain subscribers to compete more aggressively with rivals AT&T and Verizon Wireless.

The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday that the company, which is the third largest wireless operator in the U.S., has been talking to gadget makers that plan to use its wireless network to provide wireless Internet connectivity for their devices. The company already offers this kind of service to Amazon.com for its Kindle e-book reader.

GPS device maker Garmin, camera maker Eastman … Read more

WiMax won't likely win the battle as the 4G mobile technology of choice, but its head start in the market and its use as a wired broadband substitute will breed some early success, a recent study by market research firm In-Stat said.

On Wednesday, In-Stat published a report that indicates WiMax will outpace the competing 4G technology called Long Term Evolution, or LTE. But after LTE equipment becomes available later this year, that could change. And WiMax vendors may find a stronger market for building fixed wireless broadband networks in places where wired broadband is impossible or too expensive.… Read more

UPDATE at 5:17 a.m. PST: Comments added from the company's conference call.

There was good news and bad news in Sprint Nextel's fourth-quarter earnings report on Thursday. But mostly it was bad.

First, the good news: Sprint narrowed its losses considerably, compared with a year earlier. For the fourth quarter, Sprint lost $1.62 billion, or 57 cents a share. This is certainly better than the $29.45 billion, or a whopping $10.36 a share, it lost during the fourth quarter of 2007. The previous year's losses were due to some large write-downs the … Read more

You might recognize Sprint CEO Dan Hesse from those black-and-white commercials. When I met with him last week at a hotel bar in Oakland, Calif., two women at the next table certainly did. They treated him like a celebrity.

I wouldn't go that far, but he does appear to have a good handle on the mobile industry and what Sprint--the No. 3 cell phone service provider behind AT&T and Verizon--needs to do. And he knows more than a little something about phone companies, having spent 23 years at AT&T, including a stint as CEO of … Read more

If you ever bother to read your cell phone's user manual from front to back, you'll see a whole section with neat safety warnings. One of them advises you not to make calls in a gas station since the phone's electrically energy could cause a gas explosion. Sounds like fun!

While I doubt that many people have heeded the warning, much less read it, Motorola is taking it seriously. Last week, Sprint Nextel announced the Motorola i356IS, which is a variation of its burly i356 candy bar phone.

The i356IS (the "IS" stands for "… Read more

Prepaid wireless customers usually have to settle for the most basic cell phones. But soon, Boost Mobile consumers won't have to sacrifice style and function for value.

Boost announced Monday that it will offer its prepaid customers the Motorola Stature i9. This thin flip phone is one of the most advanced devices available for prepaid consumers.

Prepaid phone services, which don't require a contract or a credit check, are geared toward value customers or those with questionable credit. So wireless operators typically only offer basic, inexpensive phones to these users, because operators don't subsidize the cost of the phones.

The conventional wisdom has been that consumers wouldn't be willing to spend a lot on advanced devices for a service that they could terminate at any time. But now, as consumers tighten spending and look for ways to reduce their monthly bills, they are gravitating toward prepaid and no-contract services.

Boost, which is owned by Sprint Nextel, recently launched an unlimited talk, text, Web, and walkie-talkie service for $50 a month. This is a huge value over other all-you-can-eat plans. Sprint offers its All-In plan for $99 a month. AT&T, T-Mobile USA, and Verizon Wireless also offer similar plans for about $100 a month.

The new plan offers wireless users an attractive alternative to the more expensive contract services. But until the i9, Boost has lacked a set of advanced, cool phones. Now, the wireless operator hopes it can pick up new customers who might be willing to pay a bit more for a phone, if they can reduce their monthly service and not have to deal with a contract. The i9 will cost about $300 when it goes on sale at the end of February, but it doesn't require a contract. Consumers have several options for payment that include either paying by the week, month or day for service.… Read more

Sprint Nextel on Monday announced plans to cut approximately 8,000 jobs through the first quarter, as the economic meltdown cuts into the telecommunications carrier's business.

In addition, Sprint plans to suspend its 401k match in 2009, as well as continue with its salary freeze for a second year. The telecommunications carrier's tuition reimbursement program will also be suspended this year.

The workforce reduction is expected to result in a $300 million charge in the first quarter for severance payouts, but also is anticipated to save the company $1.2 billion in annualized labor costs.

Sprint said the … Read more

Sprint Nextel's Direct Connect service may not be sexy, but the push-to-talk network has a staunchly loyal following. And if Sprint knows what it's doing, it will leave the basics of Direct Connect alone.

Yet, the carrier did announce Thursday that it was tweaking the Direct Connect plans for its customers. The basic plan, which goes by the mouthful name of Unlimited Workgroup Communications, offers unlimited Direct Connect and Group Connect calls, plus unlimited text messaging, for $29.99 per month per line. For regular voice calls, you'll also get unlimited mobile-to-mobile minutes and free nights and … Read more