Verizon Communications

Jared Starkey is going all out for Google broadband. The day after Google said it would provide high-speed Internet access to as many as 500,000 people around the U.S., Starkey set up a Facebook page to lobby Google to bring the service to his hometown, Topeka, Kan. Since then, Starkey has passed out bright-orange necklaces made of the kind of fiber-optic cable used to deliver fast Web connections and rallied 100 people to show up at a downtown redevelopment meeting wearing T-shirts that play on Google's motto for the broadband plan.

Competition heated up in the fourth quarter between Verizon Wireless and AT&T, the largest U.S. mobile-phone service providers, figures released Jan. 26 show.

Verizon Wireless, a joint venture of Verizon Communications and Vodafone Group, said its average revenue per retail user declined 2.2 percent to $50.75 in the fourth quarter. AT&T, due to release earnings figures Jan. 28, may say its average revenue per user was at $51.07 in the fourth quarter, according to analysts at Credit Suisse. This year, AT&T's ARPU may slip to $50.78, Credit Suisse says.

Don't be fooled by the latest round of price cuts by Verizon Wireless and AT&T. The two biggest U.S. mobile-phone companies said on Jan. 15 they'll cut monthly prices on unlimited voice calling packages by $30.

New Verizon Wireless smartphone customers will no longer be able to surf the web without a data plan as of Monday, when new rates take effect. But new voice plans will cost $30 less.

The company, a joint venture between Verizon Communications and the Vodafone Group that has the largest U.S. mobile network, will require a data plan on all its new 3G smartphones.

After a traumatic beginning, the year 2009 has turned out to be a great year for U.S. stocks generally. But one sector of the market, telecom, wasn't allowed into the party.

In a year when many stocks have doubled on hopes of an economic recovery, telecom has been wounded by its reputation for slow, steady growth. While the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index is up 21 percent this year, the S&P 500 telecommunication service sector was down 1.6 percent year-to-date as of Nov. 27.

Move over Apple and Research In Motion. Rivalry in the smartphone market has just heated up.

For a while it seemed the bloodiest battle in smartphones would be fought between Apple, maker of the iPhone, and BlackBerry maker Research In Motion. But an emerging alliance between Google and Verizon Wireless has the potential to create a potent alternative to the BlackBerry and iPhone in the U.S. smartphone market.

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski is expected to outline network-neutrality proposals on Monday, according to Reuters. The proposals could become rules at the FCC's October meeting.

Neutrality advocates want Internet service providers barred from blocking or slowing Internet traffic based on content. ISPs, including AT&T, Verizon Communications, and Comcast, say growing traffic needs to be managed, and they contend that neutrality could stifle innovation.

Even a global recession can't come between Americans and the high-tech gadgets they love. Consumers of all ages and family situations are purchasing high-definition TVs, network gear, and smartphones at a breakneck pace, according to a study released on Sept. 2.

NPD Group reports that an aggressive buy-one-get-one promotion helped the BlackBerry Curve move past Apple's iPhone to become the best-selling consumer smartphone in the U.S. during the first quarter.

Blackberry maker Research In Motion increased its share of the U.S. smartphone market to 50 percent in the quarter -- up 15 percentage points from the previous three months, the research firm said. By contrast, the market shares of both Apple and Palm declined 10 percent.

This week, the rumor mill was busy with speculation about Microsoft and Verizon Wireless developing a smartphone to compete with Apple's iPhone.

Now, citing unnamed sources, The Wall Street Journal is reporting that the software giant and the mobile-phone carrier are in talks to develop a multimedia touchscreen phone, code-named Pink. The device is expected to be available next year.

Jeffrey Nelson from Verizon Wireless, however, declined to confirm any of the reports, saying, "We're not commenting on this sort of marketplace rumor."

Project Pink