Samsung Launches Gracenote Functionality Range

Gracenote has announced an agreement with Samsung, a provider of mobile phones and telecom systems, to provide its Music ID and Playlist technologies to ease the management and transferring of music from the PC to a range of Samsung handsets, starting with the SGH-E500. The E500 with Gracenote functionality is available throughout Europe.

The handset is reportedly Samsung's to ship with Gracenote Music ID and Playlist technologies, which allow consumers who use the Samsung Mobile PC application to get content from the PC onto their mobile phone.

The Samsung Mobile PC application reportedly features a selection of ringtones, wallpapers and games, and now with the Gracenote technologies in place, consumers can also collect and manage music on their PC and ensure a simple transfer of their content to their Samsung phone with all the correct information.

Gracenote(R) and Samsung Partner to Get Music From the PC to the ...

LOS ANGELES, BUSINESS WIRE -- Gracenote, a global leader in digital entertainment technology, today announced an agreement with Samsung Electronics, a leading provider and innovator of Click for the lowest price on dmnobieblankmobile phones');" onMouseOut="hideAd();" class=Hotlink>mobile phones and telecom systems, to provide its Music ID(TM) and Playlist(TM) technologies to ease the management and transferring of music from the PC to a wide range of SAMSUNG handsets, starting with the SGH-E500. The E500 with Gracenote functionality is currently available throughout Europe.

The new E500 is the first Samsung handset to ship with Gracenote Music ID and Playlist technologies, which allow consumers who use the Samsung Mobile PC application to get content from the PC onto their E500 handset with reliability and ease.

BlackBerry 8703e Available From Verizon

Verizon this week launched the BlackBerry 8703e, the carrier's version of Research In Motion's (RIM) most recent QWERTY thumb-keyboard wireless handheld. Although variations on the 8700 series have been shipping for about a year, Verizon's is the first CDMA model, and it is 3G enabled.

For Verizon that means compatibility with its EV-DO network for data transfers between 400 to 700 kbps. Much faster than the 135 kbps EDGE speeds available with Cingular's 8700c or T-Mobile's 8700g. The only 3G-enabled BlackBerry available from a GSM carrier - the UTMS-compatible 8707v - is shipping from Vodafone in Europe.

In addition to accessing the Web, corporate network, and e-mail from their handheld, 8703e users have the option to connect their BlackBerry via a USB cable to a laptop to take advantage of EV-DO to do the same.

CDMA2000 Operators In India Break New Record In Subscriber Growth

The CDMA Development Group (CDG) has announced that CDMA2000 operators in India have added 1.59 million net subscribers for the month of July 2006. This brings the total number of CDMA wireless subscribers to 35.2 million; CDMA2000 accounts for 30 percent of the total wireless subscriber base in the country. Tata Teleservices and Reliance Telecom, India two largest CDMA2000 operators, have 11 million and 21.1 million subscribers respectively. This accounts for approximately 12% of the worlds 275 million CDMA2000 users.

The CDG is pleased to witness the rapid growth of CDMA2000 subscribers in India. It is a testament to the value that CDMA2000 services offer its users, said Perry LaForge, executive director of the CDG. CDMA2000 is proving to be the most economical, flexible, and powerful platform for meeting Indias demand for differentiated services with a wide variety of handsets, services and tariffs offered by the operators.

France Telecom embraces convergence to boost sales

France Telecom unveiled plans on Monday to sell mobile phones that can move seamlessly between cellular and fixed-line networks, becoming the latest European telecoms operator to jump on the "convergence" bandwagon.

Starting next month, customers of the operator's Orange mobile and broadband services will be able to use a mobile handset to make unlimited calls from home to landlines and Orange mobile numbers.

However, users will be charged as much for calls to .