Sales of cell phones around the world rebounded in the fourth quarter, indicating that the recession may be over for the beleaguered mobile handset market, according to figures compiled by market research firms. Global handset shipments were up 10 percent to 324.4 million units in the fourth quarter of 2009 compared to 293.8 million phones …

A new study suggests that laws banning talking on or sending text messages with cell phones while driving may not significantly decrease the risk of traffic accidents. Instead, experts suggest dealing with the problem of distracted drivers in general. The Highway Loss Data Institute, a nonprofit organization funded by the auto insurance industry, compared monthly collision claims in four states …

AT&T said Thursday that it will invest an additional $2 billion in its network in 2010 to make sure it keeps up with the growing demand from new smartphones and other 3G data devices, such as the Apple iPad, on its network. During its fourth quarter 2009 conference call, Chief Operating Officer John Stankey said AT&T plans to spend between …

Nokia, the biggest mobile phone maker in the world, could be making a comeback in the smartphone market. The company reported Thursday that it gained worldwide marketshare in this sector during the fourth quarter of 2009. The company, based in Finland, said Thursday that during the quarter it saw a 60 percent increase in profits, mostly due to cost-cutting and …

AT&T posted a 25.6 percent increase in fourth-quarter earnings as its wireless and new TV businesses continued to grow. AT&T’s earnings were also largely aided by sharp cost-cutting. In the quarter that ended December 31, AT&T said Thursday, it earned $3.09 billion, or 51 cents a share. During the same period a year ago, the company earned $2.4 billion, or …

The Federal Communications Commission is asking all four major U.S. cell phone operators and Google to explain their early termination fee policies and how they communicate these to customers. FCC Consumer and Governmental Affairs Bureau Chief Joel Gurin and Wireless Telecommunications Bureau Chief Ruth Milkman sent letters (PDF) on Tuesday to AT&T, Verizon Wireless, Sprint Nextel, T-Mobile USA, and Google …

A $3 billion charge for workforce reductions hit Verizon Communications’ bottom line in the fourth quarter, despite strong growth in wireless. On Tuesday, the telecommunications giant said it added more than 2.2 million mobile subscribers to its network. About 1.2 million were retail customers and about 1 million came from reseller partners. Analysts had expected Verizon to sign up just …

Smartphone customers and the bandwidth-hungry applications they’re using have forced wireless carriers to accelerate their plans for big upgrades as they move toward the next iteration of their networks. The biggest challenge these wireless operators will face is making sure they have enough capacity in a part of their networks known as backhaul to feed the hungry appetites of wireless …

Google’s Android is expected to take the smartphone market by storm in the next few years, growing faster than all its competitors, according to an IDC report published Monday. Android is expected to be the fastest growing wireless operating system from now until 2013, when the software will be the second most used smartphone operating system throughout the world, the …

Nokia is making its navigation service free to all GPS-enabled Nokia devices in a move that will help the company better compete in the smartphone market against the likes of Apple and Google. Now playing: Watch this: Nokia launches Ovi Maps 1:29 Starting Thursday, Nokia users will be able to download for free the client that enables GPS phones to …