Following completion of its spin-off (CI No 2,373), AirTouch Communications Inc – formerly the Pacific Telesis International and PacTel Corp arms of Pacific Telesis Group Inc, will be one of the largest independent wireless communications organisations in the world. Its subsidiaries will now trade under the names of AirTouch Cellular, AirTouch Paging and AirTouch International. The company’s wireless business worldwide has been valued at around $12,000m, and the company starts life virtually free of debt, and with around $1,400m in cash in its coffers. In 1993, revenue grew 18%, and profits more than tripled from the previous year to $34.5m. The company says it plans to expand service into new customer segments and enter new overseas markets. It is also looking to introduce Code Division Multiple Access and Cellular Digital Packet Data into its networks, and has confirmed its intention to bid for Personal Communications Services licences to be auctioned by the Federal Communications Commission later this year – something its former parent also plans to do. New alliances are also in the pipeline: the company has already announced plans to invest in the Globalstar satellite venture. Meanwhile, Tokyo Digital Phone, in which AirTouch’s international subsidiary owns a 15% interest, has begun commercial service in Japan, three months ahead of plan. The new cellular network, operating in the 1.5GHz band, will initially serve Tokyo, Yokohama and Kawasaki; by October, it should expand to cover the cities within a 25-mile radius of central Tokyo. There will be several services on offer, with call waiting available free and voice mail, conference calling and call-waiting available for a small monthly charge.
