We try not to be an overly philosophical bunch, but we can't help but observe some interesting parallels between Motorola's industry-first demonstration of an EV-DO Rev. A to LTE handoff with the way the entire wireless world is progressing. Without a single major carrier win to its name, EV-DO's successor, UMB, seems poised to ride off into the sunset while current CDMA customers like Verizon plan migrations to the GSM-friendly LTE standard. Anyway, this little technical achievement will certainly set the minds of said CDMA customers at rest, knowing that its subscribers will one day be able to roam on data services between EV-DO Rev. A and LTE cells -- and considering that the transition period could last many years, that's an important capability to have. On an interesting side note, Alltel was on hand for the demo; they've not committed to any 4G technology, but we can say with certainty that they're at least considering LTE at this point.

Qwest will be re-selling wireless data access using Sprint's EV-DO network, according to the company. Although subscribers to Qwest's new mobile data plans will be able to take advantage of newer EV-DO Rev. A territories, the plans aren't something that reflect significant discounts over the same service offered directly from Sprint. Although Qwest high-speed Internet customers will receive a $20 monthly discount on this new mobile broadband service (cheapest plan is $70/month), the cards will still set a customer back $50 unless a contract for two or three years is signed (Pantech's PX-500 EV-DO card is free after rebates from Sprint). Value here? There's a little, but it's not night and day or anything.

[Via Phone Scoop]

Remember the news that a Korean government-appointed panel had recommended revocation of LG Telecom's right to 3G on the 2GHz band? Well, it happened. Interestingly, investors think this is great news for the company, pushing its stock sharply upward on the news -- possibly because the technology for which the license was issued has failed to become a commercial success. LG Telecom now looks to instead deploy EV-DO rev. A on the more widely-accepted 1.8GHz band, but at any rate, Korea takes their 3G deployments seriously -- per regulation, the government is now pressing for CEO Nam Yong's removal.

[Via Mobile Magazine]