In September 2005, a nonequity strategic alliance was announced that involved three companies—Motorola (MOT), Apple (APPL), and Cingular. The purpose of this alliance was to sell (Cingular’s role) a unique mobile phone (made by Motorola) that is capable of receiving downloads from Apple’s iTunes Web site. The mobile phone in question is called the ROKR. A fascinating aspect of this alliance is that Cingular itself is the product of a joint venture between SBC Communications (SBC) and BellSouth (BLS). To complete this exercise, you will be asked to carefully examine this alliance to determine the purposes it serves for each firm.

Use the Internet and archives of business periodicals such as the Wall Street Journal and Business Week to identify the terms of this nonequity strategic alliance at the time of its announcement on September 7, 2005. In addition, gain access to information detailing the specifications of the ROKR mobile phone.While completing this part of the exercise, be certain to examine only the terms of the alliance to which the three partners agreed.