Update: Qualcomm, Wireless Telecom Players Head South

Updated from 12:31 p.m. ET

Deutsche Banc Alex. Brown

lowered its ratings on a number of companies in the wireless telecom sector to buy from strong buy, including

Qualcomm

(QCOM) - Get Report

and

Powerwave Technologies

(PWAV)

.

The

Financial Times

reported that Qualcomm, which is behind third-generation mobile phone technology, warned of a two-year delay in the roll-out timetable promised by European operators. Irwin Jacobs, the company's founder and chief executive, predicted in an interview with the newspaper that 3G services in development weren't likely to be commercially viable until late 2004 or early 2005. The report indicated that his comments might increase fears that operators have overestimated the speed at which new Internet and video services can be introduced on mobile phones.

Deutsche Banc also lowered its ratings for

Stanford Microdevices

(SMDI)

, a supplier of radio frequency components, and

Airspan Networks

(AIRN)

, a wireless communications systems supplier. Additionally, the firm cut

DMC Stratex

(STXN)

, a maker of products for telephone network interconnection and broadband wireless access, and

Tekelec

(TKLC)

, a maker of network systems products.

Shares of Powerwave, a maker of radio frequency power amplifiers, dropped $2.19, or 10.9%, to $17.94, and Qualcomm, a wireless communications company, plummeted $16.25, or 24.3%, to $50.69 in recent

Nasdaq

trading. Stanford Microdevices plunged $3.56, or 27.5%, to $9.38, and DMC was down 25 cents, or 2.5%, to $9.88. Tekelec slipped $1.81, or 8.5%, to $19.56, while Airspan lost 19 cents, or 6.1%, to $2.88.