Apple has an exclusive deal with AT&T in the U.S., stirring up rumors that AT&T was the one behind Apple rejecting Google Voice. How could AT&T not object? AT&T clings to the old business of charging for voice calls in minutes. It takes not much more than 10 kilobits per second of data to handle voice. In a world of megabit per-second connections, that’s nothing—hence Google’s proposal to offer voice calls for no cost and heap on features galore.
What this episode really uncovers is that AT&T is dying. AT&T is dragging down the rest of us by overcharging us for voice calls and stifling innovation in a mobile data market critical to the U.S. economy.
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Some might say it is time to rethink our national communications policy. But even that’s obsolete. I’d start with a simple idea. There is no such thing as voice or text or music or TV shows or video. They are all just data.
There is no such thing as voice or text or music or TV shows or video. They are all just data.
Well, duh!
Nice link. Last day this week to get this in:
CORPORATIONS ARE PARASITES. and only the getting the government in between the citizens and corporations can permit a rational/efficient market to develop.
Hurts, don’t it?
Yet again, AT&T is forced to defend an outdated and obsolete business model.
Dang, switched voice circuits seem to be a thing of the past, but it’s what the phone companies make their money on. Major technological upheaval on the horizon!
There are reasons why AT&T is losing most of their business to others. We haven’t had an AT&T style wired telephone since 2001. We make voice calls with cell phones, and computer connections are through cable TV. Both of these connections are far cheaper than what AT&T offers.
That’s why AT&T has boatloads of lawyers and lobbyists to press palms and buy lunches. And influence policy makers.
They do not want to swim in a new pond, they enjoy their current one to much.
Have not had a land line since 2001…..
Seems to me the problem is Apple’s for linking themselves to a weak model.
Let other phone companies use Google Voice.
I don’t think this rejection of Google’s app is something the government should be involved in.
As it is, the IPhone is terrible for making phone calls, so having people pay more for those same phone calls is no big deal.
Anything mac is involved is screwy
#8 No. mac is the problem.
I doubt Apple even consulted AT&T before they cut the Google App. Besides the fact they probably saw an obvious conflict Apple is almost legendary for Anti-Trust Activities and not allowing anything that provides something they are already trying to do.
my 2¢
-AT&T’s Logo is called the Death Star for nothing..
bits is bits..
-besides, no greedy bastard in their right mind would give up the insane profitability of SMS text messaging without a fight.
Oh, again more AT&T bashing here. Yeah, they are ‘evil’. But, then again, if any other carrier had an exclusive deal with a popular product such as the iPhone, I’m convinced the story would remain the same. The carriers ( not just ATT) have more influence than they should.
I thought AT&T denied having anything to do with the GV app ban.
GV doesn’t bypass AT&T minute charges except for long distance.
Sending free SMS means traffic goes up, but my cellphone company charges to receive the damn things. I bet AT&T does too.
I like my GV account but what it does is connect two phone company phones together. It does kick telemarketer butt and provide entertaining transcriptions of voice mail.
I really want to pile on AT&T and Apple but I can’t get over the fact there is an excellent article on WSJ.
I mentioned long ago, and will say it again..
CORPS will pay ANY CHEAP amount to give you service.
They WILL NOT, update anything unless you PAY 10 times for it.
Even then, they will use the CHEAPEST solution to get the job done.
Who remembers the battles of getting High speed access to the rest of the nation?? It had to be mandated by the Gov.
Portland Or. BEFORE the net hit…had a 6% usage setup for the phone industry. In any 24 hour period, only 6% of the city would be useing the phone system. AND THATS what the corp built.
THEn the NET hit, and usage went to 80%.
THEN CELLPHONES HIT..(all cell service relies on the PHONE COMPANY, they dont have their OWN backbone) and its PROBABLY 120% now.
Each HIT forced the Phone corp to install MORE FIBER..They were depending on copper.
The first upgrade, was Station to station, the major HUBS in the city. to keep the internet UP. When Cellphones hit, they had to use FIBER from each of the Towers to the HUBS.
The fun part is interconnections from 1 city to the NEXT. Even tho they HAD BASIC fiber, it was SLOW with 80% internet usage. They Lay’d MORE/better FIBER.
Insted of aiming ALITTLE HIGHER when they FIRST put in fiber they had to reinstall ALL NEW fiber. NOW we even have DARK fiber areas..OLD fiber still out there, not used very much.
Has anyone noticed that SITES are slowing down?
In LESS THAN, 10 years. we have gone from 56kbps to 10Gbps.
NOW lets add FIOS. Fiber optic to your HOUSE. And its going REAL SLOW.
Fiber has some INTERESTING properties. IF’ they use it. IF’ the other major corps want to jump in and do some SPECIAL features. but will ATT and others LET THEM?
We could go to a single LINE..
Power
Cable/sat
Phone/cell service
ALL IN 1 service. Power can be sent using Fiber..Cable service and 400+ channels(you could watch ANY nations TV)..Phone/cell service you would NOT believe as EVERY house could be a SMALL, short range Cell antenna. Full wireless phone service, NOT just CELL.
This is going to be a WAR. 3-5 MAJOR corps vying to use FIBER for their OWN concerns/use.
we could cut down from wiring, POWER/CABLE/Sat dishes/PHONE to 1-2 fiber LINES(not cable, 2 lines). Not cell towers in the city areas, as EACH building/house IS a cell tower.
WELL,
there goes my dream. And we probably wont see in in the next 20-50 years.
It would take, REinstalling the WHOLE power and cable distribution system. AND the corps WONT do it, unless EITHER the Gov pays for it, or WE PAY 10 times for it..FIRST.
#3: Yet again, AT&T is forced to defend an outdated and obsolete business model.
Yes, they have a LONG history of doing this. They fought against voice (“telegraph is faster, no one wants to talk to others on a “phone”), they fought against automatic ringers that would put switchboard operators out of work, and, basically, they fought against ANY advance in technology that would change their way of doing business.
Why should THIS time be any different?
And the last great opportunity, or at least a practical advantage, to build a national information network, the 700MHz bandwidth auction, was mostly sold to AT&T.
Time for AT&T to go the way of the dodo…umm newspapers.
“They are all just data.”
Every telecom vendor knows this… the providers do too, but don’t want to admit it. The pipes (tubes, interwebitubes… whatever) transport bits. Algorithms are used to give the bits meaning. This is actually a universal concept as all matter is made of the same stuff, just with different algos and configs to differentiate them.
Yeah. Right arm!
AT&T needs to make the airwaves FREE!
We should only have to pay for the computer we use to access it..no! ..THAT should be free, too! Make them give us one!
The stuff on the other end that makes bandwidth work must be free, too?
But FIRST AND MOST IMPORTANT AT&T needs to FIX and build out the 3G, 4G 5G Wi-Max WiFi networks and bury lotsa fat fibers and stuff so we all have 100000mb of bandwidth we use simultaneously to the DSL reports bandwidth tests for free.
AT&T can make money, maybe get its investment back, with the sheer scale of the free service!
You know. Free. Like he says, WiFi is free. Somebody send me the link for the free WiFi access points.