Carriers keeping hands on the reins
Posted by Marguerite Reardon April 7, 2008 4:00 AM PDT
Over the last few months, mobile operators have been falling over each other to profess their networks as "open," but a closer look at what they're really doing suggests they have a long way to go.
Traditionally, mobile phone operators have kept a tight grip on their networks. They have determined which phones could be used, what applications could be accessed, which features were enabled, and where subscribers could go on the Internet. But over the past year, Internet companies like Google and Skype have joined with consumer groups to lobby lawmakers and the Federal Communications Commission to force wireless carriers to loosen their restrictions and open their networks.
Amid threats of regulation and new legislation, operators have begun changing policies and introducing services that they claim makes their networks more open.
Earlier this week, FCC Chairman Kevin Martin applauded the industry's efforts toward openness, and said he would push to dismiss a petition filed last year by Skype that would require carriers to allow any device or application on their networks.
But for all the lip service being paid toward wireless openness, the reality is quite different.
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