The U.S. cell phone market: she’s a-changing! (For the better)
I’ve been out of pocket all day, running around trying to help a friend make a one-way, limited-speed cable modem a little more usable and shareable. Since we had very limited success (meaning we mostly failed), I had plenty of time to note some very positive changes in the U.S. cellular market over the past few months:
- Apple’s iPhone was unsubsidized by AT&T. Yes, it’s nice to have cheaper phones, but ultimately less subsidies will bring greater choice and possibly no early termination fees for consumers.
- Verizon Wireless was appropriately hand-slapped for advertising "unlimited" data plans only to terminate over 13,000 data plan subscribers for effectively going over the unadvertised limit. Truth in advertising is a must, especially when there are 24-month commitments involved.
- Sprint just announced that they’ll be unlocking phones for use on competing networks. This might be a first for the SIM-free CDMA network and sets a good precedent for Verizon Wireless and Alltel.
- As data networks quickly expand, we’re seeing more and more high-speed modem options available. I remember not too long ago when I got my first EV-DO modem that you could choose any modem form factor you wanted… as long as you wanted a PCMCIA card. We still have PC Cards, but there are plenty of ExpressCard, USB and embedded options available not to mention cellular routers. I predict that 2008 will be a huge year for 3G data and not just for business types.
What am I missing here? Aside from they typical two years of cellular servitude I’d like to see disappear from all cellular purchases, what else could be happening to make things better for the consumer?
Verizon’s phones haven’t been locked for as long as I can remember. The real issue is for carriers to start activating other carrier’s phones on their networks. Verizon has a policy they will only activate the ESNs that are tied to their branded phones.
let me have one number, and ring on both land and wireless phones.
So wait, Apple and AT&T make you get an 2-year agreement with them (or do an unapproved 3rd party unlock using a method that will be overwritten every time they do an update) *and* you don’t get any money taken off the price to go with your mandatory 2-years of voice and data plans and you call that progress?
I’d be very surprised if there isn’t an iPhone subsidy. It is just going to Apple instead of the consumer.
Unlocked phones are the only way to go, and once more consumers realize the limits carriers impose n phones, the better for us all.
Patrick
Will’s right. The real news about this announcement from Sprint is that they are *also* going to start activating other networks phones.
It doesn’t seem like a bad move from here. If nobody else follows suite, people with unlocked phones will have more reasons to go with Sprint.
do you think they would remove the cost for receive the phone call too (I mean .. not charge for airtime from me, when I receive calls ?). I am from India . .and I found this practice too upsetting
- Ram
Sorry KCT but I disagree with you on the iphone. Like my fellow fans have pointed out unsubsidized is only good if it is also unlocked or without long term contract.
Ram, Sprint has plans where your incoming calls are free. You may not like the plan’s structure, but it is available.
In addition to no 2-year contracts, I want to see all the features the maker puts in their phones stay in.
And let’s have those features work well. Give me a good camera, or take it out. Give me a good media player, or take it out. We either have good phones, but everything else sucks, or we have a media player that is good, but the phone sucks.
Woadan
Will,
You should check out http://www.grandcentral.com . Best thing that has happened to people getting ahold of me.
Some of these changes are also happening in Europe. Your view on the US market i found quite remarkable (always nice to know how people think).
AT&T: I tend to agree with Patrick about the subsidy. Look at other countries with no subsidy on phones. Are consumers better off? There are many factors to consider.
Verizon: a “red” shareholder of Verizon had the same advertising problem in some European countries. Coincidense?
I’ve said it before and I’ve said it again: until you guys stop getting charged to *receive* calls and messages, it’s a travesty. Anybody I mention it to here in the UK is astonished.
I’m not saying we’ve got it perfect over here, but cellphone use is massive and part of that is the carriers recognising that they can’t milk cash out of absolutely everything (just most things, ha!)
Oh, and that StarTAC was my first ever cellphone. I still kinda miss it.
Chris Davies: All well and good for you lot to say that, but it misses the separate and different histories of cell phone service in Europe and North America.
The first cell providers in Europe were the government-owned and operated telecommunications operations. Some were and some were not in the US, but cell service was never regulated here in NA as in Europe.
To say that one system is right and another wrong without taking that into account is wrong, I think. And delivering cell service is different to delivering landline service. Different enough that charging for the minutes used, whetehr sending or receiving, makes sense. (Or at least did make sense when cell service was neither ubiquitous nor cheap to provide.)
It’d be easy to say that given the trend over the last decade (in the US any way) for people to more commonly order cellular service first (as opposed to a landline), it might seem that it is time for a change. But I don’t think the paradigm has finished shifting yet, and I don’t think the cell companies in NA are ready for too much change.
VoIP services are only starting to be used on cell phones, and I think as they become more uable and popular, people will be buying PDA-Phones and SmartPhones withOUT voice plans because they will use VoIP on WiFi/WiMAX when possible, and over the cellular data plans otherwise. This will obviously obviate the need for the voice plan.
Google being involved with the latest round of wireless spectrum here in the US will be a good thing if it comes to pass, as I think they will force the cell providers to re-evaluate how they provide services, and how customers will sign up for it.
Whether it is an orderly change (which I doubt), or a chaotic one (I suspect it will be), I think the trends are going in the direction of VoIP over cellular data and/or WiFi, which will see the eventual shift from service with a physical end-point (landline), to service with a virtual end-point (cellular data or WiFi, or some combo of both).
Woadan
We dont have any subsidies in India .. but you should see the market penetration… people change mobile phones like crazy (because the market is flooded with newer models every month). The banks/credit cards provide no-apr installment plans ..
oh .. anyone could change anytime to another provider .. no lock-in ..
There is lot more to say about how mature the market there is. I was so used to it .. I find US way too restrictive and costly
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