this is the problem of letting MBAs run large companies. They don't have commitment to their product,and are constantly looking for new ways to monetise their products through expansion and diversification, with the result that they forget their core functions and the need ot constantly perfect it.
Think of beleaguered Apple in the early nineties before Jobs returned and got them to concentrate on four key product lines.
Carriers a mere six years ago were the same as Apple in the early nineties. Instead of being the best pipe they can be, concentrating on making sure they have good coverage and high performing speeds, the tried to expand into entertainment and services that sit on top of the network. The treasure invested in developing these things was a gravy train for the MBAs sitting at the top of the programs, but it was treasure diverted from the core functions of network performance.
And because it is not a core function of the business, these products are always inferior to the products of companies that have those products as their bread and butter, and are more than capable of producing an app for it.
Carriers are a phone network, not an entertainment company. They should concentrate on the pipes and stop trying to force inferior crap onto us.
And Apple sells to 100s of carriers. While Apple might like to expand in the japanese market, it don't wont miss dotcomo in a global sense. How many years has iphone been out now?
