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AT&T Receives FCC Waiver Needed for Wi-Fi Calling, No Launch Date Yet

Silver Idaten said:
When you figure it out, don't forget to send a few words to Fran Shammo at Verizon too. That tool is responsible for such gold as 'you don't need unlimited data', 'no more FiOS', 'we will not negotiate on price', 'no rollover data ever', and 'Wi-Fi calling sometime mid-2015, but we don't really need it'.
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Lol well put. Verizon good for a laugh , good for an eye roll or 3 , Good for pissing off customers but not so good for a Carier lol


soca138 said:
this is an attempt to get customers to buy those Microcells from ATT
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No... No it's not MicroCell and WiFi Calling totally 2 separate things and 1 does nothing to support the other I have my old micro cell still
( no longer needed between network improvements and iPhone improvements )

Sounds like someone is a pessimist and anti AT&T...
 
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This wavier shouldn't exist in the first place. As per usual, the FCC is behind the times.
 
spinboy said:
I was wondering the same thing. Have it enabled now.
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You must have been using the iOS 9 betas. AT&T tested Wi-Fi calling with iOS 9 beta users starting about a month before iOS 9 was rolled out to the public. Most of the people who activated it in iOS 9 beta have seen the feature remain active when they upgraded to the public release versions of iOS 9 or upgraded to a 6S.

A few people on MR have said that they had AT&T Wi-Fi calling active during the beta but now they get the "Coming soon" message since they've upgraded phones or installed a new version of iOS.
 
tbrinkma said:
Sprint and TMobile have Wi-Fi calling that doesn't support the required TTY/RTT capability, and rolled it out *without* a waiver from the FCC. That means TMobile and Sprint are in violation of regulations and laws by offering that service.

Given the fact, as pointed out by *several* people already, that AT&T had Wi-Fi calling enabled for iOS 9 beta users (in at least some markets), they obviously have the technology ready. It will be a matter of them scheduling the internal work to deploy the necessary updates to their own hardware/software stacks across their entire network. Doing a network-wide roll-out takes *time*. Anyone who claims otherwise is either: a) completely ignorant, or b) lying.
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edit: Move along - not worth it.
 
kingtj said:
The thing is though, the TTY service is nearly obsolete and irrelevant anyway!
My wife asked someone about this who is active in the deaf community, and she was told the old TTY services aren't even used anymore except by the elderly who refuse to learn anything new/different.

(Good chance they're not the same group making use of the latest smartphones and features like wi-fi calling anyway!)

Most deaf people just send SMS text messages around like everyone else, these days.
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Of course, that's not the point. The First Responders are required to have TTY equipment to be able to respond to the deaf community in an emergency. The Police and Fire, etc. do not have a central text line so that the deaf community can text them in an emergency. The wifi option does not support, currently, the text to tty conversion that cell service does.
 
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A little off topic... but does anyone know which iDevices AT&T will support with wifi calling? I've read that it should work with the iPhone 5C and newer (I have a 5S) but somewhere in the back of my mind I thought I read something that AT&T will only have it work with the iPhone 6 and newer. I hope I'm wrong... if anyone can point me to an answer that would be great!

My 3G microcell is on its last days, and I really don't want to have to shell out $150 for a third time.
 
ZolakJHS said:
A little off topic... but does anyone know which iDevices AT&T will support with wifi calling? I've read that it should work with the iPhone 5C and newer (I have a 5S) but somewhere in the back of my mind I thought I read something that AT&T will only have it work with the iPhone 6 and newer. I hope I'm wrong... if anyone can point me to an answer that would be great!

My 3G microcell is on its last days, and I really don't want to have to shell out $150 for a third time.
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You don't have to. Call ATT second level support or retention. I got one free. There was a 75.00 off sale (rebate) and rep gave me the rest in a credit to my bill. I was polite and explained how embarrassing it was to have dropped calls in my own home. Business and personal.
 
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giancarlo007 said:
Will this work internationally??
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That's the million dollar question. My guess is that it will work and they will charge you for the privilege of making and receiving calls over a Wi-Fi network while abroad. I hope I'm wrong; but when you attempt to enable Wi-Fi calling, a message pops up that says, "When you join a network, information about where the network connection is made may be sent to your carrier for details like billing."

In theory, AT&T should not charge roaming when Wi-Fi calling is used abroad since, as I understand it, roaming fees are generated by the fees the international carrier charges the "home" carrier for supporting their customers' usage while abroad. If the call goes out over Wi-Fi, however, there is no international carrier involved as the call never hits an international carrier's tower.

Notice I said "in theory" because I will be absolutely shocked if AT&T doesn't charge some sort of roaming fee when Wi-Fi calling is used abroad. They may not charge a per minute fee but they'll probably charge an extra monthly fee if someone wants to use Wi-Fi calling abroad. Which makes me wonder...would connecting to a VPN back in the U.S. allow someone to get around any fees AT&T might try to impose for using Wi-Fi calling abroad?
 
avanpelt said:
That's the million dollar question. My guess is that it will work and they will charge you for the privilege of making and receiving calls over a Wi-Fi network while abroad. I hope I'm wrong; but when you attempt to enable Wi-Fi calling, a message pops up that says, "When you join a network, information about where the network connection is made may be sent to your carrier for details like billing."

In theory, AT&T should not charge roaming when Wi-Fi calling is used abroad since, as I understand it, roaming fees are generated by the fees the international carrier charges the "home" carrier for supporting their customers' usage while abroad. If the call goes out over Wi-Fi, however, there is no international carrier involved as the call never hits an international carrier's tower.

Notice I said "in theory" because I will be absolutely shocked if AT&T doesn't charge some sort of roaming fee when Wi-Fi calling is used abroad. They may not charge a per minute fee but they'll probably charge an extra monthly fee if someone wants to use Wi-Fi calling abroad. Which makes me wonder...would connecting to a VPN back in the U.S. allow someone to get around any fees AT&T might try to impose for using Wi-Fi calling abroad?
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T-mo doesn't charge vowifi from abroad to the USA. They charge 20 cents for in country call if you have long distance plan or pay per use long distance rate. I'm sure that att will charge roaming rates. They better "scratch their eyes" than lower raoming and get more clients.
 
avanpelt said:
You must have been using the iOS 9 betas. AT&T tested Wi-Fi calling with iOS 9 beta users starting about a month before iOS 9 was rolled out to the public. Most of the people who activated it in iOS 9 beta have seen the feature remain active when they upgraded to the public release versions of iOS 9 or upgraded to a 6S.

A few people on MR have said that they had AT&T Wi-Fi calling active during the beta but now they get the "Coming soon" message since they've upgraded phones or installed a new version of iOS.
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I was able to activate it because I was in the iOS9 public beta on my iPhone 6. When I got my iPhone 6s, I could turn it on. Interestingly, when I go to Manage My Device & Features on the MyAT&T website, Wi-Fi calling appears as one of the current features for my iPhone. It does not appear for my wife's iPhone 5s.
 
tbrinkma said:
Actually, every voice telephony service that interfaces with the telephone network *is* required to support TTY functionality. The fact that TMobile and Sprint have rolled out wifi calling *without* that support is a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Your ignorance on the subject does not make you somehow superior to people who actually know what they're talking about.
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Thank you for providing a shred of evidence that backs your incorrect viewpoint. None of you have provided anything that says all devices are required to support it.

Oh look: https://www.fcc.gov/guides/use-tty-devices-digital-wireless-phones

Customer can make TTY of their device is compatible. They should contact their carrier to fine one that is compatible.

IF COMPATIBLE.

BuffaloTF said:
And yes, every phone call on every provider in the US needs to support TTY or an equivalent, approved, medium.
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Not true.

iOSFangirl6001 said:
1: there is NO Article explaining such

2: they are and aren't they aren't req to make compatible devices no but they are req to provide and make TTY ( or comparable service) available to any and every user that may need it

3> How do you figure their new RTT Protocol "does little to help the community" and how can you say something not even implemented yet is "less reliable" or "less expensive" did I or any of us miss the part where you work at ATT and are privy to all this info and inner workings?

Did you even read the FCC Waiver the related articles and application in full? I'm guessing not!

If anything it's explained clear as day RTT would be far more superior to TTY currently offered and be both more widely available and more easily adaptable with current tech especially in this case VOIP which WiFi calling essentially is more or less


Currently TTY is iffy at best in VOIP or WiFi calling scenarios even from T-Mobile and Sprint ( hence part of the reason BOTH cariers are in violation of regulations ) regardless of them having the WiFi calling option available longer


There are Apps and such out there that kind of do what RTT is trying to do but aren't so reliable, or are prone to mistakes in interpreting what's being said. RTT which AT&T is trying to implement is supposed to be better and RTT can do so w/o wasting space on your device for APP's and is supposed to be more user friendly


Lastly the statistics have been pointed out there are STILL TTY users out there granted the numbers are declining
( mostly due to deaths, and TTY compatibility issues over Internet usage, and TTY being generally antiquated )

But the users are still numbered in the hundreds of thousands as of the quoted statistics from available from prevalent research and studies
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1. There is no article as I requested because it's not true that every device be supported.

2. As I cited above you have to supply the service, but you are not obligated to support it for every device.

3. The new protocol only replaces the services offered by TTY to work within the framework of VOIP. How does the Deaf community benifit? More reliable service? You mean compared to the service they are not properly supporting now?

Where is the moderator that should be removing these people from the thread? Personal attacks, and false and misleading claims are typically removed here.
 
4jasontv said:
Thank you for providing a shred of evidence that backs your incorrect viewpoint. None of you have provided anything that says all devices are required to support it.

Oh look: https://www.fcc.gov/guides/use-tty-devices-digital-wireless-phones

Customer can make TTY of their device is compatible. They should contact their carrier to fine one that is compatible.

IF COMPATIBLE.



Not true.



1. There is no article as I requested because it's not true that every device be supported.

2. As I cited above you have to supply the service, but you are not obligated to support it for every device.

3. The new protocol only replaces the services offered by TTY to work within the framework of VOIP. How does the Deaf community benifit? More reliable service? You mean compared to the service they are not properly supporting now?

Where is the moderator that should be removing these people from the thread? Personal attacks, and false and misleading claims are typically removed here.
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You are incredibly incorrect. Perhaps just quit while your behind.

The phone supports TTY. That isn't in question, every cell phone does. Cellular calls support TTY. That isn't in question either.

Wifi calling, UMA, GAN - whatever you want to call it - ***does not***. It never has. It likely never will. This is the problem and why a waiver was requested. You have to provide TTY service availability on *every call* made. Period. They could hook up a TTY typewriter if they wanted to, it isn't a device problem... It's *wifi calling* that is the problem. It simply does not support TTY. None of them do. And the important part of it, they are unable to contact 911 if needed.

I don't know how to make it any simpler... It's staggering how you fail to grasp this.

Alarm systems rely on circuit switched telephony as well... Put in a digital VOIP service and it won't ever be able to make calls to tell the police someone has broken into your home. Same problem here. The system is capable of the call. The medium is unable to deliver it. This has precipitated the need for a different system to provide the same service level.

Derp.
 
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Wi-Fi calling has been really awesome for me, because I work in a few buildings that have absolutely no usable cellular coverage at all.

When on the campus WiFi my phone quickly goes to AT&T Wi-Fi and I've already been on countless calls using it. It's a pleasure to be able to be on a phone call and communicate clearly, whereas before the call would constantly drop out and I'd have to walk up to a window to be able to talk.

Also, enabling this en-masse will improve performance for AT&T users on cellular as well. Whenever the cellular network is dealing with a user that has poor signal it is wasting extra bandwidth on that user. Reducing the number of people with struggling cellular connections improves service for all.

That said, I think it's ridiculous that TTY/RTT has been a stumbling block for this. Can't hearing impaired people simply use text messages? Text messages work over WiFi calling just fine. I'm not sure what all the obsession is over this "real time text", why would anyone want the other person in a text conversation to see their every typo, when they use the wrong word and backspace, etc.? Being able to compose a complete thought and send it all at once is an ADVANTAGE to text messaging, not a disadvantage!
 
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4jasontv said:
Thank you for providing a shred of evidence that backs your incorrect viewpoint. None of you have provided anything that says all devices are required to support it.

Oh look: https://www.fcc.gov/guides/use-tty-devices-digital-wireless-phones

Customer can make TTY of their device is compatible. They should contact their carrier to fine one that is compatible.


1. There is no article as I requested because it's not true that every device be supported.

2. As I cited above you have to supply the service, but you are not obligated to support it for every device.

3. The new protocol only replaces the services offered by TTY to work within the framework of VOIP. How does the Deaf community benifit? More reliable service? You mean compared to the service they are not properly supporting now?

Where is the moderator that should be removing these people from the thread? Personal attacks, and false and misleading claims are typically removed here.
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I'm going to difer mostly to BuffaloTF below and join the several others in these comments likely groaning and facepalming in response to you


Misinterpretation abound on your part Jason!


As for the no article I assumed you had meant a MR ( Mac Rumors ) article not a general article from wherever. Were I not getting to the limits of my patience debating with you ( and the others not grasping these concepts in proper context ) I'd waste further energy and time beyond this debate finding and quoting lines from articles.


As for how it benefits the deaf/disabled I covered that and now BuffaloTF Has too

False misleading claims? I've made none and there are plenty whom clearly agree/see that I've proven my points in a manner both valid and in compliance with the rules. Outside of BuffaloTF's right on point post do I need to show you the likes I've been getting?? Better still maybe MR NEEDS To institute a dislike system too I can only imagine the numbers you'd be pulling in this thread alone.

BuffaloTF said:
You are incredibly incorrect. Perhaps just quit while your behind.

The phone supports TTY. That isn't in question, every cell phone does. Cellular calls support TTY. That isn't in question either.

Wifi calling, UMA, GAN - whatever you want to call it - ***does not***. It never has. It likely never will. This is the problem and why a waiver was requested. You have to provide TTY service availability on *every call* made. Period. They could hook up a TTY typewriter if they wanted to, it isn't a device problem... It's *wifi calling* that is the problem. It simply does not support TTY. None of them do. And the important part of it, they are unable to contact 911 if needed.

I don't know how to make it any simpler... It's staggering how you fail to grasp this.

Alarm systems rely on circuit switched telephony as well... Put in a digital VOIP service and it won't ever be able to make calls to tell the police someone has broken into your home. Same problem here. The system is capable of the call. The medium is unable to deliver it. This has precipitated the need for a different system to provide the same service level.

Derp.
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BuffaloTF man you're freaking awesome props! Well explained and good job spelling it out for that guy not that it'll likely sink in no matter how many times or how much explaining we do for Jason

*sigh*

zorinlynx said:
Wi-Fi calling has been really awesome for me, because I work in a few buildings that have absolutely no usable cellular coverage at all.

When on the campus WiFi my phone quickly goes to AT&T Wi-Fi and I've already been on countless calls using it. It's a pleasure to be able to be on a phone call and communicate clearly, whereas before the call would constantly drop out and I'd have to walk up to a window to be able to talk.

Also, enabling this en-masse will improve performance for AT&T users on cellular as well. Whenever the cellular network is dealing with a user that has poor signal it is wasting extra bandwidth on that user. Reducing the number of people with struggling cellular connections improves service for all.

That said, I think it's ridiculous that TTY/RTT has been a stumbling block for this. Can't hearing impaired people simply use text messages? Text messages work over WiFi calling just fine. I'm not sure what all the obsession is over this "real time text", why would anyone want the other person in a text conversation to see their every typo, when they use the wrong word and backspace, etc.? Being able to compose a complete thought and send it all at once is an ADVANTAGE to text messaging, not a disadvantage!
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To 1st half of your comment I say glad to hear that and agreed WiFi Calling is awesome and I've been using it too.


Seeing you say campus I assume you're in school/college so good luck with that


I agree WiFi calling can definitely make ATT ( or ANY Carrier *cough Verizon *cough* ) better and have its share of benefits.


On the latter part of your comments I say read the comments and such there's been much pro RTT talk

Also RTT is supposed to be far better at transcribing and likely less typos than one risks with texts and the evil that is AutoCorrect fails
 
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zorinlynx said:
Wi-Fi calling has been really awesome for me, because I work in a few buildings that have absolutely no usable cellular coverage at all.

When on the campus WiFi my phone quickly goes to AT&T Wi-Fi and I've already been on countless calls using it. It's a pleasure to be able to be on a phone call and communicate clearly, whereas before the call would constantly drop out and I'd have to walk up to a window to be able to talk.

Also, enabling this en-masse will improve performance for AT&T users on cellular as well. Whenever the cellular network is dealing with a user that has poor signal it is wasting extra bandwidth on that user. Reducing the number of people with struggling cellular connections improves service for all.

That said, I think it's ridiculous that TTY/RTT has been a stumbling block for this. Can't hearing impaired people simply use text messages? Text messages work over WiFi calling just fine. I'm not sure what all the obsession is over this "real time text", why would anyone want the other person in a text conversation to see their every typo, when they use the wrong word and backspace, etc.? Being able to compose a complete thought and send it all at once is an ADVANTAGE to text messaging, not a disadvantage!
Click to expand...

Texting is a disadvantage... And it's slow. You can have a better conversation and prepare to respond much quicker than waiting for an entire thought to be delivered. If I were speaking to you now, you'd hear every word I speak before I finish my sentence. If I mumbled a word, you'd hear my "typo". And as I'm speaking, you're also preparing your reply and processing my thoughts.

It's more conversational... In short. And again, consider calling someone for help. If I'm seriously injured, and I can't finish my thought and hit send, I'm finished. Oh, and RTT works with TDD relays if I really want that buffer between me and who I've called.

Edit- I also want to throw in that on RTT - it's the ITU standard and there's an ISO that lays out the implementation guide, for free. And it's got standard UTF-8 encoding. So anyone with a computer or computer-like device can gain access to it immediately. There's no need for a teletyper or additional cost to be incurred. It's a flip-of-the-switch technology.
 
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