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U.S. Senators Are Seeking Investigation into Carrier Handset Exclusivity Agreements

1Zach1 said:
I would rather them go investigate data and texting prices from carriers.
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I agree.

Sorry FCC, you get no joy here. ATT had to make ALOT of concessions for the iphone and such an investment is rewarded with an exclusive clause. Verizon had their chance but they wouldn't budge. Oh well.
 
riverfreak said:
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2009/06/15/technology/tech-us-telecoms-congress.html?_r=1

US Congress has asked the Federal Communications Commission to address the effect that exclusivity agreements between handset manufacturers and wireless carriers have on competition!

Excellent! Let's hope the finally wrest control of the iPhone away from ATT.
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Why anyone would applaud the federal government sticking their nose into anything is beyond comprehension. Another stateist idea
.
 
MikePA said:
Why anyone would applaud the federal government sticking their nose into anything is beyond comprehension. Another stateist idea
.
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Actually it was the state that broke up large monopolies, the state that ensures workers rights. Without the state, we can fully expect companies to act in their own interest, which rarely parallels that of its customers or even its employees.
 
1Zach1 said:
I would rather them go investigate data and texting prices from carriers.
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Couldn't agree more. Verizon had their chance and T Mobile just sucks. ATT like the guy below you said, made a lot of changes and agreements to get this running. ATT made a very wise investment. But, I would really like to see a decrease of Texting/Data rates. $30 a month is more than my Comcast cable internet!
 
1Zach1 said:
I would rather them go investigate data and texting prices from carriers.
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No thanks. Companies have a right to choose any price for their product or service, even if you deem it unfair. That's a right I believe you shouldn't be able to take away from any company.
 
A valid issue in rural areas

This is a valid issue for rural carriers.

Their customers are locked out of some of the best phones, because they can't use a major carrier who has the clout to lock them in.

I think it would be perfectly fair if the FCC ruled that ATT, Verizon, etc's exclusive contracts did not apply in areas which they do not serve.

For instance, there are huge physical chunks of the USA (about 1/3 of it) where you cannot own an iPhone because ATT doesn't have home towers in those locations. Why should everyone in North or South Dakota, or parts of Colorado or California, not be able to own an iPhone simply because ATT doesn't serve them directly?

It would not hurt ATT a bit, because they don't have any customers there anyway. Ditto for places without Verizon.
 
shrimpdesign said:
No thanks. Companies have a right to choose any price for their product or service, even if you deem it unfair. That's a right I believe you shouldn't be able to take away from any company.
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When competition and free market capitalism fail, the government has every right to make sure they run properly.
 
shrimpdesign said:
No thanks. Companies have a right to choose any price for their product or service, even if you deem it unfair. That's a right I believe you shouldn't be able to take away from any company.
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I think companies should charge whatever they feel like as well, I also think consumers should be allowed to freely move between carriers when they feel like without being penalized. Since that is never going to happen the phone companies are being allowed to run wild with their prices and not be challenged by the market.
 
golden3159 said:
When competition and free market capitalism fail, the government has every right to make sure they run properly.
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How has capitalism failed in this instance? Prices too high? Really? People are obviously still willing to pay this much for texting, so maybe it's worth what people are paying. Just because texting isn't dirt cheap doesn't mean it's a huge failure, it means you're a whiny baby.
 
You can tell who the business owners and who the consumers are in here :)

As a consumer I'm all for it; hopefully it'd trickle down to the UK. Encourage competition and therefore fairer pricing by letting any of the networks sell the iPhone? Yes please!
 
1Zach1 said:
I also think consumers should be allowed to freely move between carriers when they feel like without being penalized. Since that is never going to happen the phone companies are being allowed to run wild with their prices and not be challenged by the market.
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Customers DO have this right, they just choose not to exercise it when presented with subsidies and promotional offers.
 
People are willing to pay the high price because it's the ONLY choice they have. Yes, we sign contracts with AT&T because there is NO OTHER WAY to use iPhone in US if we don't sign the contract with the EXCLUSIVE carrier.

Soda companies and Beer companies have exclusive deals with distributors. Distributor A will only sell Coca-Cola drinks (coke, sprite, etc.) to retail stores and Distributor B will only sell Pepsi drinks (pepsi, gatorade, etc.) to retail stores. However, we consumers aren't affected by their exclusive deals. We can choose between Coca-Cola or Pepsi products at any store. Exclusive deals are valid only in that sense because it does not limit our choices at the convenience store.

I am NOT saying we need a middleman between AT&T and us. There should be no exclusive deals between phone companies and carriers AT ALL. That is the only right way. The way AT&T now has is just a flat out monopoly and America should not allow it by law because it limits our choices to one seller.
 
Tell Verizon to adopt the same standard as the rest of the world, there would be no reason for exclusivity agreements. All it does is give Apple a reason to produce on,y one type of phone while getting a kickback from AT&T.
 
golden3159 said:
When competition and free market capitalism fail, the government has every right to make sure they run properly.
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The government steps in when laws or regulations are violated not when a czar believes things are not 'run properly'.
 
bobsentell said:
Tell Verizon to adopt the same standard as the rest of the world, there would be no reason for exclusivity agreements. All it does is give Apple a reason to produce only one type of phone while getting a kickback from AT&T.
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That's not the problem.

In the USA, Sprint has the same system as Verizon and they each still have exclusive phones.

Outside of the USA, in the rest of the GSM world, Apple still picks exclusive carriers. They're open to kickbacks everywhere.
 
ZiggyPastorius said:
Ironic that you attack these posters for using ad hominem attacks when your entire post is one big ad hominem attack.
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No irony involved at all since your comment about my post is without merit.

ZiggyPastorius said:
Please follow the forum rules and do not directly attack other forum members, thank you.
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You mean like people who don't respond to the content of a post but rather someones signature they disagree with? Forum rules apply to everyone, Ziggy.
 
MikePA said:
No irony involved at all since your comment about my post is without merit.



You mean like people who don't respond to the content of a post but rather someones signature they disagree with? Forum rules apply to everyone, Ziggy.
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Thus why I reported their post as well. My post had enough merit to constitute the removal that I requested by reporting the post. Respect your fellow forum members, stop calling them socialists because they support Obama and don't agree with you, and stop calling them idiots, whether you believe they are or not.

This is not the PRSI. Stop treating it like it.
 
kdarling said:
That's not the problem.

In the USA, Sprint has the same system as Verizon and they each still have exclusive phones.

Outside of the USA, in the rest of the GSM world, Apple still picks exclusive carriers. They're open to kickbacks everywhere.
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Then to be fair, the government should investigate car dealers and fast food franchises. They also have exclusivity agreements for their areas.
 
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