Apple today began taking pre-orders for iPhone 4S smartphones, which should arrive (via free shipping) Oct. 14. Offered in black or white (no waiting this time!), the three models range from 16 to 64 GB and $199 to $399. Read the rest of this entry »
Unfiltered
Frank discussion with telecom's most experienced editors
Critiquing Genachowski’s USF reform speech: What he did well–and what he overlooked
FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski did a good job yesterday of delivering a speech about Universal Service reform that spoke to both a telecom industry and a mainstream consumer audience. No doubt some of the mainstream press tuned out when he started talking about price cap and rate of return, but that’s when the telecom industry’s ears perked up. Read the rest of this entry »
Sprint confirms unlimited plans for its shiny new iPhone(s)
Sprint today issued a statement finally formally announcing that it will pair its unlimited data plan with the Apple iPhone 4S beginning Oct. 14.
In maybe the only surprise of Sprint getting an iPhone, it also announced that beginning today it will offer the iPhone 4 for $100, also with its unlimited plan.
Tablet market takes another ‘flyer’ on $99 price tag — mobile operators should take notice
Is $99 the price that sends tablet buyers into a frenzy? It seems so. Not long after HP set off a tablet buying spree for its $99 discontinued TouchPad tablet (CP: iPad Who? $99 HP TouchPad selling like gangbusters), HTC and Best Buy accidentally tested this theory again today. For a short time, Best Buy (it now says by mistake) set the online price for the HTC Flyer 7-inch Android tablet at $99 — down from the still-low $299, seemingly selling out online but continuing to offer it for sale in-store. Read the rest of this entry »
CenturyLink to offer discounted Internet service to low-income consumers
UPDATE
This post was edited from its original version. CenturyLink’s low-income Internet access offering wasn’t as altruistic as we first characterized it. The program apparently was launched to meet a condition of the company’s acquisition of Qwest.
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Increasing broadband adoption rates aren’t just about bringing Internet connectivity to unserved areas—it’s also about getting more people who don’t sign up for Internet service to do so. And one of the biggest reasons people don’t sign up for Internet service when it is available is cost. Read the rest of this entry »
LightSquared partnering with more than just carriers and retail brands
LightSquared has promised to enable all sorts of new mobile broadband business models if it’s allowed to launch its terrestrial LTE network. Today it revealed what one of those potential business models might be: providing communications services tailored to the elderly. Read the rest of this entry »
As Apple prepares for iPhone 4S launch, its competitors prepare their lawsuits
Apple’s got a new device (CP: Apple iPhone 4S, with Siri, iOS5 and iCloud—but no 4G) . And Samsung’s got a new target in its ongoing patent war with the iPhone maker. The Wall Street Journal reported today that Samsung would try to block the iPhone 4S’s launch in Italy and France, using the hoopla surrounding the smartphone’s launch as leverage against Apple in its legal battles. Read the rest of this entry »
Utilities increasing investment in telecom–but continue to favor a build vs. a buy strategy
Utility companies are expected to spend at least $3.2 billion on telecommunications this year, according to a new study from the Utilities Telecom Council. That’s an increase of 3% from 2010 and 21% since 2009. Read the rest of this entry »
Windows Phone 7.5 ‘Mango’ update moving quicker than expected
Microsoft’s Windows Phone 7.5 “Mango” update has been so well, and quickly, received that Microsoft decided to make it available to 50% of eligible customers ahead of schedule. On Monday, it opened the spigot, Eric Hautala blogged, while thanking users for scooping up the update so immediately. Read the rest of this entry »
Why is Virgin postponing smartphone data throttling? Or how iPhone rumors get started
As anyone with a TV (that can’t fast forward through commercials) can attest, Sprint has been milking for all its worth its status as the sole remaining provider of no-strings unlimited data plans. Apparently Sprint knows a good thing when it sees it, leading it to postpone its first initiative, via its Virgin Mobile prepaid brand, to reign in data usage among Virgin subscribers.