FCC formally launches inquiry into wireless competition

Well, we can’t say we didn’t see this one coming. At today’s meeting, the FCC has said that it will be launching a formal inquiry into the wireless industry and specifically into certain business practices of the big four: AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile USA , and Verizon Wireless. The commission hasn’t yet detailed exactly how they’re going to go about this, but you can bet they’ll be looking into exclusivity deals between handset manufacturers and carriers. And who knows? They might be interested in the whole iPhone / AT&T / Google Voice conundrum, especially if it turns out that AT&T had a hand in dissing the app. According to Reuters, the agency is looking into “how competition affects consumers,” with an eye towards further investigations into other areas, including cable and broadband.

[Via Phone Scoop]

Filed under: Cellphones, Networking

FCC formally launches inquiry into wireless competition originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 27 Aug 2009 15:28:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments

This post is tagged: at and t, AT&T, AtAndT, competition, fcc, federal communications commission, FederalCommunicationsCommission, Google Voice, GoogleVoice, government, inquiry, regulation, skype, Sprint, T-Mobile, Verizon, verizon wireless, VerizonWireless, Voice