CE-Oh no he didn't! Part LII: AT&T CEO scoffs at Verizon's "Any Apps, Any Device" plan
Even 6 months ago, it would have been inconceivable to imagine the CEO of the biggest cellphone operator in the US sniping at its primary competitor's hints at becoming more open. The key point being that none of the cellphone operators in the US are actually "open" by any objective definition, so maybe AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson should have bitten his tongue rather than stating that his company is "probably one of the most open networks in the world," in a mild rebuke to Verizon's open network plan for 2008. Also Randall, stating that "all of the handsets we sell are Java-equipped" might be a little unwise considering that AT&T's flagship handset, and probably the most widely publicized handset (ever?) is clearly not. At least the debate is moving forward: hopefully his statement that "[all carriers] are all going to be open over time" will come to fruition with a little more gentle prodding coupled with the occasional kick up the arse.[Image source]
Filed under: ATT, Verizon Wireless
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
CB17 @ Dec 2nd 2007 2:36AM
I don't understand what's so special about the comment...seems to make sense to me. And the java-iPhone comment was pretty stupid BTW and completely irrelevant to the general idea of what he was saying which is that clearly ATT is about as open and non-restrictive (for the most part) as cell phone providers come.
CB17 @ Dec 2nd 2007 2:36AM
I don't understand what's so special about the comment...seems to make sense to me. And the java-iPhone comment was pretty stupid BTW and completely irrelevant to the general idea of what he was saying which is that clearly ATT is about as open and non-restrictive (for the most part) as cell phone providers come.
CB17 @ Dec 2nd 2007 2:37AM
Damn comcast internet, sorry....
Pamela @ Dec 2nd 2007 6:57AM
Open by the fact that you can put a SIM card into any GSM phone you want (as long as it has the bands) and it will work, that's a given and even T-Mobile does that so I wouldn't agree about AT&T being the most open network, and T-Mobile has Java too, so does Sprint which is CDMA. The lack of being able to use whatever CDMA phone you want on a CDMA network was definately a concern to some phone users and that is why they choose GSM networks sometimes and I think this is a scare to AT&T. I don't know if Java programs are better than Brew though except for price and availability, you can get free apps with Java and as far as I've seen with Brew on Verizon you have to pay for everything and can only get it through Verizon so he prehaps has a point with that but the other networks have Java too not just AT&T so I don't get that one.
Randy @ Dec 2nd 2007 9:10AM
True that many at&t (not all of them) phones have java but keep in mind that at&t does gimp it in that if the app is unsigned, it will prompt you for every outbound connection attempt; with the option permanently allow disabled. Not very open if you ask me....
To Mr Stephenson and Mr. De La Vega, If you really want to be "Open" then stop removing features like Wifi and certain Bluetooth profiles from the phones you sell. And give me the option to buy an unbranded, unlocked phone w/ a service plan. (at the non-commitment price of course.)
Only then will you be considered truly "Open".
Terrag @ Dec 2nd 2007 11:17AM
I agree with your comment about being open, however you if you want a subsidized phone, then you need to have a contract. The carriers are not going to make money then, since they take a loss on subsidized phones.
Josh G @ Dec 2nd 2007 5:29PM
Hey, you're nearly on par with Australia now. Kinda sad really.
Fadi Alsaidi @ Dec 2nd 2007 11:44PM
oh come on. why do we always attack at&t like they killed someone we know. i have tried almost all wireless carriers and the truth to be told at&t is the least restrictive among national carriers. its not only the fact that they are GSM because tmobile is GSM. compare them to each other. t-mobile will not allow you to use java applications that connect to the internet like Opera Mini. T-mobile locks their phone that even if you unlock them you still can't reconfigurer the setting to access the internet on another network. and please don't tell me you can flash or hack the phones. we are talking out of the box ok. sure Verizon wants to open up thing but were are you going to find unlocked CDMA phones . It all sounds too good but the reality of thing are against the possibility of being open. sorry about the spelling.
Navi Thach @ Dec 3rd 2007 12:29AM
AT&T is probably the most "open" carrier. Sure, the iPhone is more crippled than Verizon's LG collection, but the iPhone has an SDK out - while apps for BREW have to be signed off by NSTL before the carrier adds it to their catalog. Here's where the irony comes in - Verizon uses the horrible Verizon OS across the board, while AT&T does gimp a few of their phones - BBs for one use a custom AT&T theme and have BB Maps hidden - it's still better than a UGLY OS that puts 95/98 to shame and gimped GPS+BT...
Marc @ Dec 3rd 2007 1:11AM
well i can see that none of you know what your talking when it comes to open and closed handsets or a open or closed network so for future reference when you don't know what you're talking about it's best to keep your mouth closed.
Fadi Alsaidi @ Dec 3rd 2007 1:07PM
oh. sorry marc. enlighten us with your wisdom and knowledge. the comments were made about two topics of open network as you can see. so if the comments were not made to your understanding then you can comments about what you think about this new carriers attitude towards openness they way you see it. otherwise keep your yap closed and let other people talk instead.