Poor customer service is one of my biggest pet peeves, and lord knows, we encounter it virtually every day. Here’s my most memorable recent example, largely because of the sheer silliness of the situation. I visited Sel de la Terre Boulangerie, an upscale bakery serving gourmet breads, pastries, sandwiches and coffee.

• My offense: I ordered a medium coffee in a large cup so that it doesn’t spill in my car.
• The response: With a straight face, the cashier rang up a large because “we need to charge you for the extra milk you will be using.”

Brilliant – annoy a customer over a measly…get this…10 cents. Once I realized she was serious (which took an awkward 10 seconds or so), I dropped the extra dime on the counter and walked away, never to return. (There are at least 5 other places within close proximity serving as good or better coffee.)

Now for a positive spin. Because of this experience and countless others like it, we have come to expect such treatment, which is why it’s even more noteworthy when someone representing a company or brand surprises and delights you. And since the Thanksgiving season is all about showing gratitude and giving thanks, I want to call attention to someone, who on multiple occasions, has gone way above and beyond in providing me with superior service. His name is Kyle Cunningham, manager of the AT&T Mobility store at the Natick Collection in Natick, MA. For all of the legitimate criticism of AT&T’s shoddy 3G network and customer unfriendly policies, this guy makes up for all of it, and then some.

A bit of background. My BlackBerry Bold is near death. Despite OS upgrades, the device is super sluggish, has memory leak issues, and is powered by two almost completely drained batteries. Time for a new phone.

• The problem: I am not eligible for an iPhone 3Gs for another 5 months, and the “powers that be” will make no exceptions to this policy. Sound familiar?
• The solution: The best offer AT&T could make is $399 for the 12GB version, and only if I extend my contract for another 2 years. That is $200 more than the price I’d pay if I were eligible.

Sheer stupidity. I can cancel my account for $175 ($24 less), walk over to Verizon – whose network is far more reliable – port over my mobile number, and get a brand spanking new Motorola Droid for $200 with a 2-yr commitment. In other words, AT&T is telling a customer who has always paid on time, has 2 accounts (my wife is also a subscriber), and spends well more than the monthly average, that it will give him $24 to take a hike and go its biggest competitor. I guess AT&T doesn’t use CRM, segment its customer base, or care about retention or loyalty. Or if it does, it doesn’t know how to apply these tools and disciplines to real world situations. Maybe instead of spending time, money and resources on suing Verizon for false advertising, AT&T should focus its efforts on serving its customers.

Now that I got the marketing jargon in, back to the story. Despite it all, I am still with AT&T, because quite simply, Kyle provides the absolute best customer service on the planet. Having worked for mobile app company, WorldMate, I called on Kyle countless times over the past two years. In this particular case, Kyle not only did everything in his power short of risking his job, but he also offered to lend me his virtually brand new Bold until I am upgrade eligible. How often do you experience that caliber of service? I am 36 years old, and so far, just once in my lifetime. With nonsense business practices that create negative switching costs, AT&T puts an unfair burden on Kyle to keep subscriber attrition in check. I’m sure upper management doesn’t realize how lucky they are to have him.

In the spirit of the holiday, please express your appreciation to those who’ve served you well in the past year. If we let these folks know and share our stories with others (it’s as easy as a tweet or brief mention in conversation), just maybe kick-ass service will start to become a trend.

AT&T has announced plans to work with TerreStar to offer an integrated smartphone mobility solution that will combine primary cellular wireless connectivity with the ability to connect to a satellite network as a backup, using one phone number and one smartphone device.

Now some of you may be thinking that regular cell phones work from satellites which is not the case; all U.S.-based cellular systems use terrestrial-based towers or ‘cell sites’  for their networks.

The TerreStar Genus smartphone combines GSM/GPRS/EDGE/UMTS/HSDPA terrestrial wireless capability with satellite voice and data capability. The device runs on the Windows Mobile and includes 2.6” touchscreen, WiFi, Bluetooth® and GPS.

The device gives users the option to access theTerreStar satellite network when AT&T’s cellular wireless network is unavailable and is just a little larger than the iPhone or a BlackBerry Curve.  Traditional satellite phones are much larger and less feature-rich as well.

So – does this mean you should run out to your local AT&T store and order one?  Probably not since this main users for this device will be Government, first responders, emergency services, and other ‘mission critical’ agencies.  I am sure enterprise customers may use this as a back-up for emergencies as Satellite service is more expensive than traditional cellular service.

This is a boost to TerreStar and AT&T as this is the first cellular satellite smartphone on the market which should provide both with an edge on their competition.  It will be available Q1 2010 and will be interesting to see how the market reacts once it’s launched.

Here are links to articles and the TerreStar web site:

http://bit.ly/hXLuj

http://bit.ly/GYsRD

Is it a coincidence that Motorola and Garmin (GPS manufacturer) launch new handsets at essentially the same time?  Is this Motorola’s attempt at not getting ‘lost’ in the handset jungle it used to dominate?

T-Mobile announced yesterday afternoon that the new Motorola Cliq, the first Android operating system handset for venerable Motorola, would be in stores and available online November 19th.  The pre-sales for the Cliq have started and you can register  here to get in a virtual line to be the first on your block to get the shiny new handset.  The price is $200 which is about average for market, but some did expect a bit lower with the holidays upcoming.  Will this make Motorola’s year with this new handset – many folks at Motorola HQ in Schaumburg, Illinois are sure hoping so.

Garmin, the GPS manufacturer, has entered the U.S. market with its first cellular equipped device, the nuviphone G60 which launches October 4th on AT&T Mobility for $299 after rebates, etc.  The price point on this GPS-centric device seems a bit high, but it does offer the same functionality at the Garmin nuvi GPS plus all typical smart-phone attributes such as 3G, WiFi, Megapixel camera, HTML browser, etc.  When they first announces this 18 months ago the market wasn’t as soft and crowded as it is today which makes it’s entry lukewarm to analysts.

It should be an interesting fall and winter season with new handsets hitting the market right before the holiday season; will Motorola and Garmin make a dent in the BlackBerry/iPhone market dominance?  I think not, but it won’t take long to figure out whether they are flops or hits.

Here are the links to the articles:

Motorola Cliq  http://bit.ly/22s1bw

Garmin nuviphone G60  http://bit.ly/uoDgp

By Steve Early and Rand Wilson

The mad scramble among cell phone companies for increased market share has already created much consumer confusion about the merits of various “calling plans.” Now, thanks to a re-seller of mobile phone minutes called CREDO Mobile, the politics of which provider to choose has gotten muddled as well, for supporters of progressive causes.

CREDO markets itself as the cellular company with a conscience. Sign up today, say CREDO ads in publications like The Nation, so you can “support the values you believe in.” Every call you make generates a small part of the millions of dollars the company gives to Wellstone Action, Human Rights Watch, Planned Parenthood, NARAL, and Greenpeace. CREDO is “more than a network,” it’s “a movement.”

In West Virginia this weekend — to its credit — the company has been leading the PR charge against a cleverly packaged “Friends of America Rally” down in Logan County. It’s a Labor Day fest for the right, featuring appearances by Sean Hannity and over-the-hill metalhead Ted Nugent, plus a speech against global warming by one of its leading deniers, Lord Christopher Moncton.

Not surprisingly, the most enthusiastic local sponsor is Don Blankenship, CEO of Massey Energy. Big Don has posted a YouTube video inviting all West Virginians (including the 10% currently unemployed) to attend the rally so they can “learn how environmental extremists…are trying to destroy jobs.”

Massey is, as CREDO points out, “the most egregious violator of the Clean Water Act in history,” not to mention a notorious union-buster and arch foe of the United Mine Workers. The UMW is sponsoring its own competing event, but without Hank Williams, Jr. as a headliner, the union is unlikely to attract a crowd anywhere near the 25,000 expected at “Friends of America.”

And this is where CREDO comes in. It has developed a sophisticated “Mobile Action” network of customers who want to use their cell phones for social change. CREDO, along with the National Resources Defense Council, is rallying them against the other major corporate sponsor of the event, Verizon Wireless (VZW). In e-mail messages and ads, network members are being exhorted to contact VZW president and CEO Lowell McAdam and demand that he “issue a public apology and immediately withdraw all support from this extremist, anti-environmental rally.”

Like Massey Energy, Verizon Wireless has been an industry leader in anti-unionism (only 50 out of VZW’s 50,000 workers are organized and management has been repeatedly cited for its unfair labor practices). But there’s no small irony in CREDO “calling out” Verizon Wireless. CREDO itself is also completely non-union! And not only does it knock, with good reason, VZW, it also takes regular aim at AT&T Mobility, the one wireless company that is unionized.

CREDO got its start as Working Assets, reselling long distance service by the notoriously anti-union Sprint. Now it’s doing the same thing with wireless, marketing itself as a bankroller of every kind of rights movement, except the workers’ rights one. Meanwhile, it tries to get progressive customers to switch, not just from VZW (a move long recommended by labor) but from AT&T as well, where more than 35,000 technicians, customer service reps, and retail store personnel belong to the Communications Workers of America.

So, on Labor Day, if you want to use your cell phone for a cause-oriented call, by all means dial Lowell McAdam and give him a piece of your mind about VZW’s strange bedfellows down in West Virginia. But, if you want to do a mitzvah for the cause of labor, sign up for AT&T Mobility and show your support for its unionized workforce.

Steve Early worked for 27 years as a CWA organizer in the northeast and was involved in strikes and organizing campaigns at AT&T. Rand Wilson works for the AFL-CIO on a joint CWA and IBEW organizing initiative with Verizon workers. This was originally written for the Working In These Times blog and appears here with the authors’ permission.

LTE or Long Term Evolution is a 4G wireless technology and is considered the next in line in the GSM evolution path after UMTS/HSPDA 3G technologies. LTE is espoused and standardized via the 3GPP or 3rd Generation Partnership Project members. 3GPP is a global telecommunications consortium having members in most GSM dominant countries. 3GPP specifications are based on GSM evolution path of wireless communications. GSM is the most prevalent wireless standard in the world and has maximum number of subscribers globally.

The impact of LTE is so big that even powerful carriers which were on the alternate CDMA path like Verizon Wireless of United States, have decided to go with LTE in their next generation 4G evolution. Firms like Verizon and MetroPCS of USA have all but dumped the CDMA technology path almost dealing a blow to the CDMA owner Qualcomm, although the latter is much more diversified so it is not really short of business models.

LTE vs WiMAX
Whereas WiMAX emerged from the WiFi IP paradigm, LTE is a result of the classic GSM technology path. LTE is behind in the race to 4G with WiMAX getting an early lead with the likes of Sprint ClearWire and several operators in Asia opting to go with WiMAX in the near term. So where WiMAX has a speed to market advantage, LTE has massive adoption and GSM parenthood to back it up.

It is widely believed by market analysts that LTE will win ultimately but WiMAX will find adoption in frontrunner communities and niche business models which tend to take up technology faster. WiMAX vendors will have you believe that speed to market is too important to ignore. History suggests otherwise in case of wireless industry. It is also believed that ultimately, wireless industry will figure out a way to wed the two 4G technologies so the end product in few years might be a nice amalgam.

So ultimately, what standard an operator uses might be a moot point in the long run. The inter-operability would be just too great to get hung up on the wireless standard. The fact that both WiMAX and LTE are all-IP means that a cross-connection will be a piece of cake at some point in future.

In terms of speed, Fixed WiMAX lacks LTE in speed but Mobile WiMAX may catch up with LTE on this front. For an overview on WiMAX, refer to our post “A Primer on WiMAX“.

LTE Technology
LTE builds on 3GPP family which includes GSM, GPRS, EDGE, WCDMA, HSPA (High Speed Packet Access) etc. LTE is an all-IP standard like its peer WiMAX. LTE allows for rich applications and business models which include ultra-high speed voice, video and data. It also enables integration with the classic internet infrastructure which is all-IP based.

HSPA (High Speed Packet Access), the 3G GSM standard popular over near-term, offers uplink speeds of 11.5 MBPS and downlink of 28 MBPS. Whereas LTE offers 75-100 MBPS Uplink speeds and 250-300 MBPS downlink speeds. Compare this with 20 MBPS U-verse speeds of AT&T wired broadband network U-verse and 50 MBPS speeds in Verizon FIOS TV service. In a nutshell, LTE will beat the fastest wired broadband delivery High Def TV today (in USA) by order of 1 to 4 or 1 to 2 depending on which wired broadband we are talking about. That said, many carriers like AT&T believe that HSPA and its faster cousin HSPA+ will compare well with early WiMAX speeds and so there is no rush to LTE yet for these kind of carriers.

Some key characteristics of LTE are described below :

• Increased Data Rates and High Efficiency : LTE is based on OFDM Radio Access technology and MIMO antenna technology (just like its cousin WiMAX) which offer excellent modulation technique for achieving powerful spectral efficiency.  Think of the OFDM wireless spectrum as a series of very fine and narrow wireless  bands and each band gets allocated to various service providers.  LTE offers higher data transmission rates while utilizing the spectrum more efficiently. This translates to an ability to support many more multitude of subscribers than is possible with pre-4G spectral frequencies. LTE is 2 to 5 times more efficient in spectrum utilization than the most advanced 3G networks.
• Radio Planning : LTE signal goes far and wide and covers a larger geographic territory. LTE signal is way faster than the existing wireless transmission resulting in higher user response times.
• IP environment : LTE is all-IP which permits new enhanced applications like real time voice, video, gaming, social networking and location-based services.  The concept of wireless ubiquity comes alive with LTE processor chips in everything from netbooks to mobile phones to consumer devices; all these devices talk to each other seamlessly and effortlessly.
• Inter-operability : LTE IP network co-operates with circuit-switched legacy networks resulting in a seamless network environment and signals are exchanged between traditional networks, the new 4G network and the IP-based internet seamlessly.

LTE Applications
LTE will enable applications previously unheard of. Wireless ubiquity is a given. All consumer devices. communication and computing resources may be enabled on the wireless network courtesy of chipmakers like Intel who are eagerly building in WiMAX and LTE in future chipsets which will be embedded in all sorts of technology devices that one can imagine.  Social Networking and human-technology interaction (HTI) will take on a new meaning. Human-technology interface and resultant communication could be as seamless and as effortless as the Tom Cruise movie Minority Report makes it out to be (ok we are bragging a bit now).

Web 4.0, if you will, may just comprise the Wireless as an integral element of the hyper-connected world via LTE and WiMAX enablement.  Broadband TV might not need wired cables anymore and new MVNO service providers may emerge who enable wirelessly driven TV and broadband internet. Business users might exchange massive amounts of data while on the go at the flick of a button (or touch). Interacting with your Flickr and Picasas photo streams from mobile devices might be a breeze. Games will cross wired / wireless domains and mobile location will figure in the gaming context naturally. Location-based may take a new meaning with location being the true IP beacon determining the application context in a flash, thereby offering a ultra-personalized mobile experience to the user.

LTE Timeline
Operators are just now fully deploying 3G using WCDMA or UMTS/HSPDA. WiMAX is coming in via ClearWire in USA and several operators like BSNL in India and many others in Middle East and Africa. The first LTE deployment in USA is with relatively tiny MetroPCS which may just beat the big 3 LTE carriers (AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile) in the race to 4G. Verizon is claiming 2010 LTE deployment and AT&T is taking a more patient approach and states that LTE is in 2011-12 timeframe. China is unique, as usual. They have taken the TD-SCDMA 3G route which is a “unique to China” standard.  Chinese 4G strategy is not clear still. India is more LTE centric like the West with major carriers like Airtel and Vodafone adopting the LTE route. LTE in India is many years away as India’s regulator TRAI has not even awarded the 3G spectrum licenses yet.

Japan, we won’t even go there..

I visited the Wireless Technology Forum’s General Meeting today. WTF is the top wireless networking group in Atlanta with 550 members and growing rapidly. The topic for today’s session was “Where is the Money in Wireless Consumer Applications?“

The WTF session today had an excellent panel :

Moderator : Maury Margol, Sr. Director, Client Relations, Nielsen Telecom Practice

Here are some highlights from the panel discussion :

As one would expect, iPhone has come to dominate all things mobile internet in current times. Basic theme all throughout the discussion was that the iPhone is a game changer in mobile app world. It has shown the world how the mobile user experience should be and how to influence consumer adoption with a compelling application portfolio.

Which mobile apps are making money today ? Ken suggested it is the iPhone apps with its AppStore strategy.  3 years from now, it will be LBS which will be main revenue generator in mobile apps. Andy McGuire suggested that 800 million iPhone application downloads so far is the tip of the iceberg. It is an indicator that developers and consumers are there if the ecosystem is right.  He mentioned that in future, one might see utility models like medical and home apps on mobile phones. One panelist opined that in spite of all the iPhone AppStore hoopla and massive no of apps available, money is still being made in limited categories like games and music.

On the question of wired devices, the panel was of the opinion that in future there will be lot of wireless devices which will preclude the need to have a wired network but higher speed apps will still find a use for wired networking eg in case of high speed TV. Andy quoted Sony CEO’s statement that in the future, 90% of devices may be wirelessly-enabled. Clearly wireless is the future for all networks but for reasons of speed and niche uses, wired devices and network will still prevail in some areas. Some interesting uses of wireless will be wireless blood pressure monitor, reservoir monitors etc.

On the question as to how a carrier like AT&T makes money in “open mobile” environments like iPhone AppStore, Rob from AT&T mentioned that iPhone has increased data plan sales for AT&T and also AT&T itself makes some of the iPhone apps.  Plus AT&T attracts a huge no of new subscribers due to the iPhone exclusivity. In essence, AT&T has lots of monetization models around iPhone type of devices where the volume of customer adoption more than covers for the revenue lost due to “open” mobile gardens like iPhone AppStore.

Next there was a question – how can developers make money in mobile apps? The panel was of the opinion that there are lot of apps being made and put out most of the times for free. Lot of these apps are simply experimental in nature or are hobby apps with no business model around them. The panel suggested that developers need to think through the business model when writing apps. Most apps peak and then are forgotten in the ever increasing mass of mobile apps on iPhone AppStore. As to mobile ads inside the mobile apps, it is a nascent idea at this point but in future, this will become a bigger source of revenue vs a download fee. One panelist suggested that considering the fact that there are 4 times the no of mobiles in the world compared to no of PCs, there is a dearth of content for mobile so that is an area which developers can look at. Also RIM has stated that minimum pricing for BlackBerry App Store app will be $2.99 – this may invite more serious developers who have a revenue-generating business model in mind.

Per Robb Hyatt from AT&T, iPhone took AT&T Mobility from “2nd innings straight to 5th innings” in mobile data; I found this interesting.

When asked where does Google come into picture, the panelists mused that it is one of many players unlike in internet where it dominates via search. One interesting aspect about Google Android is that it has reduced manufacturing costs for OEMs (read cellphone makers) dramatically. Eg Samsung or Motorola no longer have to spend tons in maintaining custom mobile OS for its phones. It can focus on making compelling phones and just use Android for mobile OS.

On Mobile Payments, the panel thought that Near Field Communications or NFC payments are still in infancy although other countries are slightly ahead of USA in this area.  Also consumers need to become comfortable about security before mass adoption of Mobile Banking will be seen. Andy gave an example of “Banking for the Unbanked” in Kenya on Safaricom network and its mobile payment offering called m-pesa. The 7 million m-pesa customers use mobile as a payment mechanism and receive paychecks on it. This is excellent innovation in mobile payment. Everybody agreed that mobile payments and banking is a trust model as much as it is a technology model.

Then the natural question : has recession effected mobile apps business ? Apparently not, per the panel. It seems consumers will not give up mobile and its little entertainment oriented apps just like they won’t give up on movies in a downtime. Mobile is an essential device today for a consumer.

All panelists agreed that there is lot of innovation remaining in mobile app arena. The primary gaps remain in user experience and business model evolution. iPhone experience is the beginning and not the end.

Well, very informative and highly intuitive discussion. Thanks to the panel and to the organizing team at the WTF – Maury Margol, Bob McIntyre and Steve Bachman.

Feb. 26^th the Washington State Attorney General’s Office reached a settlement with AT&T Mobility, LLC, and Asurion Roadside Assistance Services, LLC. This resolution is in regards to a $2.99 monthly fee of patrons charged wrongfully for roadside assistance.

“AT&T Mobility’s efforts to promote Roadside Assistance hit a roadblock when consumers complained that Roadside Assistance was added to their accounts without their knowledge and that they were charged without their authorization,” Assistant Attorney General Katherine Tassi said.

The Attorney General’s Office Consumer Protection Division is part of a state agency that provides non-legal advice to citizens who pay taxes. Services provided include informal mediation between businesses and consumers who cannot afford to pay for simple disputes.

For example, a company may wrongfully charge a consumer outside the parameters of their contract. If they have tried to get the company to reimburse them the next step is contacting the AGO.

“Small fees on your phone bill can be easily overlooked,” Tassi said. “But when many people are paying a few extra dollars per month, that can add up to big profits.”

In the case of AT&T, when the small amount are added up over a four-and-a-half year period it comes out to be $500,000. This is how much will be paid to the AGO for court fees and redistribution to consumers. AT&T Mobility will contact consumers who are eligible for refunds by mail or e-mail within 90 days.

The year of 2008 is the twelfth year in a row that telecommunications is on top of the complaints list at the AGO with 1,728. Therefore, consumers need to take extra care of the small fees that they may be charged.

“Businesses need to be upfront when marketing optional services,” she said. “They must make clear and complete disclosures when offering a free trial that will automatically convert to a paid subscription unless the consumer cancels.”

Watching your financial situation and understanding service fees is very important with the economy on a continual downslide. Not doing so increases the chance of frauds and swindles to you and those with whom you associate.

You may have noticed this news item about a class action lawsuit against AT&T Mobility and Radio Shack.

So, how did we get to the place where Billie Parks, an honest subscriber, gets surprised with a $5000 bill?

Fundamentally, the problem is that mobile broadband has deployed onto a scarce resource, namely wireless spectrum. So, YES, 3G and 4G technologies are capable of multi-megabit download speeds, and, NO, they cannot provide those speeds to all of the subscribers in a sector at the same time.

The solution to this problem, in AT&T’s view, is to charge an additional fee for each Megabyte of data consumed above 5 Gigabytes during the month.

Huh??? How does that solve the problem???

I guess in AT&T Mobility’s view the answer is obvious: the economic penalty for consuming more than 5GB is so steep that Billie Parks will willingly stop consuming data when her limit is reached. Then, with Ms Parks offline, or in the back of the bus, so to speak, there will be room on the channel for other subscribers to consume their share of those multi-megabit download speeds.

That logic is flawed and has appeared to work for a few years, but only because 5GB is plenty for the road warriors using laptops that need ubiquitous access to email, and because the devices that consumers use are not well suited to consuming lots of entertainment. Why would anyone want to pull 5GB of video down to a cell phone???? They wouldn’t, of course.

But Billie is a consumer, interested in entertainment, and using a laptop.

AT&T Mobility extended the subsidy model beyond cell phones to include ultraportable laptops with built-in HSPA, and the result is a very attractively priced computer.

If you are one of the many computer users that have grown to love watching TV shows via Hulu, then you can imagine why Billie Parks ran over her limit. The logic goes like this:

Billie: “I have a trusty old computer at home and I watch my favorite Hulu TV shows on it. AT&T and Radio Shack jointly offered to sell me a very attractive new laptop for $100. How can I pass that up? Now I can watch my Hulu shows anywhere!”

AT&T’s response: “Yup, you sure can.” (And in fine print): “Oh, but be sure to stop watching when you get to 5 GB.“

And then Billie is supposed to say: “OK, I’ll check my account on AT&T’s website frequently and the 5GB limit will probably be reached at a time that is convenient for me.”

Yeah, right.

The real solution to the problem lies not with economic penalties, but with the integration of billing systems and QOS controls. I’ve mentioned wireless broadband QOS in previous posts (here, here) and I’ll keep bringing it up because it is a topic I’m passionate about.

Billie Parks was offered one choice of service:

• Best Effort Hi Rate Pkt Data (HRPD), with a 5GB cap, for $60 per month
  • Good for email, browsing and file downloads
  • Also good for Hulu if the sector is lightly loaded

But mobile packet data service needs should be segmented into multiple categories:

According to the segmentation in that table, here are the service options she could be offered instead:

• Best Effort Low Rate Pkt Data (LRPD), no cap, $10 per month
  • Good for email, Machine-to-Machine telemetry, GIS tracking, instant messaging
• Streaming LRPD, no cap, $15 per month
  • Good for PTT voice but not full-duplex voice
• Realtime Streaming LRPD, no cap, sold in minute usage bundles
  • Good for voice telephony
• Best Effort HRPD, no cap, $40 per month
  • Good for browsing and file downloads, but you may not be satisfied with the result if you try streaming data – depends on sector loading
• Streaming HRPD, no cap, $60 per month
  • Good for video entertainment like Hulu
• Realtime Streaming HRPD, no cap, sold in minute usage bundles
  • Good for video telephony (a future service)

Note that I proposed no caps on any service. When QOS controls are used it’s not necessary to also use caps and penalties to motivate certain usage patterns. QOS will allocate the available bandwidth in the sector according to the service that the subscriber is authorized to receive. And if too many subscribers are authorized for the available bandwidth, then the next subscriber will be denied service, or offered a lower-grade of service. In this manner, when a sector approaches its capacity limits, users with “best effort” subscriptions will find their connection to be slow and intermittent, while users with “streaming” subscriptions will continue to receive satisfactory service. Wa-la! People get what they paid for, with no caps and no billing surprises.

My friend Dan commented about Billie Parks’ lawsuit at lunch yesterday, saying “she’s the Rosa Parks of wireless.” Hopefully her stand against the archaic usage caps will accelerate the deployment of QOS based service offerings on the part of the mobile operators. I’m definitely pulling for her to win this one.

Following a presidential election that was almost exclusively (and sometimes brutally) focused on change, the CWA and AT&T Mobility contract negotiations have sparked many debates on the role of unions in the workforce – now and in the future. It would be hard to dispute, looking at history, that unions played a pivotal role in shaping the workplace of today. While many of those influences are strikingly positive, the global economic condition we are currently experiencing puts the labor organizations in a precarious light. Push too hard, and you potentially damage and / or break the company. Push too little, and you stand to lose credibility with members as viable representation. This is exacerbated by the financial positions of the companies in question. While AT&T and AT&T Mobility may not be in imminent danger, there is a perception that most large global organizations are in a weakened state. Any demands that appear, even on the surface, to take advantage of  “timing”  will have negative effect on the public perception of organized labor. Ask the UAW if mutual cooperation is important right now.

What is perhaps overlooked on the grand scale is the opportunity for unions to play an important role – again – in reshaping the workplace. They are ideally situated to enable the broad deployment of training and re-tasking for displaced workers. They can have an important and influential voice in helping companies retool, in a corporate environment where boundaries are disappearing – by virtue of that little thing known as the Internet. They can even be an important arbitrator in the rebuilding of our core infrastructure, and in the broadband deployment of our future.

Specific to the CWA and AT&T, we maintain that the current negotiations are minor in contrast to the larger contracts at stake over the course of this year. This particular contract will be an excellent barometer for the tone, tactics, and potential impact for the customers of AT&T. Perhaps it can even be a barometer for larger change.

UPDATE TO PREVIOUS ENTRY ON POTENTIAL AT&T LABOR SITUATION

With a contract expiration of February 7th at midnight, members of the CWA have overwhelmingly ratified a strike against AT&t Mobility, covering more than 20,000 employees. While there are several steps that would still need to be executed in a formal strike, this is certainly a strong sign of disparity in the ongoing talks – and a market hiccup AT&T can little afford. It’s important to note this is a typical posturing effort in the collective bargaining process, but still serves as a less than ideal barometer for overall tone.

More on this later today.

The state of California says in a complaint filed in LA Superior Court that T-Mobile and AT&T Mobility told customers that their voice-mail would be protected if their phones were lost but CA says this wasn’t true, third parties were able to access customer voicemails for those who hadn’t password protected their phones.

Summary courtesy Courthousenews

WIRELESS

For the first time Thursday, a National Football League game — the Cleveland Browns vs. the Denver Broncos — will be broadcast on Sprint mobile phones as part of the wireless outfit’s league partnership. Says Sprint exec Steve Gaffney: “Live compelling content is a game changer.” (Iwantmedia 11/6, http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122592543148702857.html 11/6)

In an interview with Michael Arrington at the Web 2.0 Summit, AT&T Mobility CEO Ralph De La Vega let it be known that an official, AT&T sanctioned method of using the iPhone as a 3G modem for a laptop is on the way “soon”. (http://www.mobilecrunch.com/2008/11/06/att-sanctioned-3g-tethering-on-the-way-for-iphone 11/6)

AT&T loves WiFi. And it knows that you love WiFi too. So it just bought up WiFi hotspot operator Wayport for $275 million in cash. The acquisition will add about 3,000 WiFi hotspots to AT&T’s network in the U.S., bringing the total to 20,000 hotspots (including those in Starbucks and McDonald’s). (http://www.mobilecrunch.com/2008/11/06/att-bulks-up-its-wifi-coverage-by-buying-wayport-for-275-million 11/6)

A couple days ago, on my blog, I posted an open letter to AT&T Wireless regarding their expansion of the 3G networks. I had seen absolutely no progress, so I felt that the letter was needed, especially with no coverage in the closest metropolitan area, Ocala, FL. I wanted the letter to get around, so I Dugg it and I even added the Twitter for AT&T News.

The next day around 2pm, I was contacted via e-mail by a Seth Bloom of AT&T Corporate Communications. He wanted to know when and how I could be contacted. I gave him my info and began the wait [I've gotten good at it].

Soon after making contact, I loaded up Twinkle, and to my surprise someone was tweeting that they had 3G in my area. My first thought was that they had just bought it, and they were excited. Being a sceptic, I turned my 3G on, and to my surprise, my favorite little icon was smiling back up at me. Luckily, I had some driving to do that day, so I was able to see if I had gone insane or not. Verdict I wasn’t [although, according to my Qik viewers last night, I am anyway].

Today, I was called. My iPhone sang Jared’s tune for me, and I immediately muted everything and tweeted it. Through the earpiece, I heard a woman saying to me “Hello Colin, this is — from the AT&T Mobility President’s office” [I honestly forget her name...I'm really sorry]. She and I had a really nice talk. The main question was “how do you like your new 3G service?” which I loved the sound of, since it gave me the feeling of responsibility for it.

The other question was the 3G coverage in Ocala. Sad to say, there is none, nor is the new towers even planned, according to her. She did tell me though, that if you’re ever wondering about the expansion of 3G in your area, check with your local AT&T reseller or call customer service [611] and they’ll be able to tell you.

This post was originally intended for DailyTechTalk.com, but it appears to not be working.

After months of rumor-driven frenzy, the much talked about 3G iPhone from Apple finally became a reality, promising yet another revolution in the mobile Internet experience. Offering a combination of great user interface with (slow) DSL-level speeds and location-based technologies, the new 3G iPhone is a game-changer.

Those are not my views; they come to use from Ralph de la Vega, president and chief executive officer of AT&T Mobility, the wireless division of San Antonio, Texas-based AT&T. A few hours after the release of the new phone, de la Vega chatted with me about the iPhone, its impact on location-based services, enterprise mobility and of course, the wireless web revolution it will unleash. Here are excerpts from our interview:

Om Malik: What are your thoughts on this new iPhone?
Ralph de la Vega (RDLV): This device is a true game-changer. Why? The immediacy of the data at your fingertips is huge. Imagine, looking up anything, anywhere. It (3G iPhone) allows you to leave your computer at home. It totally and completely mobilizes your data. Before this device you weren’t really untethered, but with this you are. I think people have tried to build a $100 laptop, and here is a $200 phone that can do all that over 3G. It will have a big impact, and will be ubiquitous.

OM: What are the big changes you think it will bring?
RDLV: When I was at the last CIO Forum, I thought people would ask me about lowering wireless prices. Instead I had CIOs asking me about push mail and security on the iPhone. I imagine they were getting questions from people within their company. I think what’s going to happen is that small groups of developers will start writing applications for their enterprise, and this is going to lead to the mobilization of the enterprise like never before.

OM: Do you think today is a red-letter day for location-based services?
RDLV: Absolutely! I think you will see a whole lot of applications using LBS and there are entrepreneurs who are going to be building them. This is such a huge opportunity. I think it will be interesting to see the combination of social networking apps with LBS.

OM: Ralph, as I wrote earlier today, I think the biggest concern is the ability of AT&T to handle the 3G network traffic that would emanate as people start using this new 3G iPhone. What are your thoughts?
RDLV: We have tried to model the usage of the new phone and prepared the network accordingly. We have taken our 2G iPhone usage data and we feel extremely comfortable to be able to deal with the demand. We have a maximum throughput of 3.6 Mbps and soon it will be 20 Mbps. The core of the network is going to run faster as well.

As Steve Jobs said in his speech, our 3G networks already have Wi-Fi like speeds. There are built in checks. As Steve pointed out in his speech, files above 10 MB will be downloaded over Wi-Fi that is fed by broadband connections. I think most average users are just that average and use data accordingly. There are, of course, bandwidth hogs.

OM: It seems like this is a device that is ready for mobile video and there are a lot of applications being developed for it that encourage mobile video streaming. Isn’t that going to overwhelm your 3G network?
RDLV: Clearly streaming video is the largest bandwidth-consuming application, but it is still not clear how many people will view video on it. We will know when we see the data. We have built the network with a lot of capacity, and we have it in control in the short term. So if we have a problem in the future, we will have the data which we can use to fix the problem.

OM: What are you doing about the bandwidth hogs?
RDLV: We are letting the customers decide the usage.

OM: Has there been a change in the cost of data plans?
RDLV: The data plans are different on the 3G iPhone vs. the 2G iPhone. Consumers will pay $30 a month every month, while enterprises will pay $45 a month. This is what you pay us on other PDA devices such as BlackBerry Curve. The SMS messages are not bundled anymore, and you pay for what you want. Again, the prices are based on what you buy.

Related Link: Robert Scoble interviewed John Donovan, the new CTO of AT&T, about the 3G iPhone and a while slew of topics. Have a look on Scoble/FastCompany.tv web site.