Things just got really interesting in the mobile / wireless world. Verizon announced that they will over two categories of service by the end of 2008. One will continue to be its bundled handset service, and the other will be open to any device. This change brings Verizon Wireless in-line with the open networks that are available in Europe and Asia. The move will force T-Mobile, Sprint, and AT&T to consider offering similar services. (T-Mobile is already experimenting with allows users to make WiFi calls.) This announcement also may affect the upcoming 700MHz spectrum auction, as the FCC did not require open networks. I’m hoping that it will spur more innovation in the mobile space. Changes could happen quickly, we’ll have to wait and find out. I’m trying to stay optimistic.
Update: Techcrunch and GigaOM weigh in on the issue. A lot can happen in a year, and GigaOM is correct to be skeptical.
here’s a bit more skepticism:
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/att-verizon-really-open-their/story.aspx?guid=E8841127-57FF-41CC-8C23-FB682B3E6BF3&dist=SecMostMailed
“Blair Levin, an analyst with Stifel, Nicolaus & Co. wrote in a recent report that the future of a really open wireless network will depend on how easy Verizon’s specifications are for developers to meet; whether the developers and handset makers can invent cool products; and whether companies are too tied to subsidizing the sale of costly handsets.”