The Revolutionary Economics of iPhones
The iPhone is unquestionably a cool device. We don’t have one (yet), but like millions of others we’re impressed with its slim packaging, slick interface and easy access to music and the web. It seems to deliver on much of the promise of mobile communications. And what we’re seeing now is merely the first generation iPhone . You can imagine much more coming soon.
But is the iPhone even more than a cool gadget? In an email we received today, a colleague argues that amidst all the marketing hoopla, the real significance of the iPhone is being missed. Our friend suggests that the iPhone is revolutionary in economic terms and that it may do to telecoms what the iPod did to the music industry - which is disintermediate them.
That would likely be good news for all sorts of people, with mobile tech companies and consumers/users at the top of the list. But, our friend argues, it could also be bad news for telecom companies which have largely controlled access to wireless telephone applications. Under this scenario, telecoms become owners of commodity pipes instead of gatekeepers of applications. Not such a bad thing, maybe, given the telecoms hidebound control of what’s available on current generation wireless.
The question: does the iPhone open the tech/media/communication space to greater innovation, lower barriers to entry for new apps and greater choice for users? And, if so, will other device makers be able to move into the market quickly enough to keep Apple from establishing a dominant market share, as it has with the iPod? Stay tuned.
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Shareholders of AT&T Inc. have filed a proposal calling for the company “to publicly commit to operate its wireless broadband network consistent with network neutrality principles” that would maintain open access to the Internet on wireless networks.
The filing comes only weeks before implementation of new Federal Communications Commission rules on network neutrality that provide a broad exemption for wireless broadband networks – the fastest growing segment of the Internet.
Here's the complete text of a proposal introduced by AT&T shareholders for consideration at the company's annual meeting in April 2012.
The senators advocate for a shareholder opportunity to "tell corporate boards that net neutrality is an important issue and telecommunications companies should ensure equal, nondiscriminatory access to all content on their networks."