Cellphone straitjackets

USA Today | Jul. 28, 2009 (Opinion)

When consumers walk into a store to buy a flat-screen television, they aren't locked into a particular cable or satellite provider. So why, when they get an Apple iPhone or a BlackBerry Storm, are they signed up with a particular carrier?

That's a question a lot of Americans ask when they travel overseas and find that the hottest devices can be used with any service. Their handsets are not only wireless, they also come without strings ... Full Story »

Posted by Dwight Rousu

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Dwight Rousu
3.9
 by Dwight Rousu - Jul. 28, 2009

The article provides an interesting perspective on open and interchangeable telecommunication systems.

This isn’t to say companies should be barred from offering deals that roll device and service contracts into one package, bringing down the cost of the device. But letting them squelch innovation through exclusivity makes about as much sense as it would have to force the architects of the computer and Internet revolutions to conform to Ma Bell. We’d still be dialing rotary phones.

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