AT&T to allow VoIP iPhone apps on 3G network
AT&T on Tuesday said it has made the necessary changes to enable voice over IP iPhone apps to run on its wireless network.
Before Tuesday, VoIP apps would only work over a Wi-Fi network. In other words, if you wanted to use Skype to call a friend, you had to be connected to a regular Internet wireless network. Once you were out of range of that network, the call would end.
AT&T said it informed Apple and the Federal Communications Commission of its decision Tuesday afternoon. For its part, Apple was quick to react and make its own changes.
"We are very happy that AT&T is now supporting VoIP applications," Apple spokesperson Natalie Kerris said. "We will be amending our developer agreements to get VoIP apps on the App Store and in customers' hands as soon as possible."
There are already quite a few VoIP apps available in the App Store, like Skype, Vonage, and Truphone, but they only work over Wi-Fi. Developers will need to enable the apps to work over AT&T's wireless network and then re-submit them to the App Store.
Of course, the application that everyone will be wondering about is Google Voice. Tuesday's decision may not have much of an effect on that situation because Google Voice isn't really a VoIP application. Google's app still uses your wireless network minutes, but the service does offer other benefits like receiving calls to a single number in multiple places.
Jim Dalrymple has followed Apple and the Mac industry for the last 15 years, first as part of MacCentral and then in various positions at Macworld. Jim also writes about the professional audio market, examining the best ways to record music using a Macintosh. He is a member of the CNET Blog Network and is not an employee of CNET. He currently runs The Loop. You can follow him on Twitter @jdalrymple. 
Android FTW !
But, what about all the non-US iPhone customers? iPhone may be exclusive to AT&T in the US, but it is sold by many other Apple-partnered mobile networks in other countries. Here in Singapore, my iPhone is provided by SingTel. SingTel has never had a ban on VoIP on their network, from an iPhone or otherwise.
This appears to mean that every iPhone user worldwide has to bow to AT&T's network restrictions, whether they are a customer of AT&T or not. Remember that a huge percentage if iPhones are sold outside the US and will never be used on AT&T. They could be bought via a local Apple partnered mobile operator (e.g SingTel in Singapore, Optus in Australia, Celcom in Malaysia), or a customer who has bought the iPhone retail (yes Apple sells them retail at AppleStores in Hong Kong, Italy and Australia).
Apple needs to split their iPhone SDK policies from AT&T's network policies. If Apple wants to patrol what goes on their AppStore, so be it. Just don't approve applications based on a single mobile operator's policies and in doing so, restrict the rest of the world's users who subscribe to more open-minded operators!
by the way i love my iPhone in Singapore i got perfect service for the first time since i've had it
your question was already answered clearly in the article above (2nd to last paragraph).. but yes they can all support VoIP on "3G" now if the developers of those apps update the apps to allow it
since there is no carrier branding on my n95, i can use skype even on edge(sound quality is probably horrible though)
There is no google voice app but i can just use the full HTML browser(with FLASH lite) and google.com/voice
Why can't people figure out that just because the iphone is $199 or $99 or even free, the n95 is still cheaper($400 on tigerdirect for us edition new) because there is no 2 contract associated with it?
You suggest buying an N95 online. The problem with that is most people are unwilling to spend hundreds of dollars on a smartphone without first trying it at a local brick and mortar store before deciding whether to buy it. You might have noticed that Nokia smartphones are rather difficult to find at local stores in the US, which means you have to buy it online. Catch-22. The effective result: Nokia has surrendered the North American smartphone market to RIM and Apple.
Wired & wireless broadband services really need to provide transparent feature functionality (i.e. people should be able to move from a wired connection to a wireless connection, without losing services).
Of course, the quality of service (due to bandwidth constraints) is likely to vary, as it does when you move to/from say a dial-up connection to a broadband connection, but that's it.
Hopefully, the FCC will continue to work, to make sure this happens.
Isn't apple likely to deny both companies approval if they enable domestic calling?
http://astore.amazon.com/apple-buy-iphone-3g-20
- by cerebral_but_dull October 8, 2009 8:29 AM PDT
- Yes, there are geographical areas where AT&T works -- but I can't even get a call in my home, let alone use 3G in the area. The network is hopeless in most areas.
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