Comments on: Former FCC chief: U.S. wireless market is behind

In an interview, former FCC Chairman Reed Hundt criticizes how wireless spectrum is handed out in the United States

[sinerasis]

he's got a point

Big business isn't always a good thing. Yes, at&t and verizon offer a service that is needed (relatively cheap mobile phone service on a very large scale, meaning you can go anywhere in the country and get service from them) but they do not push the technology to new heights because doing so would be a gamble. They're making money hand over fist on a stable proven technology so from a business stance its not beneficial for them to step out and try new things.

It's an unfortunate products of our capatalist system that the only way a company can grow is if it's already big. Any small venture that will see success will surely be bought out for their product/service by one of the biggest so they can stay one of the biggest.

I know I tried to work with a small, more homegrown company for mobile phone service, but the rates were not as good, the coverage area was small and they make a pretty clear statement that roaming uses others networks (which may cause a charge to appear on a bill). When the big companies can offer you a service like a phone (one that's relatively easy to maintain unlike a data service) it's hard not to see all the advantages of the bigger companies.

Now that data is becoming a bigger deal maker as far as mobility goes, the big companies are struggling to find what will provide them with the best technology to stay on top, and the little guys can't compete with the extremely large monetary investment it would take to make a ripple in the water of the current market.

I think that the European market displays how the smaller areas of the countries keep companies broken up enough to allow new technologies to be rolled out and be successful while having less overhead to start up. If each state had different restrictions to the point that one company couldn't cover them all I believe we would see a similar situation develop here. However, we wouldn't be a unified nation in the same way here in the U.S.

My 2 cents.

[sinerasis]

he's got a point

Big business isn't always a good thing. Yes, at&t and verizon offer a service that is needed (relatively cheap mobile phone service on a very large scale, meaning you can go anywhere in the country and get service from them) but they do not push the technology to new heights because doing so would be a gamble. They're making money hand over fist on a stable proven technology so from a business stance its not beneficial for them to step out and try new things.

It's an unfortunate products of our capatalist system that the only way a company can grow is if it's already big. Any small venture that will see success will surely be bought out for their product/service by one of the biggest so they can stay one of the biggest.

I know I tried to work with a small, more homegrown company for mobile phone service, but the rates were not as good, the coverage area was small and they make a pretty clear statement that roaming uses others networks (which may cause a charge to appear on a bill). When the big companies can offer you a service like a phone (one that's relatively easy to maintain unlike a data service) it's hard not to see all the advantages of the bigger companies.

Now that data is becoming a bigger deal maker as far as mobility goes, the big companies are struggling to find what will provide them with the best technology to stay on top, and the little guys can't compete with the extremely large monetary investment it would take to make a ripple in the water of the current market.

I think that the European market displays how the smaller areas of the countries keep companies broken up enough to allow new technologies to be rolled out and be successful while having less overhead to start up. If each state had different restrictions to the point that one company couldn't cover them all I believe we would see a similar situation develop here. However, we wouldn't be a unified nation in the same way here in the U.S.

My 2 cents.

[Michael too]

Big carriers -- not so much ...

It really has nothing to do with the big carriers. As a country (except for Moto) we have outsourced all of our consumer electronic manufacturers.

Its not just the phones. Go to blogs, and every day you'll see an announcement of a new product thats only for South Korea, or only for Japan. The big carriers sell what they are offered, and what is offered is last year's model.

[Michael too]

Big carriers -- not so much ...

It really has nothing to do with the big carriers. As a country (except for Moto) we have outsourced all of our consumer electronic manufacturers.

Its not just the phones. Go to blogs, and every day you'll see an announcement of a new product thats only for South Korea, or only for Japan. The big carriers sell what they are offered, and what is offered is last year's model.