FCC Holds AT&T's Feet to the Fire

Recently AT&T and Centennial Wireless officials (and lawyers) hiked over to the FCC to find out what the holdup was for their acquisition application. On September 25th, the FCC had sent them a rather terse request for information about the transaction. In that request, the FCC asked well over '20 questions' related to the deal. Here is a small sampling of those questions:

• Please provide AT&T’s equity interest in America Móvil and in Telmex.
• Please provide additional detail on whether the handsets of Centennial’s customers will function on AT&T’s GSM network in the continental United States immediately following the transaction, as well as at each stage of the transition of integrating the AT&T and Centennial networks.
• Will Centennial’s customers be required to obtain new handsets or Subscriber Information Module (“SIM”) cards?
• If Centennial’s customers will require either new handsets or SIM cards, will these be provided either free of charge or at a significantly reduced price?
• If new handsets will need to be provided, please detail the exchange process including the type of handset offerings and prices for these handsets. Please provide additional detail on AT&T’s integration planning process and its impact on existing Centennial customers in the continental United States.
• The Rural Cellular Association and Cincinnati Bell propose that the Commission adopt conditions on roaming in this transaction that are similar to the ones that the Commission imposed in the Verizon-Alltel transaction. Please explain whether the roaming conditions in the Verizon-Alltel Order are or are not appropriate for the AT&T/Centennial transaction.
• Centennial has deployed a 2G GSM network in the continental U.S. and a 3G CDMA network in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. For what services does Centennial providing roaming in the continental U.S.?

This is from the first 6 paragraphs of over 19, most of which refer to the relationship of AT&T and Mexico telecoms. AT&T quickly responded to the inquisition last Friday, but their response may not be made public due to "confidentiality."

It looks like the FCC is more concerned about AT&T's relationship to Mexico companies, and network integration in the Caribbean, and less how the transaction will affect US wireless customers or roaming. We're a bit surprised that AT&T didn't make it clear early on if Centennial customers will be able to use their existing phones. But AT&T stated, "the integration planning process is in its preliminary stages, and there are numerous contingencies that could affect any network integration schedule." Does that mean they hadn't thought about it, yet?

AT&T left the door open for protesters like Cincinnati Bell and the Rural Cellular Association to challenge the deal. No wonder the FCC is taking their time.

The March of 3G

If you've had a cell phone for several years, you might recall the joy of watching the coverage of your favorite carrier march across the country, slowly giving you that greater range of communications freedom. Now that voice coverage is almost universally expected, we now watch with equal anticipation as 3G coverage moves outward from the cities. It's moving fast enough that the 3G coverage maps can't keep up with it.

AT&T and Verizon add 3G to at least a few sites almost every week, some in remote locations. Verizon has completed more than anyone, however, there are some smaller networks that are already all-3G like Metro PCS, Pioneer Wireless and a few others. AT&T can't keep up with the demand for 3G services, mostly because of the iPhone, but they are working on it. Even T-Mobile adds some new 3G on a regular basis, and oddly enough, their mapmakers seem to be right on schedule with the 3G updates, if not actually preceding the sites upgrades themselves.

Just like the "good ol' days", the more the better...and faster.

Femtocells: Don't Pay Per Month

AT&T recently announced the availability of their version of "femtocell", a cellular repeater that extends coverage into small, indoor areas like a house or an office (one step smaller than a pico-cell). AT&T joins Sprint and Verizon Wireless who offer a similar device, with a similar cost and a similar monthly charge. It's great to see carriers addressing one of the most perplexing problems: indoor coverage. However, there are many other extended coverage solutions already available to us, with no monthly charge!

Prices for some cellular extenders are considerably cheaper than those offered by the carriers. We found one cellular "extender", or repeater, for about $160, for both 850 and 1900 MHz service and aren't limited to one carrier (although few of them work with Nextel (iDEN) phones). Some carriers sell theirs for as much as $250.

If you're considering a femtocell, look at the types not associated with one carrier. You'll make everyone in the office happy, or give yourself a way to finally cut the cord at home.

What's With "The Noise"?

Our group of web sites is the result of work from several individuals and we decided that the name "The View from Mountain Wireless" doesn't include the other contributors in areas like Coverage Maps, PRL's, Cell Sites, Prepaid phones and others. So we agreed to rename this blog with a "neutral" name: "Cellular Noise", with a URL of www.CellularNoise.com.

I guess that means we need to make more "noise" about wireless subjects, and you can too. Over the next few days we will be converting all the old addresses to the new address, so you might experience some delays while your links are forwarded, and your Reader might also get confused. We'll keep the Feedburner name at MountainWireless. I'm told all the pages should still be connected, but let us know if you suddenly don't find us. Let's make some "Noise!"

We Hired a Moose!

A few years ago, the Mountain Wireless web site grew too large for one person and one web site, so we started separate web sites to cover separate topics like Coverage Maps, Cell Sites, PRL's, Cellular Tips & Secrets, and more. Each site had it's own "Discount" page that provided links to various online discounts, to help us defray the costs of maintaining all those web sites. Now all those 'shopping' pages have become too unwieldy for all the different people involved.

So we hired a Moose to do the shopping. Most of our Discount links now forward to Moose Wireless, but the offers remain intact. Visitors get the best deals available online...some of them are pretty small...but they're still the best you can get. The Moose posts more deals than the rest of us could find.

We realize most readers of this blog don't use our shopping pages because you're just too savvy a group to look in just one place. However, since The Moose's only mission is to 'graze' around the internet and find the best online wireless deals, please bookmark the site and give him (her?) the chance to find you the best cellular deals on the web. It's the economic reality we face...there's still no free lunch.

T-Mobile Gives In

For those who didn't follow the thread about T-Mobile and charging for a paper bill, they changed their mind about adding the $1.50 fee after a rather loud consumer response in opposition, and a threat from the New York state Attorney General. This is the right move on T-Mobile's part, but many customers, both current and potential, may not forget this anti-consumer move.

One of the biggest objections was the universal belief that there would be absolutely no amount of saved paper. If anything, it would create even more waste when customers are forced to print their own bills. T-Mobile can make many other moves: offer a discount for online bills, semi-monthly billing, or just plain raise prices, to save money and maybe trees, without raising the ire of otherwise loyal fans. Oh, and guys, maybe wait until the economy gets better before adding even a penny of additional charges...OK?

T-Mobile Considers Buying Sprint

In a story that appeared in the Sunday Daily Telegraph, European cellular provider Deutsche Telekom, the parent of T-Mobile, is talking to their bankers about the possible purchase of Sprint/Nextel. We were hoping for a savior for Sprint and Nextel riding in on a horse of a different color. This means, if successful, the number 3 and 4 wireless companies in the US will combine to become the number 1 or number 2 carrier, and we lose another competitor.

Of course there will be a few kinks to iron out, like differing (GSM, CDMA, & iDEN) technologies and potential Department of Justice considerations. But it seems to be the next step down the inevitable path of consolidation, and eventual price increases. And the 'what-ifs': will they stay separate, switch to all-GSM or CDMA, and will Nextel be sent packing?

Sprint needs the help since they can't seem to fix their own problems, but it's sad it may come at the expense of yet another major wireless player in the US. Hello Cricket...hello MetroPCS, you guys ready to move up?

T-Mobile Goes Consumer UN-Friendly

After winning awards from JD Power for consumer satisfaction, it seems unusual that T-Mobile would do something that will irritate their customers. T-Mobile has initiated a $1.50 charge for paper bills. That's the bill, not a detailed statement. While other carriers are trying to cut their bills down to a 1-page statement, this move by T-Mobile goes farther. It has created an enormous amount of ill-will for such a small increase in revenue.

T-Mobile customers who are irate about this charge are considering this enough of a change in contract terms that they intent to cancel their T-Mobile service, expecting the Early Termination Fee to be waived. A few state attorneys general agree.

I can think of a number of ways to make this change a lot more consumer-friendly, and T-Mobile may eventually regret this move. But we advise customers who like T-Mobile to consider carefully before jumping ship. This really IS a small change and shouldn't make T-mobile any less of a great value. It may also be a good time to consider switching to T-Mobile Prepaid.