FCC Gives Google Two Out Of Four
The FCC issued the rules for the 700 MHz spectrum auction, electing not to follow Google’s $4.6 billion ultimatum. They did give Google half of what it got, siding half with the young tech firm that wants to bring the open spirit of the internet to wireless devices (and profit handsomely) and half with the old-school telecoms that want to close everything down and overcharge consumers in a monopoly (and profit handsomely).
The auction will require two of Google’s four provisions, those for open devices and open applications. That means, unlike the cell phone networks, devices shouldn’t be locked to the provider you got them from, and they shouldn’t be able to block applications from running so that they can force you to pay a fee for their poorer versions (cough*VCAST*cough).
On the other hand, Google won’t get the open services and open networks requirements, which, if you think about it, can almost make sense. If the devices aren’t locked, open networks might not be that necessary, since you should be able to take the device to the network of your choice (you’ll just have to pay the monthly fee for it, as expected). However, if the networks decide to lock out devices with their closed networks, and lock out services that aren’t giving them a kickback, they might be free to shut things down by locking out devices from the opposite side.
The point is, this is going to get very complicated fast, and we won’t know the full implications until we start seeing who wins the auction and how evil they decide to be (and the results will be based on a “maximum evil possible” scale, as it always is when telecoms are involved). Keep watching to see who gets to screw the consumer first, and who wins the most consumer-screwing market share.
Or, maybe Google wins, and maybe they really do mean well. I mean, anything’s possible, right?
