FCC Mandate for Roaming and Pay-Go BIS?
 

So as we're all aware by now, the FCC mandated that the major carriers share their infrastructure at "commercially reasonable" rates. That means smaller carriers will be able to negotiate roaming agreements and everyone will enjoy better networks. Well, maybe not the majors who will be forced to open up bandwidth for others, but for smaller carriers it should be a boon.

Maybe I'm stretching things here, but I see this as an overall loosening of the data restrictions carriers can impose, and a chance for some upstart little company to come along and offer what we're missing in the U.S.: Pay-Go BlackBerry Data Plans. Network infrastructure was always a nearly insurmountable barrier to entry into the industry. Now perhaps we will see more competition, maybe some new players, and maybe even one that uses pre-paid BB data plans as it's edge. If a company were to be successful at pre-paid BB data service, the majors would be tripping over themselves to match if and cash in themselves.

Pie in the sky? Unbridled and unrealistic optimism? Could be. And it would be years before we see it, if we are to see it at all. However, this could be the spark that sets it in motion. Am I nuts?


http://www.engadget.com/2011/04/07/f...-verizon-aren/

Re: FCC Mandate for Roaming and Pay-Go BIS?
 

I think the carriers are going to fight this. In fact Verizon's CEO has all but said they would.

Re: FCC Mandate for Roaming and Pay-Go BIS?
 

It's far from a fait acompli at this point, and in the past this kind of thing was squashed before it ever got this far. None of the majors want to provide bandwidth for their competitors, especially when everybody is talking about network congestion and throttling data for abusers. It borders on socialism when you tell a company they HAVE to help their competitors. Personally, I hate the idea. It should fail. But these days expecting a rational outcome is irrational.

Re: FCC Mandate for Roaming and Pay-Go BIS?
 

Just look at the budget negotiations as proof of your last statement!

Re: FCC Mandate for Roaming and Pay-Go BIS?
 

Ay, I have a blackberry curve 8520, I am on pay as you go(mtn)I have bis active and the settings in my browser are correct...but I keep on losing credit even when I am not on the internet...its usualy not much about 2 cents, but after awile it gets a lot, thanks for the help in advance.
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Re: FCC Mandate for Roaming and Pay-Go BIS?
 

It is inappropriate to post unrelated questions in another person's thread.