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California considers a texting tax
Cell phone owners in California could soon pay extra for the privilege of sending text messages, thanks to landline-era legislation and changing usage patterns. According to recent public law filings, the state's Public Utilities Commission (PUC) is considering a plan that would bill users a monthly fee for any text message services they use, and phone service carriers aren't happy about it.
US carriers don't want to give smartphone users an anti-theft kill switch
Earlier this year, lawmakers in San Francisco and New York joined forces in an initiative called "Secure our Smartphones" that would encourage manufacturers to include a so-called "kill switch" in future phones to address the growing problem of handset theft. According to George Gascon, San Francisco's district attorney, carriers are determined to kill the kill switch initiative. The New York Times reports that Gascon was in talks with Samsung to pre-load software that would allow customers to deactivate stolen handsets, similar to iOS 7's Activation Lock. However, inclusion of the software would require approval from US carriers, and the likes of AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile and Sprint weren't having it. According to Gascon, it appeared that the companies in question rejected the idea because it could cut into the revenue they make from cellphone insurance. In response, the CTIA, which represents the carriers, says it already has a solution in the stolen phone database that went live last year. However, some say that solution falls short, as it doesn't address those devices that end up overseas, out of the reach of the database. A Samsung spokeswoman had this to say in a statement to The New York Times: "We are working with the leaders of the Secure Our Smartphones (S.O.S.) Initiative to incorporate the perspective of law enforcement agencies. We will continue to work with them and our wireless carrier partners towards our common goal of stopping smartphone theft."
FCC Chairman looking to kill "free internet" plan?
If you've got concerns about not getting your fair shake on the new 700MHz spectrum, don't worry, because a group known as M2Z (backed by Google, Amazon, Netscape, MySpace, and TiVO) has got you covered. The gang is looking for the FCC to break off 25MHz of the new spectrum to set up a "free" wireless internet stream for nearly 95 percent of Americans to go surfing on. There's only one problem: the FCC doesn't look like it's going to give it up. AIn a recent request to the federal agency, M2Z asks to be given bandwidth on the soon-to-be-abandoned airwaves, instead of following typical FCC procedure which requires an auction to be held. In the M2Z plan, the U.S. Treasury would get 5 percent kickbacks from any gross revenue the network derived, though it appears FCC chairman Kevin Martin is looking to put a kibosh on the plot. According to the Wall Street Journal, Martin has circulated a document to other FCC commissioners calling for them to decline the group's proposal, and the CTIA (the wireless industry's lobby group), meanwhile, has urged the agency to "dismiss or deny M2Z's application," on the grounds that it would circumvent standard procedure. You can expect some serious back-and-forth over this in the upcoming days, so you'd better get used to the 700MHz soap-opera.
Sprint shows off Cisco ENZO EV-DO router at CTIA
While it's certainly not the first of kind, Sprint is busting out a rare American solution to the 3G router thirst as it showcases the Cisco ENZO at this year's CTIA. The EV-DO router is based around a Cisco 3G WWAN interface card and an "integrated service router (ISR)," and unfortunately, that's about all the details that are currently available. Apparently, Sprint will be aiming this at companies who could use "primary or backup access for business-critical applications," and while we can't give you any concrete dates to mark on your calender just yet, the router is currently in the testing stage and should be ready for commercialization "sometime this summer."
