Carriers Debate Interoperability at New America Foundation Briefing
While the Rural Cellular Association and Sprint Nextel urged the FCC’s data roaming order to be followed by mandating 700 MHz device interoperability, AT&T questioned the need to act at a New America Foundation Friday panel, co-sponsored by the Consumers Union.
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The need for both data roaming and 700 MHz interoperability is even bigger in the context of AT&T/T-Mobile merger, which could create a duopoly in the 700 MHz spectrum, said Steve Berry, head of the Rural Cellular Association. There’s no technical barrier to allowing interoperability in 700 MHz, said Larry Krevor, a vice president with Sprint. The FCC can break the band into classes, one for the upper 700 MHz blocks and one for lower, he said. Rural carriers won’t have the incentive to build unless there’s data roaming and interoperability, Berry said. Spectrum would be devalued without interoperability, he said.
Unnecessary network and device mandates would limit an operator’s ability to offer devices in a manner that best meets consumer needs while maximizing spectral efficiency, said AT&T Vice President Joan Marsh. Specific regulatory mandates would also impose broadband roaming mandates in a market where commercial agreements are already commonplace, she said. AT&T already has widespread roaming agreements (both 2G and 3G) nationwide, she said.
Lack of interoperability would raise costs for small and rural carriers, said Michael Calabrese of the New America Foundation. He argued Carterfone rules need to be extended to wireless. Sprint’s Krevor disagreed, saying it’s the product differentiation that helps spur competition. Consumers should be able to run any application on any phone and any networks, said Parul Desai, policy counsel for Consumers Union. Larry Spiwak, head of the Phoenix Center for Advanced Legal & Economic Public Policy Studies, cautioned that “regulation is not costless. Somebody is going to have to pay for it."
While Desai urged a more open mobile ecosystem, instead of one where carriers decide what applications and services to offer, carrier speakers warned of interference issues. “Apps can attack,” Marsh said. Consumers may not be aware of some applications that could suck up an enormous amount of capacity, she said. Sprint has a long history of open source platforms, Krevor said. But some third-party applications and services could jeopardize network stability, he said.
Meanwhile, speakers said they aren’t aware of any international models of interoperability. Carriers need the flexibility to determine how to fit all electronics into one device while ensuring affordability, quality and small size, Marsh said: “It’s plain physics.” Desai noted AT&T CEO Randall Stephenson had touted the benefits of interoperability during his presentation at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. Stephenson’s remarks were misinterpreted, Marsh said. Stephenson was not suggesting device mandates but a seamless and open wireless ecosystem, she said.