In his post, Freedman enumerates examples illustrating that the experience you get on your phone ultimately boils down to what carriers such as AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile want you to have. He’s right.

Ever wonder why the iPhone doesn’t have free tethering? Or why some Android devices are shipping with bloatware? These were decisions imposed by carriers, who are fighting to regain control of their industry in the aftermath of the iPhone revolution.

As Wired’s Fred Vogelstein originally reported in his bombshell 2008 piece “How the iPhone blew up the wireless industry,” Steve Jobs transformed the wireless game by convincing AT&T to carry Apple’s phone without even seeing it. That sly move resulted in a phone that Apple was able to design for customers to enjoy instead of carriers. After the iPhone became a blockbuster hit, the rest of the wireless industry was forced to offer competitive products tailored to a rich customer experience.

However, carriers didn’t simply wuss out. As Vogelstein revealed in a followup piece, the relationship between Apple and AT&T has since turned dysfunctional. In one incident, Apple was pushing for AT&T to include tethering as a free service as part of its unlimited data plan, but AT&T wouldn’t allow it without incurring a fee. The two companies were arguing over this matter in late 2008, and only recently did tethering finally become available for iPhone customers — for an additional monthly cost, just like AT&T wanted.

And as large and influential as Google may be, the search giant appears to have ceded control to carriers in light of its recent joint proposal with Verizon regarding net neutrality (as Wired.com’s Ryan Singel summarizes poignantly in his piece “Why Google became a carrier-humping, net neutrality surrender monkey“).

Now is indeed a time for concern. While consumer tech companies appear to be the gods delivering our products, it’s the carrier overlords who possess the keys to the broadband fueling our mobile experiences. That’s a tough position for even Google and Apple to wrestle with.

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See Also:

• AT&T Plans 5 Android Smartphones in 2010
• TV ‘Anywhere’: AT&T Relents on iPhone 3G Slingbox
• How Apple, AT&T Are Closing the Mobile Web
• AT&T’s Data Limits Rein In Cloud-Based Media Services
• Cap My iPhone? Try This Instead, AT&T
• In Escalating War Against Verizon, AT&T Is Getting Tone Deaf — and …

Authors: Brian X. Chen

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