Not really sure this is as much as about open standards as it is about the way handsets are sold -- "free" or almost, but with operator specific restrictions.
If consumers bought their own handsets they would view restrictions on whether/how they can put content on their device as unacceptable. Were this not the case, cell phone users could probably move around content as freely as they can now on their desktop machines.
Jason Devitt
· 2 years ago
James,
My point was that you can't have your cake and eat it: you can't have an open environment and still hope to sell ringtones for $3 and Tetris for $8. I think you agree, but you are correct that open standards are not the only issue.
Open standards and operator control over the sale of handsets are tightly bound. If the market were not so vertically integrated, we would be moving towards open standards much more quickly; if the industry had embraced open standards, it would be very hard for operators to impose restrictions on handsets. And there's a third issue: open standards and operator-agnostic handsets do not necessarily imply wireless net neutrality, which has more to do with control over the back end.
The mobile developer community tends to focus on open standards, which is a shame. We plan to write about all three.
All Comments
If consumers bought their own handsets they would view restrictions on whether/how they can put content on their device as unacceptable. Were this not the case, cell phone users could probably move around content as freely as they can now on their desktop machines.
My point was that you can't have your cake and eat it: you can't have an open environment and still hope to sell ringtones for $3 and Tetris for $8. I think you agree, but you are correct that open standards are not the only issue.
Open standards and operator control over the sale of handsets are tightly bound. If the market were not so vertically integrated, we would be moving towards open standards much more quickly; if the industry had embraced open standards, it would be very hard for operators to impose restrictions on handsets. And there's a third issue: open standards and operator-agnostic handsets do not necessarily imply wireless net neutrality, which has more to do with control over the back end.
The mobile developer community tends to focus on open standards, which is a shame. We plan to write about all three.
Thanks for the comment.