October 7, 2009
Posted by Josh Levy

As we briefly mentioned yesterday, AT&T has agreed to allow its customers to make calls with VoIP apps over its 3G network.

This is a very big deal. In a just released statement, Free Press' research director Derek Turner said the following:

"The FCC’s oversight and forward thinking has prompted AT&T to halt their anti-competitive practices. After more than two years of blocking VoIP applications, the FCC has succeeded in getting AT&T to open their network to the applications consumers want.

“We commend the agency and are pleased that consumers will now finally have access to more applications like Skype. But the FCC should not be distracted or delayed in efforts to protect Net Neutrality on all networks, to investigate the exclusive contracts that punish consumers, and to promote a truly competitive wireless market.

“The arm-twisting that led to AT&T’s belated announcement is a critical reminder of why we need the FCC walking the beat to protect consumers."

Basically, AT&T has agreed to follow existing law -- thanks for that!

It's no accident that this decision, along with Verizon's move to start selling Android-powered phones, was made now. The FCC has made it clear – through its proposed Net Neutrality rules, its recent inquiry into the business practices of AT&T, Apple, and Google's business practices, and its punishment of Comcast for interfering with peer-to-peer traffic, that it intends to enforce existing laws and to create new rules that will open up the wireless Internet.

This is all very good for the public, which will finally have regulators looking out for its interests, rather than the interests of the telecoms. Things are about to get pretty interesting.

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