The dust is still settling from the iPhone tornado that blew through a few weeks ago, as Apple
If you're not sure where I'm going with this -- and how it connects with Google
But many are arguing that Apple and its exclusive carrier AT&T have hobbled access to Internet sites and content with a locked device restricted to relatively slow speeds when on AT&T's second-generation network. Developers complain about limitations not experienced on other smartphones that utilize Microsoft's
So where does Google fit into this? Rumors say Google is contemplating a "GooglePhone" that would truly be a free-access device -- one that accesses open, ubiquitous broadband networks in the same way PCs can connect to Wi-Fi networks today. The thinking is this: An ISP or broadband provider doesn't dictate where and how you browse the Web, so why should wireless telcos? While Apple may be moving toward a more open Internet experience, Google wants to start there.
To get there, Google confirmed in a letter to the FCC that it would bid a minimum of $4.6 billion for 700 MHz frequency licenses in the upcoming auction if four conditions for open access, devices, and applications are stipulated on the spectrum. Google and Yahoo!
The debate has a long way to go, but if Google and other open-access proponents are successful in lobbying for changes in the rules, truly revolutionary wireless devices may succeed in making the iPhone a relic of a past regime.
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Fool contributor Dave Mock stays out of the middle of heated debates and just lobs contentious comments from the sidelines. He owns no shares of companies mentioned here. He is the author of The Qualcomm Equation. The Fool's disclosure policy is open for free access for everyone.