FCC concerned that "carriers" may be overloading themselves with iPad announcement
Apple may have (blind?) faith in their carrier, but the FCC certainly does not. In a blog post earlier this week, Phil Bellaria - Director, Scenario Planning, Omnibus Broadband Initiative, stated that the iPad had set off a new round of concerns that the carriers might be overselling themselves at the expense of its customers:
Apple’s iPad announcement has set off a new round of reports of networks overburdened by a data flow they were not built to handle. These problems are reminiscent of the congestion dialup users experienced following AOL’s 1996 decision to allow unlimited internet use. For months users had trouble connecting and, once they did connect, experienced frequent service outages. The FCC even held hearings on the problem.
The congestion problem circa 1996-97 revealed an intense latent demand for Internet access. Similarly, wireless network congestion today reveals intense demand for wireless broadband. Widespread use of smartphones, 3G-enabled netbooks, and now, perhaps, the iPad and its competitors demonstrate that wireless broadband will be a hugely important part of the broadband ecosystem as we move ahead.
Eventually, AOL was able to resolve its problems by upgrading its modem and server capacities. Wireless providers today, too, will be able to deal with congestion issues but only if they have adequate spectrum. Reaching an always-on wireless broadband future means that spectrum can no longer remain attached solely to uses deemed valuable decades ago. The broadband plan will suggest ways of moving more spectrum into high value uses, such as broadband access, to help ensure that we don’t get stuck in 1997 dialup-style congestion.
With the iPad pointing to even greater demand for mobile broadband on the horizon, we must ensure that network congestion doesn’t choke off a service that consumers clearly find so appealing or frustrate mobile broadband’s ability to keep us competitive in the global broadband economy.
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Comments (31)
Which is exactly why Apple is selling the iPad unlocked. You'll have the choice of using another 3G service provider with a GSM network...Oh right, that would be T-Mobile and they lease their towers from ATT. At least it's a start.
My theory is still that iPad usage will be different enough from iPhone usage that the extra data consumption will not cause significant problems. In an airport or Starbucks, where there are hotspots, the iPad will use WiFi. I just can't see enough people using this thing while driving to cause a problem unless everyone starts car-pooling and the passengers start making VoIP or Skype calls.
Skype calls ARE VoIP
Oh right, that would be T-Mobile and they lease their towers from ATT.
And AT&T leases their towers from American Tower. Weird, eh?
Oh yeah, and sharing towers doesn't mean sharing antennas OR equipment, except for perhaps a backup diesel generator.
what do you know, the tower business is distinct from the wireless services business.
What was your point?
The problem isn't customer's need for bandwidth, it's the fact that AT&T doesn't upgrade and expand their network. They've convinced Apple their updating it, but the problems remain. I'm holding AT&T to Apple's level of quality and it's a shame Apple doesn't see it's hurting their user base.
My wager is Apple has looked into it, and has found that it isn't hurting their user community.
My wager is that it is Verizon shills pumping "complaints" within on-line forums. The FUD factor.
Funny you say that when I live in a city where AT&T has planted fiber optics throughout the ground to support their U-Verse platform for cable, net, and home phone, and has become one of the first cities anywhere to offer city-wide wifi *ANYWHERE* in the city limits. Not that it's free... but still.
X
Bullshit.
Which city?
How many years has ATT been providing web access via fiber optic?
How much do you pay for the service?
When the Obama administration admits something's FUBAR it must be FUBAR, since nothing but pure socialist bliss now emanates from the corridors of Washington, DC. It is odd that FCC is simply acknowledging what was already universally known about ATT's crappy network.
It's it grand that all your federal fees and taxes have made data communication better? Now if the government would stop giving away free mobile phones to the "poor and disadvantaged" maybe consumers would be able to invest their money into companies willing and able to resolve this problem.
ihatethemedia.com/cell-phones-for-the-homeless-scam
The problem isn't customer's need for bandwidth, it's the fact that AT&T doesn't upgrade and expand their network. They've convinced Apple their updating it, but the problems remain. I'm holding AT&T to Apple's level of quality and it's a shame Apple doesn't see it's hurting their user base.
it's all blown out of proportion. Bandwidth will be there. AT&T is spending 2billion dollars more to upgrade their system and the administration has been behing the upgrade of the internet from day one.
FCC approve the darn thing for sale and let's get on with it. Get the govt out of our life.
It's the American way of life -- don't fix (upgrade) something until it's broken. My wife and I were scuba diving on an island in the Caribbean a few years back when the locals were digging trenches on the side of the roads. Not for water, not for sewers, but to run fiber optic to all the residences on the island.
so your point is...?
I don't mind that the government is protecting consumers at all. However, it does seem odd to me that the American public has no problem with the government regulating and promoting fairness in their wireless coverage, but won't allow the government to regulate health insurance coverage and promote fairness in that industry. We are talking about smartphones and wireless broadband--a luxury--being regulated by the government versus basic health, which people scream "socialism" at if the government tries to step in and regulate insurance companies, etc.
Please don't criticize health insurance companies. Health insurance companies are entitled to 35% of every dollar you spend for overhead and profit. They, along with banks, auto manufacturers, big agribusiness, and oil companies are entitled to a very decent profit no matter what the economic conditions and how much taxpayer money needs to go into insuring their well being.
Don't forget to add the billions of tax dollars wasted by the feds that drain investment, perpetuate dependence, encourage corruption, and decrease economic freedom. Nothing like touting a out-of-control, deficit-generating, mind-numbingly idiotic, ideologically-crazed government to be an "example" of objective social and fiscal responsibility. I suppose once we are all equally miserable and screwed we can enjoy the fruits of our universal misery.
Don't forget to include Defense contractors who suck out the majority of those "billions of dollars". The cost of keeping up with our Defense spending drove the USSR into the ground, not some doddering, old Hollywood actor.
I find it ironic that the the fascist right wingers that rail against socialism are derived from socialists - NSDAP, National Socialist German Worker's Party is where the word, Nazi came from.
I don't know which is more excessive the arrogance of the left or its ignorance. Liberals rail against "billions" spent on defense (about 20%) and ignore the "billions" wasted on "entitlement" programs and the debt (about 52%). Fact is, more than twice the amount of federal dollars is spent on social programs than defense. This is the true irony, that liberals are generous with other peoples money and quite unwilling to recognize the utter failures of their entitlement programs on one hand, and then complain about the rising budgets and lack of economic growth on the other hand.
Here are additional words to put in your lexicon, USSR, Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. Yes, your dear leader and ideologue-in-chief, Obama, is much like the historical socialists of the 20th century and doomed to repeat their same mistakes and doomed to suffer their same fates.
I am neither a member nor a supporter of any socialist party. In fact, I believe that the less government the better. I hope that clears up the confusion that you have.
Slow down with the word 'entitled.' Such an arrogant term. Profit and overhead notwithstanding, health insurance companies have aided the price gouging done by hospitals and pharmaceutical companies by approving whatever medications are the flavor of the day as so-called doctors continue to invent new drugs for new diseases. 99% of the drugs prescribed today are for things that didn't exist 100 years ago. Oh, wait, neither did health insurance companies...
X
Doesn't the lack of support for Flash relieve iPad's network burdon considerably?
No.
well you're wrong... yes it does relieve it but not to the extent you believe it does.
As soon as people leave ATT for Verizon it's network will crash and burn as well. I am pretty sure ATT is building shitloads of towers (especially after verizon map for that ads). I would say that a whole bunch of towers can be built in 90 days that apple gave ATT through delaying 3g availability. Seeing as how problems seems to be mostly in San Fran and New York ATT can build a few more towers there in that time. iPad won't sell as much as iPhone so they will be able to handle the demand I think.
LOL, nice sarcasm: 90 days is enough to build enough towers!
There may be problems with AT&T in big cities but there is a huge problem in the midwest with almost no coverage what so ever. I am not mentally tied to Verizon but they and Sprint are the only carriers in my area. I can not get an AT&T signal where I live.
FCC Says, "Apple’s iPad announcement has set off a new round of reports of networks overburdened by a data flow they were not built to handle."
Huh? The dang thing's not even out yet!
Ya know, I was all happy about the FCC being on the Net Neutrality bandwagon, but that statement makes them sound like idiots. Seriously, are they make it sound like they're getting reports like, "All deez iPadz is makin' my interwebz slow and cloggin' my tubez!"
Can we at lest wait until the 3G iPad hits in April for the network meltdown and concomitant reports of doom?
haha... you're right
OK, let's wait, then we can say,"We told ya so!"
Cell Towers in 90 days? Yeah right. We just had a PTA meeting this week that voted to reject adding a Cell Phone Tower on its property. Cities, especially San Francisco, refuse to give building permissions to AT&T and others. It's the "Not In My Backyard" rule. When you give small public groups (like a school PTA) the ability to Veto Technology improvement, then believing this issue resolves itself in 90 days is farfetched.
The San Francisco 3G issue is 100% due to its City's lackluster effort on business development. They wasted more money trying to build a Public WiFi than offering Telecom the ability to expand their network or even update their own wires. These cities want kick-backs before they approve anything.
Funny you say that:
http://www.att.com/gen/press-room?cdvn=news&newsarticleid=24060&pid=4800
Since 07, the whole city has been laid to with fiber-optics by AT&T and you can access their wifi network from anywhere. Did Riverside get a kick back? Nope, we just have a mayor who understands the word 'progressive' ... and solar powered parking meters? duh!
X
I honestly don't think iPad will be an issue. Its just so big that you won't be using it that much on the move where a iPhone is small and easily used on the move. I think there is something else behind this...
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