Verizon Wireless opens up network to outside devices

Verizon Wireless will open its network to outside mobile handsets, devices and applications by the end of 2008, the company announced Tuesday.

The company will publish technical standards for the development community by early next year, the company said in a news release. Any device that meets the minimum technical standard will be activated on the Verizon Wireless network, the company said. Customers will be able to run any application they choose on approved devices.

Devices will be approved in a US$20 million testing lab, the company said.

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Verizon Wireless will open its network to outside mobile handsets, devices and applications by the end of 2008, the company announced Tuesday.

The company will publish technical standards for the development community by early next year, the company said in a news release. Any device that meets the minimum technical standard will be activated on the Verizon Wireless network, the company said. Customers will be able to run any application they choose on approved devices.

Devices will be approved in a US$20 million testing lab, the company said.

The decision comes as consumer groups and some U.S. lawmakers have called for wireless providers to open up their networks to outside devices and applications. The U.S. Federal Communications Commission has required that a portion of spectrum to be auctioned starting in January allow outside devices and applications.

Some consumer groups have criticized Apple and Verizon competitor AT&T for their exclusive agreement that allows the iPhone to be used only on AT&T's wireless network in the U.S.

Verizon Wireless President and CEO Lowell McAdam called his company's new "any apps, any device" policy a major change. There's a small but growing number of customers who want a choice that doesn't include full service phones and applications, the company said.

"This is a transformation point in the 20-year history of mass market wireless devices -- one which we believe will set the table for the next level of innovation and growth," McAdam said in a statement. "Verizon Wireless is not changing our successful retail model, but rather adding an additional retail option for customers looking for a different wireless experience."

Verizon Wireless will continue to provide a full-service offering, including retail stores and optimized software applications, the company said.

The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.