There used to be this TV ad where people would dance round in a field and sing about freedom and beautiful balloons and Apple smelling shampoo. I am reminded this week from a story about some people are lobbying congress to allow open access to cellular networks:
The organization, known as Free Press, launched a campaign on Friday called FreetheiPhone.org. As part of the campaign, Americans are asked to sign a petition addressed to the Federal Communications Commission and Congress so they can free up the mobile Internet.
The world would be wonderful if we only had open free access to carriers data networks is really not grounded in reality. What the iPhone really proved is that people crave a consistent user experience that is truly useful. The fact that it is locked or unlocked from the network is neither here nor there to the average consumer. What they care about is simplicity of activitation, installation and management; all of which the iPhone delivers. There are also many moving parts to delivering a consistent experience on the mobile network and they need to be solved as well. Till then consumers will not be interested.
