By: Angela Soric
The ever-popular iPhone has caused some commotion due to the amount of data its users consume. The bandwidth-heavy device is said to be causing problems for its sole provider, AT&T.
Last October, the chairman of the FCC, Julius Genauchowski, said devices such as the iPhone are the main reason for the “spectrum gap”(not enough spectrum available for wireless services in the future).
Due to the heavy data usage by iPhone users, it has been proposed that such devices may require new policies, such as rationing.
There may be more strain for AT&T now that they will be the sole provider for the iPad. Many suspect that this will only add to the issue.
“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 broad band’s ability to keep us competitive in the global broadband economy,” the FCC wrote in their official blog.
Due to pressure from the FCC, AT&T agreed to allow Voice over IP calls via its 3G network.
The FCC has also stated that it wants to increase wireless carrier competition, and increase the availability of devices such as the iPhone in rural markets where providers like AT&T do not offer their service.
