It certainly looks true that the iPhone is a “nightmare” for the carriers, as David Goldman of CNN Money suggests. But context is important. It’s a nightmare for their margins — it’s a dream from a product offering perspective.

A few other things here:

1) Boo-fucking-hoo. The carriers have raked consumers over the coals for years with things like SMS charges, which have a near-infinite margin.

2) This shows the position of power Apple has now. This is a direct result of going exclusive first with AT&T to ensure they got the deal they wanted. Once the iPhone took off and AT&T started stealing customers, it forced the other carriers to bend to the same deals. 

3) This shows why the carriers need Android and are willing to spend a lot to promote it. All the OEMs besides Samsung are basically getting dicked over when it comes to making money off of Android devices, but the same is not true of the carriers. They love it.

4) Sadly, this will still end with the consumers getting screwed. To be able to pay the Apple subsidy and maintain their huge margins, carriers are going to continue to raise rates and/or put in ridiculous restrictions like this. 

I give AT&T a lot of shit (and rightfully so for jackassery moves like this). But it’s important to remember that their main competitor, Verizon, is also a sleazy carrier. Today brings the perfect example of that. 

The largest carrier in the U.S. is apparently about to start charging a $2 fee if you pay your bill online or over the phone, sources tell Droid Life. Yes, they’re charging you to pay your bill. The only way to avoid the charge is to set up automatic payments which some people, like myself, don’t want to do. 

What a total shitbag move. Verizon is actually incentivizing many people not to pay their bill. Pure greed.

Update 12/30: That didn’t last long.

My favorite part is where AT&T says they’re surprised by this. Either they’re:

a) clueless

b) lying

c) incompetent

Given my time spent on the carrier, I’m going to go with “c”.

Naturally, AT&T is going to fight this. They have $3 billion reasons to do so. I still would bet the DoJ eventually lets this through, which will be bullshit. 

A nice thought by former Apple executive Jean-Louis Gassée, but not gonna happen.

Even if Apple was able to pass regulatory scrutiny for this (they’d argue that they’d still work with Verizon and AT&T and that Android is closer to a monopoly), such an undertaking would undoubtedly be a massive headache for Apple just from a logistics perspective. 

Could they offer a better service than any other carrier right now? Of course. But that isn’t saying much. In fact, it’s saying next to nothing — that’s why this is such a nice thought.

But as a carrier, Apple would have to worry about things like upgrading networks, getting local governments to approve towers, even more customer service, etc. It would be a huge distraction from the core business: selling devices.

Gassée also hits on a key point at the end: sure Apple could buy someone like T-Mobile or Sprint in the U.S. market, but the greater opportunity is worldwide. Such a buy here would mean nothing for the larger pie.

Having said all of that, I would not be surprised at all if Google eventually tries to buy a carrier. They also shouldn’t, and would face an even rougher time from a regulatory perspective. But Google wants to do everything. So they’ll try someday, I imagine.  

This article by Stacey Higginbotham is at least 1,500 words too many. Only three words are really needed:

They’re greedy bastards.

But perhaps that’s even too many words since the above statement is implied by the fact that Verizon is a U.S. carrier.

It’s been hard on them. They can’t support the crazy growth. Whine whine whine. They’re making more money than ever. As Higginbotham rightly notes, it’s all about demand. They’re doing it because people will pay. They’re doing it because they’re greedy bastards.

That’s the cost of texting without a plan. With a texting plan, it’s still a total rip-off:

Not that those bundled plans are reasonable either: For instance, AT&T offers 1,000 texts for $10, which works out to a stunning $62.50 per megabyte.

The carriers make at least 80 cents on every dollar from this — and probably even more. It’s a total scam. And they’re surprised that everyone is trying to kill this now?

Oh, you mean they’re not going to make as much money off of the million percent markup they impose on the messages that they more or less pay nothing to send? That’s really too bad.

There’s a reason why dozens of startups as well as the big guys like Apple and Nokia are now going after this market: it’s ripe for disruption. Two key factors: complacency and greed.

In other words, the carriers’ calling cards.

My immediate thought would be “no”. But I have a feeling that Apple will be able to strong-arm at least one of them into doing it. 

“Open”.