Google Phone

Google’s head of special initiatives, Chris Sacca, recently took the time to outline some of the company’s intentions with the FCC auction.  In an interview with CNET, he paints a picture of an institution appalled by the “reprehensible” lack of open access to all the riches of the internet.

“We have fought hard on a number of fronts to make the Internet as available as possible to the largest number of people as possible. Right now, the Internet is not available in too many places. And it’s still too expensive for most folks”

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With FCC Chairman Kevin Martin stunning telcos and analysts alike earlier this month with a surprise suggested shift of policy toward favouring the “open access” standards demanded by potential investor Google, rival bidders in the war for the valuable 700MHz band that’ll be freed up from the analogue-digital TV switchover are beginning to stake their ground.  After previous fighting words from the CTIA - calling it a “scheme to have the auction rigged” - Verizon have wheeled out their CEO to discretely threaten to reign in the company purse:

“We have made our position clear about the FCC not putting any unnecessary restrictions on any of these blocks … What we need to do now is see what the rules say and then develop a bidding strategy accordingly” Verizon Communications Inc. Chief Executive Officer Ivan Seidenberg

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There’s no denying that Sprint is one of my favorite carriers and Google is hands-down the best search engine. So you can imagine how thrilled I was when the two companies announced their partnership.

I wasn’t aware that there had been some tensions between Google and AT&T, were you?

Early last year, the chief executive of AT&T, Edward Whitacre, shot off his mouth about how Google was getting a “free ride” on “his” network, and perhaps how a company like that should be nicked for higher fees. Ever since then, Google has been stewing in its own juices over the notion.

Ouch. If I read that correctly, Whitacre seemed to be saying that Google is mooching off of the AT&T network for nothing. It’s obvious that Google already pays millions of dollars for network access just to be on the Internet; I bet right there and then, a light bulb must of gone off in their collective head that they are at the mercy of AT&T. Which might explain Google’s buying spree of unused black fiber around the world.

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