Carriers

FCC official says AT&T-T-Mobile deal faces steep climb

From the moment AT&T announced a $39 billion acquisition of T-Mobile almost two weeks ago, many industry watchers agreed that the deal would face close scrutiny from federal regulators. The deal would, after all, lump an estimated 130 million subscribers under one carrier and make AT&T the only major GSM provider in the country.

AT&T has yet to file the official merger documents with the Federal Communications Commission, but one agency official already has said the deal may face a "very steep climb." In an interview with C-Span that will air today, … Read more

Android Atlas Weekly 42: Who's afraid of the big bad brick?

Amazon's Android blitz continues with the launch of the Cloud Player service and a deal to preinstall its App Store onto phones. Meanwhile, in the original Android Market, app makers get a new way to monetize their wares. Also, Antuan risks bricking his new HTC Thunderbolt by attempting to installing a custom ROM during the show. Will he be left with an expensive paperweight? All of that and more on this week's episode of Android Atlas Weekly with Justin Eckhouse and Antuan Goodwin.

AT&T offers new tools for finding lost phones

AT&T announced a new equipment protection plan today that bundles insurance, support, and phone location services for $9.99 per month. Most of the carrier's current handsets (PDF) will be compatible with the AT&T Mobile Protection Pack, though iPhone and iPad users will have to resort to other solutions like Apple's MobileMe and Find My iPhone/iPad.

Customers who sign up for the service will get:

Mobile Insurance (formerly called Wireless Phone Insurance) will replace handsets that disappear through loss or theft, become inoperable through accidental or liquid damage, or suffer from mechanical and … Read more

Verizon's spring plans confirm Android details

A newly leaked Verizon road map has landed online, shedding light on the carrier's releases over the next few months. Phandroid has posted a list of upcoming devices and their respective launch dates, and as one might expect, there is plenty of Android to go around.

Assuming these dates hold, the next Android phone to arrive should be the Casio Commando on April 7. As Android Central points out, it will likely be the C771 first unearthed in late 2010. Bowing that same day will be the 4G LTE-ready Samsung Charge. Expected to carry the Droid branding when it … Read more

Hello, Moto?

What a difference a trade show makes. Though Motorola dominated CES back in January, it didn't even whimper at CTIA 2011 last week. Indeed, the company announced no new phones and its small booth was way at the back of the show floor. I had to look on the map to find it, actually, and once there I found just a small table showing its latest phones and tablets.

Moto's small CTIA presence was surprising, particularly for a company that had stormed into 2011 with a gallery of high-profile devices like the Atrix 4G, the Droid Bionic, and … Read more

Cellular South to offer HTC Merge in April with Amazon app store preinstalled

Cellular South announced today that it will be among the first carriers in the United States to offer the HTC Merge. Officially introduced back in late February, the Merge is HTC's first dual-mode CDMA/GSM handset to run Android.

Even without a full review, there's a lot to like about the Merge. It features HTC's Sense UI with Android 2.2, a full sliding QWERTY keyboard, a 3.8-inch touch screen, and a 5-megapixel camera capable of recording HD video. What's more, the HTC Merge will be the first device to launch with Amazon.com's new Android app store preloaded on the device.

Although the press release doesn't spell it out very clearly, the Merge also will offer the Android Market for apps and games. When reached for a comment, a representative of Cellular South told CNET that the carrier is giving customers access to both distribution models. … Read more

The 411: Family plans and headphones while driving

Welcome to the 411, my column answering all your questions about cell phones and cell phone accessories. I receive plenty of questions about these subjects via e-mail, so I figured many of you might have similar queries, too. At times, I might solicit answers from readers if I'm stumped. Send your questions and comments to me at nicole.lee@cnet.com. If you prefer to remain anonymous, let me know in the e-mail.

Question: I am in a family plan with my brother and mom through AT&T. I have an iPhone 3GS and the other two are not smartphones. Our bill is $185 with me=$78 mom=$85 bro=$23 with 1,400 minutes and 2 of us have 200 texts per month. The bill is high, seeing as my mom doesn't text and my brother only calls and texts. I have unlimited data and never go over 2GB, but I don't want to lose it just in case. I've been waiting for the new iPhone to come out but I've read it may be a nano iPhone, which I wouldn't want. What do you suggest we do to get a cheaper bill? Should I switch to Verizon for the iPhone 4? My mom wants me to get my own plan so the bill is cheaper for them even though I pay my portion every month. I don't want to get another phone; I love the iPhone, but alone it will cost at least another $30 more. -- Peter, via e-mail

$185 is a lot to pay a month, Peter, especially if you can get something cheaper. I looked over what the current AT&T family plan pricing is for 1400 minutes ($89.99), a 200 messaging plan for two people ($20), and a legacy unlimited data plan ($30), and it should still add up to around $139.99 a month, not the $185 that you quoted. Perhaps there are additional fees that your family has incurred, or maybe you need to call AT&T and negotiate a new deal.… Read more

Sprint to fight AT&T's bid for T-Mobile

When AT&T announced its plans to acquire T-Mobile for $39 billion last week, Sprint was quick to criticize the deal, saying that it would dramatically alter the structure of the communications industry and affect innovation--a sentiment that was echoed by Sprint CEO Dan Hesse during CTIA 2011.

In case its position wasn't clear, the carrier issued an official statement today to oppose the merger and announce its intentions to fight the deal.

Vonya McCann, Sprint's senior vice president of government affairs, said:

Sprint urges the United States government to block this anticompetitive acquisition. This transaction will … Read more

Sprint to provide instant rebates

Sprint plans to temporarily replace mail-in rebates with instant savings, Sprint spokeswoman Caroline Semerdjian told CNET this evening. The promotion will begin March 27 and continue "for an unspecified time," Semerdjian said.

If the AT&T and T-Mobile merger goes through, Sprint will be pushed into third place, and will probably need to come up with money-saving solutions like these to stay competitive. It'll be interesting to see if these instant rebates are only a temporary solution or a permanent one.

My first look at the Kyocera Echo

ORLANDO, Fla.--In addition to delivering lots of new phones, trade shows like CTIA 2011 offer an opportunity to see any recent models that haven't yet to passed through your hands. This year, CTIA was my first chance to handle the Kyocera Echo, the dual-screen Android handset for Sprint. I wasn't able to join Bonnie Cha for last month's launch event in New York City--check out Bonnie's original take on the device--so I had breakfast with Kyocera's PR team to see the smartphone up close.

After Sprint's bizarre unveiling event--was a performance by Blaine … Read more