The FCC wants to takes a closer look at that way cell phone companies exclusively climb into bed with cell phone carriers.  So when LG releases the new Crack-n-Yack flip phone only available at AT&T, regulators want to investigate whether or not that’s “good for the consumer”. 

Give me a fucking break.  It’s no different than exclusive real estate listings before a house goes to the multiple listings. 

Yes, there have been times when I wanted a particular cell phone, but it wasn’t available from my carrier.  Example, the LG Lotus.  It’s only available from Sprint.  I doesn’t do me any good searching for an unlocked Lotus because my carrier, AT&T, is on a GSM network (uses SIM cards) and Sprint is on a CDMA network (doesn’t use SIM cards).  

SIM cards are the bomb! You can buy any cell phone that uses them, pull out the SIM card from your current phone and plug it into the other one and bamm! Different cell phone on the same service.

The carriers negotiate exclusive deals that typically last six months to a year with the cell phone manufacturers.  If I were a manufacturer, I’d want the advertising power of a carrier behind me all the way and as a carrier, it could mean more subscribers because I’d be the only carrier with that particular phone.   Then after the exclusive contract is up, the phone manufacturer can freely seduce other carriers.  As a consumer, I don’t really give a crap.  It’s like waiting for a movie to come out on DVD.  Is that another thing the government should investigate? 

Ok, so why not do it with Coke and Pepsi and their exclusive contracts?  If I go to McDonald’s they only have Coke products.  Does that need to be investigated?  Hell no, so why do it with the cell phones?  Six to 12 months is not a long time.

I’ll tell you where the government needs to get involved and that’s with the length of patents on drugs with pharm companies before another company can manufacture generics.  I know, I know, the drug companies have millions of dollars invested in R&D and they need time to recoup the scrilla, but fuck, man.  Consumers get ass raped on that deal.

If the FCC wants to investigate this cell phone thing, how about looking at those long contracts they nail us with.  I can go month to month with the phone company (land line), satellite TV company, or cable company, but why not the cell phone company?  What if they stick me with a shitty cell phone and they refuse to replace it?  If I by another one they extend my contract!!  If I want more minutes, they extend my contract!!  What if the carrier just plain sucks or I need unlimited local service and not long distance because my habits changed?  What if my calls keep dropping?  If I bail on the contract I get nailed with an early termination fee.  Fuckers.  Investigate that, FCC.

Get the shovel.  The FCC is going under.