For telecoms, success rests in mobile Web access

AT&T’s bid to buy T-Mobile isn't really a proposal to merge telephone companies. It’s about building a bigger mobile network for accessing the Internet.

As customers move toward smarter and faster wireless Internet devices, the phone part of the cellphone matters less and less. Many of the functions that have been the traditional basis for mobile phone service are now available as free Internet applications. Skype, Google Voice and Viber allow wireless users to make calls over the Web and avoid charges for minutes of use. Texting services such as GroupMe, Beluga and LiveProfile let users tap messages to one another without the fear of blowing monthly limits. Now the big telecoms are scrambling for new ways to serve consumers, and finding that with so many free and low-cost applications available, the biggest game in town is mobile Web access.