Google Says It Will Limit Call Blocking

Google said it will limit the number of phone numbers its Internet-phone service blocks, in a partial bow to Federal Communications Commission concerns that it was skirting rules designed to ensure that consumers phone calls are connected seamlessly. It's not clear if Google's actions will settle the FCC's inquiry, since the agency has historically taken the position that phone companies can't block calls or stop consumers from calling whomever they want. The search giant said its Google Voice service, launched in March, will no longer block all calls to some rural areas where it costs more to connect calls. It will continue to restrict calls "to fewer than 100 specific phone numbers, all of which we have good reason to believe are engaged in...schemes" designed to increase costs for phone carriers, Google wrote in a blog posting.