Exclusive Phone Deals Assailed

A group of small, rural wireless-phone companies plans to escalate an attack on big rivals, trying to persuade federal regulators to outlaw the kind of exclusive deals that have limited availability of Apple's iPhone and other popular mobile devices. The Rural Cellular Association plans as early as Tuesday to file a petition with the Federal Communications Commission asking the agency to investigate the use of exclusive deals that big wireless carriers such as AT&T Inc. strike to sell hot mobile phones. These deals can mean that smaller carriers can't offer the newest phones for months or years. Most Vermont residents, as well as residents in rural areas of 15 other states, can't use the iPhone because AT&T offers only roaming coverage there, and other carriers who do offer cellphone service can't sell the iPhone, according to the complaint. The trade group represents about 80 small and rural wireless companies, most serving fewer than 500,000 customers. The rural carriers' complaint could reopen a thorny issue for the large wireless carriers, which have been under increasing pressure from the FCC and Congress to give consumers more freedom to use whatever phones or gadgets they want on wireless networks.
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