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It appears the Senate today will pass a bill regarding the ability of government to eavesdrop on your phone conversations and emails. It supposedly provides protections for American communications picked up while spying on the real bad guys, though little detail is given in this crappy AP article. Basically, telecoms get immunity for whatever they did to aid the government, and the government gets to keep using telecoms to wiretap without a warrant. Same old, same old.

Read the rest of Mobile Notes: Government tapping, iPhone unboxing, Alltel, Verizon…

In Mobile Notes earlier this week, we came across an item saying Sprint was trying to attract customers with their phone selection. A company rep gave quick reasons why people choose the other carriers, and said that no on really gives much consideration to Sprint. So they’re looking to grab the device market. Kind of tough to do without the iPhone and its endless hype, but give them some credit for trying.

Meanwhile, it can make you wonder: Why do people choose certain carriers? Clearly, local coverage is an enormous consideration. But what if all of the top six U.S. carriers are available, or at least a few of them? So let’s dig into this and see where each carrier has an advantage.

Read the rest of What the major carriers bring to the table…

The auction bell has rung, the winners have been announce, and the communications embargo has been lifted. Yet, at least one company still wants to dispute the results of the 700 MHz auction. And wouldn’t you know, it’s Google, they of the open access provision. They’re arguing that Verizon essentially plans to ignore openness by applying their own brand of corporate logic. If Verizon plans to go ahead as planned, Google argues that they should not be awarded the valuable spectrum.

Read the rest of Google chides Verizon over 700 MHz spectrum…

With all the news we’re hearing about the iPhone, especially with the 3G rumors quickly gaining steam, I can’t say I saw this coming. But it appears that they lost some market share during the first quarter of 2008. This puts them when Sony Ericsson and Motorola among the losers, surrendering market share as Asia and Africa continue their robust growth. We’ll hit on the other two in a second, but it also appears that growth in Asia and Africa isn’t the only reason Apple is starting to fall behind.

Read the rest of Motorola, Sony, Apple losing market share…