Cellular South says CTIA favors incumbents

US regional carrier Cellular South today quit the phone industry's CTIA group over claims of unfair bias in its treatment. In the departure, the provider's strategic relations VP Eric Graham accused the organization of almost always siding with its largest members, AT&T and Verizon, on issues like exclusive access to phones, data roaming costs and how to assign wireless spectrum.

Since the top two carriers wield so much influence over CTIA decisions, they can often make decisions that cement these positions at the expense of smaller carriers that can't fight back. AT&T, for example, has argued in favor of exclusivity under the pretext of competition. Sprint, Cellular South and virtually every smaller carrier has complained that deals like those for the iPhone have often resulted in significant subscriber losses while the major carriers gain. Only a handful of phones, such as the HTC Hero and some BlackBerries, make their way to both large and small networks.

"The writing has been on the wall for a few years now and we are convinced the voice of the smaller carrier is being ignored," Graham told the Washington Post.

The CTIA in a response has tried to alter the question, claiming that 95 percent of the US has the option of at least three carriers. It declined to say how many of these have choices beyond the top three national firms or to address questions of the quality, not just quantity, of devices available through smaller outlets.

Cellular South's exit isn't likely to have a significant impact on the CTIA's structure but does come relatively soon after the start of an FCC inquiry into the competitiveness of exclusive deals.

With over 80 million subscribers each, AT&T and Verizon are often more than twice as large as smaller opponents.

By Electronista Staff