Apple Wanted To Be Its Own Carrier For iPhone

It is no secret that iPhone users in large markets such as New York City and Los Angeles have had issues with AT&T as their cellular provider (putting it kindly). It appears as if Steve Jobs foresaw this, as AT&T was not his first choice. Jobs worked with John Staton, founder of Western Wireless Corporation, to develop a unlicensed spectrum to use with the iPhone according to an article from Computerworld/IDG:

Stanton, the chairman of venture capital firm Trilogy Partners, said he spent a fair amount of time with Jobs between 2005 and 2007. “He wanted to replace carriers,” Stanton said of Jobs, the Apple founder and CEO who died Oct. 5 after a battle with cancer. “He and I spent a lot of time talking about whether synthetically you could create a carrier using Wi-Fi spectrum. That was part of his vision.” He said that after around 2007, Jobs gave up on the idea. But Jobs still managed to have a major impact on wireless operators, Stanton said. If I were a carrier, I'd be concerned about the dramatic shift in power that occurred, he said

As most of us know, Jobs was notorious for wanting to be in control of all aspects of Apple's products. This report just pushes that point one step further, one giant step, that is. Image source: PCMag

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