Following AT&T’s (News - Alert) announcement yesterday allowing Internet calling applications on the iPhone, Federal Communications Commission Chairman Julius Genachowski (News - Alert) unveiled the commission’s four-part mobile broadband agenda to a crowd of industry leaders on Wednesday.

 

“In my time as an investor and executive I saw mobile go from a futurist fantasy, to a nice-to-have part of a company’s game plan, to a must-have strategic priority. Today every company in America – entertainment, commerce, news, you name it – knows it needs to have a mobile strategy,” Genachowski said, adding that he sees a crisis coming in the availability of airwaves needed for mobile Internet use.

 

The head of the FCC (News - Alert) laid out plans with regard to mobile broadband, which he said involves “fostering innovation and investment, promoting competition, empowering and protecting consumers, all in an effort to help ensure the U.S. has a world-leading communications infrastructure for the 21^st century.”

 

Specifically, Genachowski said his objectives involve: unleashing spectrum for broadband; removing obstacles to 4G deployment, like delays in tower siting; developing fair rules of the road to preserve the openness of the Internet, “while recognizing the differences between wired and wireless technologies; and empowering consumers by supporting a vibrant, transparent and competitive mobile marketplace.”

 

The four-point plan laid out by Genachowski entails:

 

 

Counting last year’s 700 MHz auction, the FCC in recent years has authorized a three-fold increase in commercial spectrum. The problem is many anticipate a 30-fold increase in wireless traffic, Genachowski said. In the FCC’s broadband record, carriers have said that they need anywhere from 40MHz to 150MHz – each – “to bring the benefits of broadband to American consumers,” he added.

 

Two weeks ago, an FCC proposal – outlined in a speech Genachowskimade at the Washington, D.C.-based Brookings Institution last month – called for “open Internet regulations” that would treat all Web content equally, regardless of its destination, one in which “the FCC should codify a fair and common-sense framework to preserve an open Internet,” he said Wednesday.

 

Reversing its earlier position, AT&T Inc.  said Tuesday it will now let iPhone customers use Internet phone services such as Skype and similar services on its third-generation network.

 

The move eliminates a controversial ban the U.S. telecom giant had in place blocking Apple Inc. iPhone (News - Alert) users from placing phone calls using Skype and other Internet phone services on its network.  

 

AT&T reportedly told the FCC in August that didn’t allow voice-over-Internet calling on the iPhone over its 3G network to guard against losing revenue to the services, Bloomberg (News - Alert) reported.

 

AT&T said it was taking a “fresh look” at VoIP capabilities on iPhone for use on its 3G network. The move was consistent with its regular review of device features and capabilities to ensure attractive options for consumers, the company said in a statement.