By Shocker (that was sarcasm, in case your meter isn’t working correctly): Randall Stephenson – AT&T’s controversy-riddled CEO – has gone on the record to say that their relationship with Google and Android is just fine and growing each and every day.
He mentions verizon as Google’s biggest carrier partner here in the United States, and says that he’s not worried about that (gee, I wonder why?). To date, AT&T’s only carried one Android device – the Motorola Backflip – with their new mid-range offering coming in three days with the HTC Aria.
Even though we expect them to bring the Dell Streak out sometime in July as well as a rumored high-end device from Samsung sometime this summer, it’s entirely safe to say that they lag behind the competition in many ways (we’re not counting the Nexus One, here).
Randall also comments on their desire to push Yahoo! Search on most of their devices, stating they don’t like Google’s decision on keeping their own search engine as the operating system’s default. The reason? It’s anti-open-source. I’m not going to go too deep with trying to argue Randall’s statements, but how is being given the ability to change Android’s default search and services experience to whatever you want “anti-open-source”?
Wouldn’t it be more “anti-open” to flatout deny the customization of Android in any way you want? Isn’t it more “anti-open” to strip your devices of their natural ability to go above and beyond what an “app store” or the Android market provides? I’m not going to question Stephenson’s true stance in throwing these thoughts out in the air, but I will sign off of this story using one of my favorite quotes since I was a child: the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.
[WSJ via TalkAndroid]
This is why I hate at&t. They are so full of crap their breath stinks.
I thought HTC Aria retained google search. Hey but that guy looks evil, he looks like the Godfather, creepy smile
The problem is, because they completely gimp and lie about the Android OS, when it doesn’t sell well…they are going to say “Yeah, we tried selling it, but nobody really wants one.”
I don’t doubt being the exclusive network for the iPhone they would sell more iPhones than Android devices, but Android is going to so much worse on AT&T’s network, because anyone tech savvy enough knows how bad AT&T is gimping the devices and will refuse to buy one, which will make AT&T believe that it can’t compare to the iPhone.
It is bull..I mean if we want Yahoo! to be our default search provider, we can just make it our homepage.
AT&T fails.
The guy speaks utter rubbish. I suppose next he will say that Apple is open.Hes an Apple fanboy exposed if you ask me.
Android > iphoney
Their performance to date with Android has made them happy? I’d hate to see when they are sad or angry, because AT&T is lagging well behind the other carriers in regards to Android. When speaking of Android, even trying to compare Verizon with AT&T is completely laughable.
Seems to be a problem with the final link: https://phandroid.com/wp-admin/post.php?action=edit&post=20366‘ as it leads to a wordpress login page.
Fw: Thanks, corrected!
I was recently at a PC where yahoo was the home page. Out of fun, I tried to search for an article THAT EXISTED ON YAHOO, and I used 4 out of the 7 words from the article’s headline. Yahoo Search couldn’t find it; it wasn’t even in the list of results. Google, of course, had it as the top result.
The cell phone companies all suck. Verizon’s CDMA technology means I won’t be switching to them, and AT&T won’t offer clean Android phones. Nexus One at full cost may be worth staying on AT&T, but that stinks. Why can’t the phones and the carriers be separate?
Wow what a load of shit. I guess they are happy with Android when compared to Verizon because they have nothing with Android on it that competes with the iPhone. Oooh and that grin he has? It’s because of Uncle Steve’s iPenis jammed up his iAss. YAY AT&T! FAIL!
I have a good plan (unlimited data for 20 bucks) I am hanging on to it except, I WANT a 2.0 Android phone with hard keyboard (can we say Droid). I do know that AT&T kills/maims device functionality. My blackjack proves that point. Just think I would do more and use more except the phones jut plain suck at AT&T. Maybe I should consider an other carrier. BTW I just moved to upper SC and service here SUCKS. Are you listening DEATH STAR!
this is why i count the days until Cellular South gets the DESIRE!! then i can give AT&T a big fk UUUUUUUU!!! Have fun with your iSuck
As long as AT&T has the exclusive deal with Apple, they will not have a high-end Android device, and all of the Android devices they do have will be stripped of Google. Jobs does not want a phone that actually compares well to the iPhone in the AT&T shops.
What a dumb ass!! This is exactly the bull sh$t thinking in the top rankings of AT&T that’s preventing anything but iPhone to flourish on AT&T. There needs to be a massive overhaul in the top rankings of AT&T if they’re ever going to fix the problems they have. This guy is stuck in the past and Android is the future. If AT&T doesn’t fully embrace Android, they will fall even further behind Verizon.
AT&T has no reason to care about Android when they have the iPhone and the massive numbers of new customers it has provided. ONce other carriers get the iPhone and take away AT&T customers then AT&T will need to look at diversifying.
Wow!!! I want some of what that AT&T dude is smoking. He is delusional.
@Darwin There is a flaw in your logic. If the iPhone goes to other US carriers AT&T already has to be diversified. They have to be proactive not reactive.
AT&T is Apple’s bitch
AT&T + Yahoo -> Fail Boat.
Whats interesting about this is that it kinda deflates all this crap iFools claim about the iPhone coming to Verizon. AT&T should be able to put any big name Android device on their network that they want and according to iFools it shouldn’t hurt Apple one bit. Apparently thats not the case. So I seriously believe outside of the initial rush of people running away from AT&T Apple knows good and damn well they don’t want to go head to head with high end Android’s on the same carrier. They’ll be lost in the Android phone release cycle in probably a month or two after an iPhone launch and will have to wait a whole year for another surge. There wouldn’t be any holdouts to Android development left at that point and the iPhone would loose its app market advantage.
Since my only option for a carrier where I live is at&t, I gladly spent $530 on my Nexus One. I couldn’t gotten two new iphones (subsidized) for that price, but one Nexus One > two iPhones.
darkseider: not at all. They might not be able to diversity as a condition of having the iphone.
This is why I hate AT&T so much. T-Mobile may not have the absolute top-of-the-line Android phones right now, but I love my myTouch Slide, I love their customer service, and I love their plans. Its like AT&T is “trying” to please their Android customers by coming out with more phones, but they are massacring (sp?) It by putting a yahoo search engine and then saying it is an “anti-open source”. I love the irony of that because Apple pretty much wants to monopolize their customers into buying Apple-only products. Thats why my friend cant wait to finish off her contract so she can get an Android phone. I bet Steve Jobs is paying AT&T alot of money so they can make their Android phones suck so their customers can talk smack about Android because they dont know what Android can really do, and then have have to go back to the iphone. I hope T-Mo doesnt do anything grimy like AT&T is doing with their data plan to take advantage of their smartphone customers. Then they wanna say is because a lot dont use alot of data so they want them to save money. Okay, thats fine, but why remove the unlimited plan? Hmmm???
Randall Stephenson YOU ONLY HAVE ONE REPEAT ONE ANDROID CRIPPLE PHONE THE BACK FLIP. Why do you care for us AT&T consumers such as myself who don’t give a ASS bout your shitty iphone 4. I will never upgrade to your phones UNTIL YOU GET A POWERFUL BETTER HARD WARE ANDROID DEVICE. You keep fucking them up cause you have love for your APPLE iPhone. KEEP YOUR SHITTY IPHONE DUMB ASS CEO. You don’t even know bout ANDROID or competition when iPhone 4 roles out you be making more millions and some of us like me stuck on AT&T without a good ass phone don’t care CAUSE YOUR NOTHING BUT A DUMB ASS CEO THAT LOVES APPLE And kiss up to Steve Jobs ass. That is why you lost the war with MAPS to Verizon. MONEY is the only thing in AT&T minds when it comes to iPhone. That’s why I’m waiting till my contract expired I will leave and move to SPRINT for their EVO. AT&T CEO IS BUNCH OF DUMB ASSES. YOU DON’T KNOW SHIT BOUT ANDROID.
We all know AT&T’s faults and some of them are VERY bad, but I will give them credit for one important thing. 2 of the best smartphones, the iPhone and the Nexus One are both on AT&T. Verizon and Sprint have NEITHER. Now you can say Verizon has multiple Android options but I’ll take my Android phone without HTC crapware laid over it thank you, and I’ll also take it without a weak Motorola physical keyboard I wouldn’t even use, thank you.
@FG actually the nexus is tmo and was released first on tmo and is subsidized on tmo at
AT&T hates open source and has apples junk so far down there throat. They just half ass do android. AT&T pisses me off!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FL7yD-0pqZg