Wireless giants AT&T and Verizon have dropped their opposition to a plan by FCC Chairman Kevin Martin to craft auction rules for an upcoming sale of some prime airwaves to spur development of a competing nationwide wireless network that would allow the use of any device or application. That should set off warning bells with Martin and his fellow commissioners -- and consumers -- that the proposal doesn't go far enough in helping create a truly competitive market for wireless devices and services.

It is hard to imagine a more uninteresting congressional hearing than this one scheduled for tomorrow morning before the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet -- "Oversight of the Federal Communications Commission – Part 2." But that was before Googe's announcement late last week that is prepared to pony up at least $4.6 billion to buy up some airwaves and put together a nationwide wireless network to challenge the semi-monopoly for high-speed Internet service currently enjoyed by phone and cable companies.

This is guest blog from Joel Kelsey, a grassroots organizer for Consumers Union, the sponsor of this blog. He is attending a Freedom of Expression Project workshop in Nairobi, Kenya this week

It's been almost a year since California's Public Utility Commission voted to eliminate rate caps on the state's largest phone companies, buying into arguments by AT&T and Verizon that deregulation would drive down costs and improve services for consumers. So what has really happened? In the case of pricing for popular features such as call waiting and caller ID, prices actually are quite a bit different than they were a year ago. They have shot up -- astronomically.

FCC Chairman Kevin Martin says he wants to craft airwave auction rules that will spur more innovation and consumer choice in wireless devices and services. Ironically, that is what wireless users in much of the rest of the world already have -- and American consumers deserve nothing less.

In a "consumer-be-damned" move of epic proportions, wireless phone giant Sprint has informed more than 1,000 of its subscribers they are being disconnected for calling its customer service center too much. That's right. For calling its customer service center too much.

Verizon is yanking out its old copper wiring when it installs its new FiOS fiber optic lines in the homes and businesses of its customers, according to an article by the Associated Press. Although it might not seem like a big deal, ripping out the copper means less competition for Verizon for phone and other communication services -- and fewer choices for consumers.

All those sleek new iPhones that have been flying off the shelves at $600 a pop have a built-in feature that isn't being touted by Apple or network provider AT&T -- an inexplicable early termination penalty of $175.