The FCC has been doing a lot of probing to find flaws in AT&T’s acquisition of T-Mobile. If approved the telecom giant could have 40 percent of all cell phone customers in the US. AT&T insists that their merger with T-Mobile would mean better service for their customers.
Those that are skeptical of the merger believe that the pockets of the consumers will be hit hardest by the merger. T-Mobile offers lower rates on their usage and data plans that are often unlimited. AT&T often has higher prices on their plans and caps on the usage.
So what does this mean for internet business and SEO optimization? It could mean reduced traffic. In 2010 smartphones outsold laptop computers because of their portability, and easy on the go access to the internet which benefits businesses in the respect that customers can find them no matter where they are located. For Search engines and SEO optimization, AT&T’s higher data usage fees could mean less people are using their smartphones to find businesses and services.
AT&T has also been known to block access to some internet sites such as Skype and Google Voice. This has led some to speculate they could also block access to other internet services like YouTube. Given AT&T’s relationship with Apple, could this also lead to blocking popular search engines like Google who are often utilized by SEO optimization providers. If the FCC approves the merger only time will tell if AT&T will block its smartphone users from accessing information.
