Time Warner VoIP Telephone Service Deal with Sprint, MCI

Wireless

Although not exactly a wireless story, Time Warner has struck a deal with Sprint and MCI to cooperate in providing telephone service to cable Internet customers. This move will enhance the Long Distance carriers’ ability to take a bite out of ILECs and get additional LD traffic, and will accelerate Time Warner’s ability to provide telephone service to their broadband customers (at a time when Vonage has beat them to the punch on their own networks.) This deal makes a lot of sense, and we’ve already discussed a great deal how the ILECs should be scared witless of VoIP. So why is it a wireless story? Because the wireless companies could be next. There’s no reason why T-Mobile or another wireless telco couldn’t partner with Comcast, Cox, or Time Warner for much the same service. Throw in a phone that roams WLAN-cellular and it’s even cooler. I discussed this in October, but didn’t foresee that the LD carriers would act more quickly than the mobile telcos.