Say no to “freedom phones”
A California Congressman has drafted a law that would require postwar Iraq use the CDMA cell phone standard. The bill would benefit Qualcomm corporation, whose headquarters are in his district and set the tone for Iraq’s post war reconstruction.
Darrell Issa demagogues for his cause by calling the competion (GSM) an “outdated French standard”. The important question to ask is not what an American Congressman wants, but what is in the best interests of Iraq.
GSM already has 60 million customers in the region and coverage in:
- Kuwait
- Jordan
- Israel
- Turkey
- Saudi Arabia
- Egypt
- Syria
- Iran
America is not likely to gain new friends in the region if exhiles and visitors to Iraq need to purchase new dual chip cell phones.
Related
- Darell Issa’s Letter: Parlez-vous francais?
- Congressional Lawmakers Balk At Plan To Deploy French/German Cell Phone Technology In Post-War Iraq
GSM’s response
- The Guardian: Battle over Iraqi mobile network begins Internet
- News: CDMA Pushed on Postwar Iraq News.com: Legislator makes call for Qualcomm
- Salon: To the victor go the spoils
- Wall Street Journal: Lawmaker Wants Postwar Iraq To Use Qualcomm Technology, by Jesse Drucker
- Reuters: Lawmaker Urges U.S. Wireless Standard for Iraq Slashdot: CDMA vs. GSM in Post-war Iraq
- Computer World: Citing antiwar views in Europe, U.S. lawmaker pushes CDMA technology