The Georgetown Center for Business and Public Policy

The issue of handset exclusive agreements has been given some attention by the FCC in recent months. A new study by Dr. Robert Hahn and Dr. Hal J. Singer looks into the policy debate of whether exclusive agreements in the handset market are harmful to consumers.  The in-depth study, supported by Mobile Future, reveals that these exclusive contracts play a major role in the market by incentivizing innovation and securing benefits for the consumer.

The study, Why the iPhone Won’t Last Forever and What the Government Should Do to Promote its Successor, looks at data over the past two decades to show in detail how exclusive contracts between handset makers and wireless carriers encourage innovation.  The authors conclude that consumers benefit from increased variety of choice, enhanced capabilities and a wider range of affordable options.  Furthermore the authors assert that government regulation to force firms to share in technology would likely stifle innovation and consequently harm the consumer.

The paper can be downloaded from SSRN.

The authors presented their research at a luncheon sponsored by Mobile Future on November 2nd.  You can view slides from their presentation here.  A video of the even is also available here.