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iPhone Skype Restrictions Lawsuit Lawyers

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Our iPhone Skype restrictions lawsuit lawyers are concerned that the treatment of  the Skype calling feature on the iPhone is an attempt by AT&T to handicap a competitor that offers iPhone users a less-expensive voice service.  Federal regulators have been asked to investigate iPhone Skype restrictions to determine if they violate federal law. 

If these iPhone Skype restrictions are illegal, iPhone users may be entitled to compensation.  If you are an iPhone user who would like full access to the Skype voice service, we urge you to contact one of our iPhone Skype restriction lawsuit lawyers right away to protect your legal rights.

iPhone Skype Restrictions

Skype is  a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) application that competes with AT&T's own voice service.  Since its release in early April 2009, Skype's free iPhone service has become one of  the most popular downloads at Apple's iPhone software store. Skype users can call each other free or can place calls to traditional landline and mobile phones for a small fee.

By using Skype on the iPhone, consumers can sidestep AT&T, allowing them access to cheaper voice plans that offer fewer minutes. iPhone users can also save money on international calls by using Skype.

However, iPhone users can't use the new Skype service on AT&T's high-speed 3G wireless network. Apple, which has an exclusive deal in the U.S. with AT&T, says iPhone users can use the Skype service only at Wi-Fi hot spots.  This restriction significantly limits the benefits iPhone users could gain from using Skype.

The company has also changed its wireless terms of service to prohibit "customer initiated redirection of television or other video or audio signals via any technology from a fixed location to a mobile device."  The consumer advocacy group Free Press has characterized this change as 'a pre-emptive strike against innovative mobile video technologies."

The only easy way  iPhone users can access the Skype  add-on for the device is through Apple's online store.  Before Apple and AT&T would allow Skype access to the online store, Skype  had to agree to these restrictions.

For its part,  AT&T is very up front about its intent to limit competition from Skype. After the launch of the Skype iPhone application, AT&T's top public policy executive said in an interview with USA Today that the company has every right to block Skype. As far as AT&T is concerned, Apple is expected not to promote or facilitate the services of AT&T’s competitors.  

Free Press has asked the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to investigate the limitations Apple and AT&T have placed on Skype.  The group wants the FCC to determine  whether or not the restrictions are in violation of federal law.

In a letter to the commission, Free Press cited the FCC's Internet Policy Statement which holds that  "consumers are entitled to run applications and use services of their choice" in order to "preserve and promote the open and interconnected nature of the public Internet."  Those guidelines, which aren't formal rules, say carriers should let subscribers have access to any legal Web content or service they choose as long as it doesn't harm the network.

Legal Help for iPhone Skype Users

Our  iPhone Skype restrictions lawsuit lawyers have determined that AT&T's arrangement with Apple to restrict access to Skype is an attempt to hinder consumer choice for anticompetitive purposes.  We believe that this is being done in violation of federal law. 

If you are a victim of AT&T's anticompetitive iPhone Skype policies, you have valuable legal rights.  Please fill out our online form, or call 1-800 LAW INFO (1-800-529-4636) as soon as possible to discuss your case with one of our iPhone Skype restrictions lawsuit lawyers.