If you ask anyone who doesn’t have an iPhone what they know about the ubiquitous smartphones, you’re likely to hear comments about frequently dropped calls or the devices doing everything but making phone calls.

Despite rampant criticism about the level of service available on AT&T’s network, the company’s CEO told investors that he personally does not believe poor signal quality or other service complaints will drive customers from the carrier even if AT&T loses their exclusivity for the popular handset. At a Goldman Sachs sponsored conference of investors, Randall Stephenson said:

“If you look at the iPhone base, about 80% is either on a family-talk plan or in a business relationship with us,” Stephenson added. “Those customers tend to be very sticky. They don’t churn very frequently.”

Stephenson said two-thirds of subscribers were contract customers prior to obtaining iPhones, and 53% of users with contracts are smartphone users- leaving signficant room for expansion for those who might upgrade to devices that generally warrant more expensive data plans.

AT&T CEO not concerned about post iPhone exodus, or so he claims to investors is a post from: The Inquisitr

Earlier this week, I posted about how AT&T is whining that people who have iPhones want to like, use them and stuff and that’s causing them to have to put hard earned profits into shoring up their network. A waaahmbulance may have been called.

Consumerist posted about Operation Chokehold- editor Ben Popken, like me, can’t seem to make a phone call in New York. Apparently, we’re not the only ones, because a fed up Fake Steve Jobs called for users to implement “Operation Chokehold” to teach AT&T a lesson about withholding bandwidth. The staged “digital disobedience” is scheduled for this Friday at 3pm EST, noon Pacific. Participants are organizing through a Facebook group, and plan to simultaneously use data-heavy applications to strangle AT&T’s already weak data network:

Subject: Operation Chokehold

On Friday, December 18, at noon Pacific time, we will attempt to overwhelm the AT&T data network and bring it to its knees. The goal is to have every iPhone user (or as many as we can) turn on a data intensive app and run that app for one solid hour. Send the message to AT&T that we are sick of their substandard network and sick of their abusive comments. THe idea is we’ll create a digital flash mob. We’re calling it in Operation Chokehold. Join us and speak truth to power!

While some users are already complaining that the “digital flash mob” will impact everyone on the network Friday, the fact remains that AT&T users signed a contract (with heavy ETFs) in exchange for a service. We should all be able to use the service we pay for, which includes unlimited data, whenever the hell we want to- even if our friends plan on using it at the same time. At this point, I’d personally be thrilled if I could make a phone call without getting the dreaded “call failed” screen, much less watch a YouTube video on the iPhone I pay well over $100 for the privilege of not being able to use every month.

Cult of Mac posted a response from AT&T downplaying the threat of a few people using YouTube on their iPhones at the same time:

We understand that fakesteve.net is primarily a satirical forum, but there is nothing amusing about advocating that customers attempt to deliberately degrade service on a network that provides critical communications services for more than 80 million customers. We know that the vast majority of customers will see this action for what it is: an irresponsible and pointless scheme to draw attention to a blog.

AT&T has also hinted that services like 911 will be adversely impacted if enough users participate but again I posit- isn’t it their problem to ensure we can connect to emergency services? What if one of my kids starts choking or my house catches fire on a day where a particularly popular video of a cat riding a segway is being passed around, am I just SOL?

AT&T users staging “Operation Chokehold” to protest sucktastic network is a post from: The Inquisitr

AT&T, who recently ranked last across 26 cities for customer satisfaction, has hinted at “incentives” to get customers who have the audacity to use the service they pay for to limit their unlimited data.

Oh, cry me a river. As an AT&T iPhone customer, I pay a lot for the service that serves as my sole phone. Most iPhone users pay at least $100 a month, without extras like unlimited texts. Over the past three months, nearly every call I make is cut off with a message of “call failed,” hours pass without data push updates- and reports are rampant on the internet of missed texts and voicemails, dropped calls and call failures. But apparently reliable unreliability isn’t enough of a disincentive for potential customers (current ones are often trapped by contract)- hints at charging a larger amount for the same sucky service seems to be on the docket:

“We’re going to try to focus on making sure we give incentives to those small percentages to either reduce or modify their usage, so they don’t crowd out the customers on those same cell sites,” he said.

The company might consider a “pricing scheme that addresses the usage,” Mr. de la Vega said. But he said that would be determined by regulatory factors and industry competition, among other issues.

Indeed, if AT&T has proven anything this year, it’s that they excel at whining. They ran crying to the FCC when Google hurt their feelings, were exposed for encouraging employees to astroturf against net neutrality and got all pissy over the Verizon “there’s a map for that” ads. (They also introduced an app this week conceding their coverage sucks.) With their track record of acting hard done by while raking in cash after nabbing iPhone exclusivity, does anyone else think these “incentives” might be the type Tony Soprano would employ behind the Bing?

AT&T: Stop using the service you’re paying for, please is a post from: The Inquisitr

Despite smaller crowds for the launch of the iPhone 3G S vs the iPhone 3G launch, Apple and AT&T would appear to have ballsed up activation again, with widespread reports of activation delays.

iPhones require activation to work, a process done using iTunes at home (if they let you take the phone home first) or at the point of purchase, an AT&T store or credited AT&T reseller.

Fault would appear to lie with AT&T’s network, with users getting the following message

Due to current iPhone activation volumes, it may take up to 48 hours to resolve your issue. We will send a confirmation to [email address] once your activation is complete. We apologize for any inconvenience this causes. You can set up your iPhone and enjoy features that do not require access to the AT&T network. To get started, please disconnect and then reconnect your iPhone.

Other messages include phones saying “Waiting for activation. This may take some time.” The problem is not limited to the iPhone 3G S, but all iPhones attempting to be activated.

You’d think they’d learn….well, given it’s AT&T, maybe not.

iPhone 3GS buyers face activation delays is a post from: The Inquisitr