Google patent network-hopping cellphone: best price guaranteed

A freshly published Google patent filing suggests that, while the company may be on good terms with cellular carriers now, in the future the telcos might be a little more resentful. Titled “Flexible Communication Systems and Methods”, the document describes a system whereby a mobile device - such as an Android cellphone - could monitor and judge available wireless networks and route voice and data traffic over whichever was the cheapest. Google’s filing describes cellular, WiFi and WiMAX networks as all being potential routes, with the technicalities invisible to the user; their example is a mobile handset that works on home WiFi then seamlessly transitions to a WiFi hotspot or cellular network when outside.

The project, if undertaken, would require hardware changes to both handsets and networks. Pricing data would need to be quickly offered by the competing networks, and the phone capable of ascertaining the best route and, most importantly for the user experience, doing so instantly, consistently and with no input from the user themselves. However there would be a number of user-definable options - or, more accurately, preferences - that would prevent the system from merely being a race to the bottom line. The handset could be instructed to prioritize on bandwidth or signal strength, depending on the intended usage.

“In addition to cost as a factor in selecting appropriate telecommunications providers, users may opt for alternative auction models based on maximal bandwidth offered, best coverage/reliability, or some combination of options” Google patent

Google is unlikely to find too many fans of the concept at the telcos, who prize their by-now standard two-year contracts. However the patent - which was filed in March 2007 - does throw more light on Google’s actions over the past eighteen months. The recent FCC 700MHz spectrum auction, in which the search giant bid just high enough to topple the so-called “beach front” spectrum into mandatory open-access provisos, now means Google have a pass to use whatever network is eventually built. Google has also heavily invested in WiMAX, spending around $500m on the US Sprint-Clearwire partnership.

If it can leverage both of those networks, and produce a system that drives user demand, analysts believe the carriers will have no choice but to participate. First Google would need to persuade the FCC that it would be an offering in the best interest of competition and consumers; given the relationship of the two organisations in the past, it seems likely to be approved.