I cannot believe I am going to say it, but 15 years ago today, Apple introduced the Iphone and the Ratty approved T's exclusive on the Iphone.
I think that is the ONLY good decision by the Ratty.
Or can someone point out one other good decision I forgot about by either the Ratty or the Stinky during their reign of disasters?
I mean besides them loading up their bank accounts...
Fun fact - on the first iPhone, Stephenson said the device should have a blinking LED for notifications "like a blackberry" & it was put to apple that way - "The Chairman wants an LED" - the response from Jobs was to get f'd.
True story.
Can you imagine where we (T) would be today if the had agreed to Jobs request for lifetime exclusivity. Jobs had the upper hand which really upset Randall. Randall never respected the power of Steve Jobs and Apple.
Are you kidding? AT&T has been making one bad decision after another since divestiture. Look at the history since 1984. NCR merger=Fail, AT&T/Comcast merger=Fail, T-Mobil merger=Fail, DirecTV=Fail, Time Warner Merger=Fail. And there is probably more in between as well.
OP here - just as I suspected, no one can point out one other good decision by the Rat or the Stink!
They are totally good for nothing - except lining their pockets.
And then Ratty wanted to watch TV on his shiny iphone and went on a shopping spree and bought himself Direct TV.
nothing good happens to a wireless company when you let old phone company run it.
Stan Sigman was the most respected and visionary leader in the Wireless industry. Had the pleasure to serve under his leadership for several years. Iphone was all his he worked the deal direct with Steve Jobs over a beer I'm sure. Ralph continued Stans vision. Then Bell South happened, and we all became one, and the rest is history.
Vote this response up if you think De La Vega would have been a CEO that could have properly run ATT - if they could have retained him.
Wait, what am I asking? Of course a dead fish would be a better CEO than the Stink!
Anyone decent left Toxic-T long ago...
SBC nearly screwed up the deal because they didn't want to give up oversight of the IPhone's development to Apple. Stan Sigman and Ralph along with Bell South (who owned 40% of Cingular) fought SBC and won. Keep in mind SBC became AT&T and took over Bell South and Cingular. Stan retired shortly after the deal closed in 2007. When he left AT&T slowly begin to destroy Cingular.
Last good executive decision was 15 years ago today...
It really was. I wonder if that is what caused Randell to believe he was a visionary in the industry when in reality he caught the right wave at the right time. His subsequent decisions proved beyond all doubt he was no visionary. Now AT&T is trying to play catch up to build the network that Randell said we would be "managing decline" in.
Stan and Ralph were the drivers behind that deal and the success of it. How do people not know this?
Big mistake by De La Vega for not making I Phone exclusive to T forever!
It was a smart move, though our wireless network was nowhere near ready for it at the time. To be fair, no carrier’s network was at that time.
Apple wanted a lifetime agreement…AT&T turned it down
Two year exclusion with T.
on iPhone, it was Ralph de la Vega who is to be credited. From one of his retirement announcements:
But his most notable act at AT&T was working with Steve Jobs to bring the original iPhone to the carrier, eventually locking it up as an exclusive device for years. He was one of the first people to see the iPhone, vowing not to tell anyone about the device, including the CEO or the directors of AT&T -- or his wife.
"[The iPhone] dramatically changed how users interfaced with the device," de la Vega said in an interview earlier this year. "It really highlights how it changes the expectations of people."
Donovan quote regarding Arnoldi:
"Nobody puts baby in the corner"
But that one success had gone straight to their heads and they started behaving like Steve Jobs by association.
If I am not mistaken that is how Arnoldi started her climb through the ranks
Arnoldi joined in 2008. The iphone launch was before that.
She did enjoy a good relationship with Donovan, however.
I remember it like it was yesterday. Still have my t-shirt from the launch.
So sad. ranky and stanky destroyed something really wonderful.
Oh well. Just remember the BOD and shareholders let them do it.
cigular and stan sigman made that deal
Stink is a wireline guy, he had nothing to do with bringing iPhone here or selling it in our stores or centers. Most of the higher-ups involved in that launch 15 years ago have already retired.
T knew Jobs had the upperhand. Verizon turned down the opportunity since it was one sided in Apples favor!
That decision saved a lot of jobs right up until it ran out in like 2012 I think
If I am not mistaken that is how Arnoldi started her climb through the ranks. I worked in IT retail at the time and I think she was the project manager or something similar during that initial rollout.