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There's several different issues at play simultaneously. While net neutrality vs. not is obviously one of them, another is "who gets to make the rules", and both congress and the FCC are fighting over that power. Plus, there's the constant Republican vs. Democrat, and opposition party vs. President rhetoric involved as well. So - why do Democratic congress members vote against FCC net neutrality rules? Because they want to be writing the rules themselves. Why do Republican congress members invoke the spectre of big government? Because they also want to take power back from the FCC, and can attempt to score points against Obama with the same press conference.

Let's not forget the portable music player market, where the iPod is more dominant. Taking a step back from smart phones, and considering something more general, such as wifi-enabled portable entertainment devices, it's possible that Apple could have an undue influence on such a market. The iPad might tilt things further. All of these products are tightly tied to the iTunes App Store. Now, if Apple has undue influence on this market, are they abusing that influence by restricting these devices to run only those applications that they approve and allow into iTunes? I dunno, but it's worth asking the question.

"The Street finds its own uses for technology." -- William Gibson I just think it's awesome that that was the fortune for this story (at least when I read it).

Yo dawg, we heard you like music, so we put an mp3 in your mp3 so you can listen while you listen! - I like the fact that when I read this story, the fortune at the bottom of the page was "Everything takes longer, costs more, and is less useful."