Wave: Is net neutrality the biggest telecom issue on the presidential election landscape?
Mr. McAdam: I’d say yes and no. On the no side, I don’t think consumers at-large are going to get all worked up over it. On the yes side are some very well-funded companies that are willing to make contributions to candidates, and therefore, they will try to make it an issue for the candidates. The question is, whether that will carry over legislatively in 2009.
Wave: Let’s talk a little more about Verizon Wireless.
Mr. McAdam: I’d love to.
Wave: Where do you think growth can occur in terms of minutes-of-use in 2008?
Mr. McAdam: (smiling) Well, as much as I like Ralph (de la Vega, AT&T Mobility CEO) and my other fellow CEOs, I’m not going to lay out all our strategy here….
Wave: Of course… I was just talking about in general terms.
Mr. McAdam: So, where is the market headed, right? I worked in Europe for awhile and they’ve been ahead of us on the penetration curve. We’re certainly catching up quickly. In the big picture, I think you’re going to see a lot more activity in the mobile enterprise. There’s also been a lot of consumer demand on the post-paid side, but there might be more growth opportunities in these all-you-can-eat data plans and the prepaid bundles. Obviously with our announcement I think you’re going to see a lot more open devices, which leads to a whole new set of applications and content on the device. We’re poised for another big growth spurt in wireless, not from the traditional areas that we’ve seen it in, but more on the enterprise and content applications fronts and then in the prepaid business.
Wave: After all that you’ve accomplished in your career, what is it that still gets you excited every day when you go to work?
Mr. McAdam: For me it’s the understanding that there’s so much more that you can make better. I use the phrase “there’s always a higher gear.” I’m pretty proud of what we’ve accomplished, but I always feel that we can improve. Verizon Wireless is big enough that we attract a wide range of partners for us to bring fresh content, or a novel application or device to market, and that’s exciting. I think what gets me out of bed is there are literally no limits in this job and so you go out and fi nd what gets you excited and do it. And you keep trying to do it better. Hopefully that’s what motivates everybody in the business.
"Our decision to open our network is all about giving our customers more choices. We listen very closely to what our customers are telling us about what they want, and we truly believe some of our customers want another option of wireless service."
Lowell C. McAdam
President & CEO of Verizon Wireless