AT&T CEO Ralph de la Vega's remarks yesterday suggesting the carrier may adopt usage-based pricing to limit heavy bandwidth use isn't likely to endear the company to already frustrated iPhone customers. The move would fly in the face of the broader industry trend toward flat-rate pricing and unlimited voice and "all-you-can eat" service plans.

The long-awaited announcement of a joint venture among major magazine publishers to tackle the transition to digital media looks like a classic vaporware unveiling. While the consortium features an impressive line-up of publishers -- Hearst, Time, Conde Nast, Meredith and News Corp. -- the group includes no prominent technology partners that would suggest their digital aspirations have a chance of becoming a reality.

AT&T has finally done something right as far as its iPhone service is concerned. The iPhone app AT&T released Monday for reporting dropped calls, no coverage, poor voice quality and other service complaints is already proving a hit (insert your own joke here). The Mark the Spot app as of Tuesday ranked No. 10 among free titles in the App Store just behind Facebook -- not bad company (though, it is a sort of dubious honor for a complaint box).

AT&T didn't have much success convincing a judge Verizon Wireless' "There's a Map for That" ads touting its 3G coverage over AT&T's were false and misleading. But the carrier and its wireless partner Apple might be able to make a better case that Verizon's latest spot for the Droid paints a fanciful picture of iPhone users.

It's that time of year for raising a glass and making bullish predictions about the high-tech industry in 2010. Will it finally be the Year of Mobile? Yahoo seems to think so. Hilary Schneider, executive vice president of Yahoo North America, told attendees of the Reuters Global Media Summit that she expects "exponential" growth in mobile advertising next year as the overall market begins recovering from the downturn.

If you haven't seen them yet, LG and Young & Rubicam have released a series of funny ads featuring James Lipton encouraging teens to "Give It a Ponder" before sending hurtful, gossipy or sexually explicit text messages. The PSAs aim to

AT&T has finally made a smart strategic move in its ad war with Verizon Wireless, dropping its lawsuit against the rival wireless giant over its "There's A Map For That" campaign. AT&T formally dismissed the suit Wednesday after a federal court last month denied its request to stop Verizon from running the spots comparing AT&T's 3G coverage unfavorably to its own. It's worth noting that AT&T never disputed the accuracy of how the maps depicted the two carriers' respective 3G coverage areas.

The new annual survey of wireless customer satisfaction from Consumer Reports provides fresh ammunition to Verizon Wireless its legal and ad war against AT&T. The findings show AT&T coming in last in the ratings of the four major U.S. carriers in 19 of the 26 cities covered in the survey totaling 50,000 readers. Verizon ranked highest overall and AT&T lowest.