[TazeTSchnitzel]

And operators preloading questionable stuff is a much older practice than post-iPhone smartphones. If you had a feature phone in the 2000's, the operator would have customised it one way or another. The iPhone was revolutionary in how much Apple forced the network operators to relinquish control.

[thewebguyd]

> The iPhone was revolutionary in how much Apple forced the network operators to relinquish control

And if AT&T wasn't as desperate to gain market share, we could have had a different story. Both Verizon and Sprint refused the iPhone because they didn't want to give up control. The bloatware was an important piece, but Apple also mandated control over OTA updates which the carriers did not want to relinquish either. The carriers were also opposed to the phone being sold in Apple stores.

[GeekyBear]

I can remember Verizon being sued for forcing device makers to disable the ability to transfer files from feature phones to computers over Bluetooth, because they charged a per file fee to transfer files with their own proprietary software.

[hero4hire]

The funniest thing Verizon did was start their own bank. They wanted to create a new payment option on everyone's phone using NFC. Then bill and process payments via your existing telephone bill. Front runner app before Apple/Samsung/Google Pay services and potentially Visa/MC market disruption for insane profits.

Verizon called it ISIS