The FCC is following the lead of the EU and getting serious about data charges. There is a good article in GigaOm about this: http://gigaom.com/2010/05/11/fcc-seek-rules-to-avoid-24000-mobile-bills

The goal is to limit mobile data “bill shock” for consumers. I think of it as going for a 300-mile road-trip, pulling into the gas station, and realizing that gas is now $100 per gallon. If I’d known, I would have taken the train.

The basic issue is that consumers have no idea how much data is used when they browse a website, or stream a video, or download an email attachment.

We have two market forces crashing into each other:

• User appetite for mobile data grows and grows as smartphones become better and better at browsing and apps
• Operators get more and more concerned about the network infrastructure investments necessary to maintain service quality and keep up with this crazy hockey stick of usage

The “easy” solution is to charge, charge, charge, which constantly shocks the user and inhibits the expansion of the mobile internet.  But to paraphrase the FCC: “You can’t control what you can’t see.”  Real-time visibility into usage is the first step to both rational use and rational pricing.

But what about businesses?  Don’t they face the same issues?  Don’t they also need the same real-time visibility?

The answer is “yes”, their needs are similar.  Each company’s IT or telecom group will need to put its own strategy together on how to rationally manage mobile usage and expense as-it-happens.  

After all, the bill shock of my 300-mile road trip is a drop in the bucket compared to the cost of getting it wrong at the corporate level.