Indeed. It would be nice if the two contracts were bound: then at least Apple would have to vet their changes with AT&T, which would presumably react against

Indeed. It would be nice if the two contracts were bound: then at least Apple would have to vet their changes with AT&T, which would presumably react against changes that pissed off the users but whose functions acted in only Apple's best interest. And note, I don't mean to pick on Apple. I just chose them as a concrete example. It could easily be the other way around or two different companies.