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Let my Wi-Fi go: FCC rules Verizon can't charge for Wi-Fi tethering

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Re: Let my Wi-Fi go: FCC rules Verizon can't charge for Wi-Fi tethering

#101

Post by nitrogen »

paul9290 wrote: post #61
juiceandjuice wrote: post #32

The most important reason why this is a no-brainer is because of the 700Mhz spectrum auction. The open device restriction (or lack of restrictions really) was a key provision that google pushed for. I'm sure some people are going to say the government is overstepping their authority, but in fact, they aren't. Verizon was overstepping their authority in this case. Everybody has google to thank for this.

I guess this is nice to see, but with Verizon's new data plans they are eager for you to use as much bandwidth as possible. Thankfully and at the moment there are carriers that provide unlimited data like Sprint. We need more of them!

Sprint? Right. Unlimited data is meaningless if both 3G and 4G are limited to 600kbits/s and your ping times are through the roof.

Re: Let my Wi-Fi go: FCC rules Verizon can't charge for Wi-Fi tethering

#102

Post by oh_sigh »

nilsbunger wrote: post #59
tkahn6 wrote: post #28

This is a no-brainer. As others have pointed out, this is a wholly artificial fee. You still have to pay for the data. They're just charging you for how you access the data. Basically it's extortion. Here's something that congress should do. Telecom companies are government-granted monopolies. Why not acknowledge that it's already not a free market situation and cap the profit margin that these companies are allowed…

They do it to segment their customers. A lot of us startups do it too when we offer one plan for $9 per month, another for $19 per month. The delta isn't necessarily because our costs are different, but rather because the value to the consumer is different. You could argue that cellular networks should only be allowed to be dumb pipes because they are a government-granted monopoly (of spectrum). That would put them i…

Look at how Chile privatized most of their infrastructure. Basically, the government grants a private company portions of the infrastructure, and they are given specific goals and timelines to upgrade the structures. If they stay on track and meet their goals, they are allowed to keep the profits. If they fail, other companies can bid on the infrastructure, finish the improvements, and capture the profits.

Re: Let my Wi-Fi go: FCC rules Verizon can't charge for Wi-Fi tethering

#103

Post by [deleted] »

tkahn6 wrote: post #28

This is a no-brainer. As others have pointed out, this is a wholly artificial fee. You still have to pay for the data. They're just charging you for how you access the data. Basically it's extortion. Here's something that congress should do. Telecom companies are government-granted monopolies. Why not acknowledge that it's already not a free market situation and cap the profit margin that these companies are allowed…

[deleted]

Re: Let my Wi-Fi go: FCC rules Verizon can't charge for Wi-Fi tethering

#104

Post by Rapidwire »

melvinram wrote: post #94
praxulus wrote: post #92

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I believe you can buy a phone elsewhere and maintain your plan too. It's the contract renewal that happens when you get a subsidized phone that will remove your unlimited data.

I don't remember the source on this but I believe that will only be true for 3G access plans. To use it with a 4G device, you'll need to upgrade your data plan and that means that you'll need to agree to the new terms.

That's not true. I have a 4G phone and was able to keep my existing, unlimited plan for the same price.

Re: Let my Wi-Fi go: FCC rules Verizon can't charge for Wi-Fi tethering

#106

Post by wpietri »

ben1040 wrote: post #93
ceras wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Only if you buy a new phone through Verizon, I think. If you keep your existing phone, you'll still have an unlimited plan indefinitely.

You can buy one at full retail price through Verizon and keep unlimited, but there's no point in that when you could buy used off eBay/Craigslist and save relative to the $650 off-contract price.

Well, the point for me was less screwing around. My phone was dying while traveling, so I went into the nearest store. They in effect offered me a $400 subsidy if I signed a new 2-year deal and gave up unlimited data. I was happy to pay the full price to avoid that and still walk out with a new phone.

Re: Let my Wi-Fi go: FCC rules Verizon can't charge for Wi-Fi tethering

#107

Post by fpgeek »

nilsbunger wrote: post #59
tkahn6 wrote: post #28

This is a no-brainer. As others have pointed out, this is a wholly artificial fee. You still have to pay for the data. They're just charging you for how you access the data. Basically it's extortion. Here's something that congress should do. Telecom companies are government-granted monopolies. Why not acknowledge that it's already not a free market situation and cap the profit margin that these companies are allowed…

They do it to segment their customers. A lot of us startups do it too when we offer one plan for $9 per month, another for $19 per month. The delta isn't necessarily because our costs are different, but rather because the value to the consumer is different. You could argue that cellular networks should only be allowed to be dumb pipes because they are a government-granted monopoly (of spectrum). That would put them i…

> Would they still subsidize phones?

Is subsidizing phones actually a good idea?

To me, it is one features of the US mobile phone market that looks particularly unhealthy. For instance, the subsidy is biggest reason cellular networks can start messing around with what you can and can't run on your phone in the first place. Otherwise, if you didn't like how your carrier crippled your phone, you'd wouldn't buy your phone from them (at least for AT&T and T-Mobile, though I suspect competitive pressure would drag Verizon, Sprint and the rest along, for the most part).

Re: Let my Wi-Fi go: FCC rules Verizon can't charge for Wi-Fi tethering

#108

Post by ja27 »

dangrossman wrote: post #90
beambot wrote: post #74

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Doesn't Sprint charge for tethering too? (I currently have a Sprint plan. I'm pretty sure that it's unlimited data, but they don't allow tethering without paying extra fees or rooting your device.)

Yes, it's $29.99/month to enable the Sprint Hotspot. They disable the built-in tethering in Android and hide most tethering apps from the Play store. That said, you can tether over USB or bluetooth with PdaNet or FoxFi without paying any fees or rooting the phone.

I just read the other day that if you disable the tethering on Sprint's website and only enable it on days that you need it, they actually pro-rate the $29.99/month charge to only the days that you enable or use it. So it comes out to $1/day rather than the whole $30/month. Still haven't confirmed that, but I need to look into it.

Re: Let my Wi-Fi go: FCC rules Verizon can't charge for Wi-Fi tethering

#109

Post by thetabyte »

pasbesoin wrote: post #100
thetabyte wrote: post #51

While this is wondeful, ZDNet misses something huge picked up on Ars. "The FCC concedes that Verizon may charge $20 per month for customers who retain grandfathered unlimited data plans." http://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2012/07/tethering-apps-must-b... So I won't be benefitting from this. The most ridiculous, bullshit part of all of this is that unlimited plans aren't unlimited anyway . They have "Fair Access Policy"…

Neither did they require Verizon to refund collected fees. Since this was apparently a clear violation of the licensing agreement (i.e. it was never "correct" or "permitted" under that agreement), I'd argue the FCC should have made them make the affected consumers whole. Now that might have sent a significant message with respect to ending this kind of bullshit, and to deliberately -- I'd argue, maliciously -- pushin…

This is an excellent point, and a possible opportunity for class action lawsuit?

Re: Let my Wi-Fi go: FCC rules Verizon can't charge for Wi-Fi tethering

#110

Post by zecho »

thetabyte wrote: post #109
pasbesoin wrote: post #100

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Neither did they require Verizon to refund collected fees. Since this was apparently a clear violation of the licensing agreement (i.e. it was never "correct" or "permitted" under that agreement), I'd argue the FCC should have made them make the affected consumers whole. Now that might have sent a significant message with respect to ending this kind of bullshit, and to deliberately -- I'd argue, maliciously -- pushin…

This is an excellent point, and a possible opportunity for class action lawsuit?

This is a certainty, I'm sure.
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