That’s why the agency today announced that it has fined a company called Smart City Holdings $750,000 for blocking access to Wi-Fi services at convention centers.
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“It is unacceptable for any company to charge consumers exorbitant fees to access the Internet while at the same time blocking them from using their own personal Wi-Fi hotspots to access the Internet”, FCC Enforcement Bureau chief Travis LeBlanc said. “All companies who seek to use technologies that block FCC-approved Wi-Fi connections are on notice that such practices are patently unlawful”. In October, Marriott Hotel Services reached a $600,000 agreement with the FCC to settle allegations it interfered with and disabled Wi-Fi networks established by consumers in the hotel’s conference facilities in Nashville. It has also warned against the sale of radio-signal “jammers,” which are used to block cellular and WiFi signals in small spaces. In addition, Smart City says that it had no prior notice from the FCC that it was violating any rules.
Consumers complained in June 2014 that they could not connect to the Internet at several venues supported by Smart City.
Smart City’s fine is bigger, possibly because the company committed violations in more than one spot.
The Federal Communications Commission this week handed out another fine to a company accused of blocking personal Wi-Fi hotspots. No evidence exists that the Wi-Fi blocking occurred in response to a specific security threat to Smart City’s network or the users of its network. If users opted not to pay the fee and choice to use their personal devices, their internet connections would be blocked, said the FCC Tuesday.
Haley argued that the company’s use of wireless-blocking technology had met recommendations by the Department of Commerce and Department of Defense.
The action was the FCC’s second major enforcement action regarding Wi-Fi blocking. We are eager to return our energies to providing leadership to our industry and delivering world-class services to our clients.”Yeah, it’s probably a good idea to get back to what you do best: charging outrageous pricing for pathetically-slow Wi-Fi service”. “We are not gatekeepers to the Internet. But when we were contacted by the FCC in October 2014, we ceased using the technology in question”.
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“While we have strong legal arguments, we’ve determined that mounting a vigorous defense would ultimately prove too costly and too great a distraction for our leadership team”, Haley said.
