Within the past few days, reports have sprung up confirming that carriers are blocking direct access to tethering apps on Android handsets in the wake of recent audits designed to stamp out tethering without paying additional fees, whether by rooting or non-rooted apps.
Naturally, this has led to many to turn into Chicken Little and claim that Google is being compliant towards carriers without putting up a fight in the name of “open accessâ€. Verizon and T-Mobile are the latest to block access to tethering apps from their handsets, with many going as far as stating that Verizon blocking tethering apps is a violation of their agreement with the FCC after the purchase of the 700MHz C block spectrum used to power the LTE network. This is wrong, on many levels.
Carriers are still free to control certain aspects of Android and the Market as they see fit for their handset lineup. As for Verizon’s agreement, the requirements spell out control at the network level and have nothing to do with application visibility since the apps themselves are not being actively blocked from network access. More to the point, unlike Apple’s app control and distribution limitations with iOS and iTunes, Android apps can be distributed outside of the Android Market, which frees Google from the same accusations of control. Of course, distributing apps outside of the official market means markedly less visibility compared to direct access on a handset (this is changing), but the freedom to distribute trumps visibility, at least in this case.
This also brings up the main issue of paying additional (and most would say arbitrary) fees for tethering on top of the now standard fee for handset data access, as many customers disagree with this practice on principle alone. The practice is morally ambiguous, as carriers feel that the additional fees are necessary to offset the cost of the additional bandwidth, while a compromise was quietly offered last year without much fanfare. Both Palm and Verizon set the high watermark for carrier acceptance of tethering by including 5GB of access into the monthly fee for handset data access when purchasing a first generation webOS smartphone, an offering that is yet to be equaled or surpassed and which only came about through much arm twisting and ultimately broken promises, before being succeeded by a much less appealing tethering plan for the Pre 2.
Customers complaining about the carrier app blockade should be up in arms about tethering rates and putting carriers to task, demanding better offerings than the current crop. Would it be nice if every carrier adopted the Verizon/Palm model? Yes, since it gives people a viable backup when on the road and it would also send a message that tethering isn’t about abuse or excessive use as carriers see it now, but the ability to use data access already paid for as one sees fit for the situation at hand.
Didn’t see Sprint mentioned anywhere. Suckers shouldn’t have bought that Thunderbolt and just switched over to Sprint. Sucks to be you!!!
EVO wins again
Virgin Mobiles LG Optimus V allows both tethering,and wifi hotspot,through android app., called quick settings>> oh well, go ahead and write prepaid off… We just win…
Interesting if true,
m.bgr.com/2011/05/03/sprint-contemplating-move-to-tiered-data-plans-for-mobile-broadband-devices/
Thank You
EVO wins? Really? Yeah, let’s compare wimax technology to LTE. That’s really a win. That’s why Sprint is considering doing a 180 and switching to LTE.
Regarding, Sprint: let’s be realistic. No carrier in their right mind would completely close the door on a chance to make extra money. Now whether or not they can implement a tiered system profitably without alienating their customer base remains to be seen. The fact of the matter is, if you have to go down that road, it’s better to have left the door open, than it is to say, “we’ll never go tiered” and then drop that bomb on your customers after the fact.
Sprint? Virgin Mibile? Lame. Sprint charges $30 for tethering, and will proably ask for tetehring app blockage in due course.
I too detest tethering charges on principle, particularly when the rest of the world has seen the light and allows tethering as part of the basic data tariff. O2 (UK) was the most recent operator to my knowledge to drop tethering charges on plans of 100 MB or more.
US carriers’ money-grubbing greediness is showing, as this is precicely why Verizon and the Republican congress lobbied to block net neutrality rules for.
What is need is consumer activism, not apathy and “go to Sprint” alternatives. Activists should print blogs like this one up stand outside every AT&T and Verizon store and hand them out to each and every customer walking through their doors. Bombard Stephensson’s and Mead’s offices (CEO’s of At&T and VZW) with emails contesting the ethicity and legitamacy of this practice and demand inclusive alternatives such as the original Palm deal referenced in the post.
Otherwise, if we the consumers of their products don’t do this, the status quo will remain and we will have only ourselves to blame for being raked over teh coals by unregulated capitalism.
Isn’t this really a non-issue? Sideload the .apk!
The carriers aren’t really blocking tethering, they’re just making it harder.
@F1: Mobile Broadband Devices are data cards, MiFis, etc. It has nothing to do with tethering.
@ Jim and All
Very well said, for the past several years I have been advocating the above strategy, in addition, by adding the U.S. Congress and the U.S. Senate & the Fcc to this “awakening campaign”, it would be a two prong approach, whereby a P.R. nightmare for this ultra-greedy Industry would be unleashed.
This campaign would be far more effective if we would start with a nationwide petiton drive and a creation of a long overdue ” Cellular Consumer Advocacy Group”, making it a lobbying force for the U.S. Consumers, with the primary goal of creating a “Cellular Bill of Rights l”, based on equal rights as with the rest of the WORLD, otherwise consumers should be allowed to utilize foreign based plans, keeping in mind that VZW (Vodaphone) is a British and T-Mobile (Deutsche-Telekom) a German company to begin with, why not with the introduction of LTE, create open “World Plans”! They are already answering your customer service calls overseas, let the other shoe drop, in a true global sense and in the name of true competition!
Regarding SPRINT, let us not forget that over 40,000.000 accounts that SPRINT has been quietly alienating as it’s base since 2008, with the introduction of the original “me too” the Samsung M800, also known as the “Instinct”.
Today, SPRINT by forcing it’s “base” to switch plans in favor of the so called “Everything Plans Plus $10”, by marking established plans such as “Free & Clear” and “Fair & Flexible” as “legacy”, SPRINT today practices blatant discrimination by disregarding all previous “Unlimited Data” options accounts, forcing them to abandon the “Smartphone” category all together in favor of the “Dumbphones”, is that not the classic case of “bait & swich”? Your “other choice”, is to leave SPRINT all together!
By the way, this should be grounds for the mother load of Class Action Lawsuits!
Data is Data, and “Unlimited” should be “Unlimited”, otherwise MR. FCC, it is indeed “false advertising” and thereby befrauding the public and the consumer alike!
The Industry could & should (to offset technology costs and fund share holder profits) charge you extra for say speed and amount beyond on a “limited quantity” plan, however “means & format of access” of your account’s Data plan should not be subjected to additional “fees”, this should be considered “double charging” & “double dipping” by the industry.
SPRINT’s response has been that, “other carriers are doing it, and we are cheaper than others, thereby we are not doing anything wrong, however we do understand were you are coming from”, translation, if big brother was not so busy accomodating the Industry lobbying groups, and for a change, take a positive step to protect the consumers or at least “throw a bone”, things would be likely somewhat different.
Thank You
Typo “were” was meant to be “where”
Thank You
@tony
Nobody is saying wimax is better than lte here. I think what they meant was that sprint wins when it comes to unlimited data and tethering. And yes, sprint charges $30 extra for tethering but its still truly unlimited and they still allow you to use tethering apps without sending out any letters threating you. At least for now sprint is the best. Also the reason they are switching to lte is not because wimax sucks but due to cost and the majority of companies also using lte. Plus even when they switch to lte they are planning to continue using wimax and therefore have an even 4g presence. So stop your bashing and do a little research before talking.
@ JJ
“…due to cost and the majority of companies also using lte”
Agreed, however just curious, for how long would/could it be fiscaly feasible for SPRINT,”… planning to continue using wimax”?
SPRINT just last week signed a 1.1$ Billion contract for usage of the CLEAR Network over the next year (2012), during this period they will be feverishly working on building up the LTE network, which should be gradually replacing WIMAX, since running two systems concurrently would be cost prohibitive, also keep in mind that by 2013 BOOST/iDen would be history, I believe so will WIMAX on SPRINT.
Furthermore how could the above scenario constitute “an even 4g presence” for SPRINT, given that, for the stated reason,
WIMAX on SPRINT will become legacy hardware, with incentives provided to the first generation SPRINT 4G customers, such as yourself, SPRINT should make the transition rather smoothly.
Yes, adopting LTE, will make signing roaming agreements/partnerships and hardware purchases much more sensible, and thereby it would provide SPRINT with the “appearance”, of “an even 4g presence” before the actual 100% switch over to LTE on SPRINT predictably, by year’s end of 2013.
Thank You
Hey sorry I failed to mention that I steal it. I’m on Sprints everything 450, got root and use either ‘easytether’ or ‘wireless tether’ pay sub $80 and have internet everywhere I go. Even when I’m roaming I can still tether. What has Verizon done for you lately?
BTW thank you Verizon for letting me roam and steal that shit too. 3g fine for me : ) but I love my wimax
At last here is the SPRINT broadband DataPlan Update;
http://www.engadget.com/2011/05/13/sprint-adds-two-new-3g-mobile-broadband-plans-unlimited-wimax-f/&category=classic&icid=eng_latest_art
Thank You
Just a thought, GOOGLE buying SPRINT would help SPRINT for certain, a strong, deep pocketed SPRINT could easily stand against VZW & AT&T, for now let them play nice;
http://www.engadget.com/2011/05/12/sprint-google-voice-integration-now-available-for-discounted-a/&category=classic&postPage=2&icid=eng_latest_art
Thank You