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FCC tells Verizon to stop blocking tethering apps

Whew your fast! haha. In bigger news, the way I read this, this also applies to NFC payment apps. Can anyone say Google Wallet?
 
Couldn't root users just side load them or change their build.prop to fool the market into thinking it was another device?

Curious, I'm on sprint so I haven't had this issue
 
Yeah, but now we can use them without worrying about violating terms of service with Verizon... ie unlimited data means unlimited tethering and Verizon can't do anything about it/
 
AntimonyER said:
Yeah, but now we can use them without worrying about violating terms of service with Verizon... ie unlimited data means unlimited tethering and Verizon can't do anything about it/
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But unlimited grandfathered folks might still have to pay a fee: (read the last sentence of this paragraph )

The bottom line: you can now download whatever third-party tethering apps you so choose on your LTE-enabled Verizon handset. As part of recent pricing changes, users on tiered data plans won’t have to pay an extra fee to use such services. The FCC, however, has not limited Verizon’s right to charge customers on unlimited data plans additional fees for tethering

My quote above was from the phandroid article.

This is from the Droid Life article : GigaOM*is also reporting that this new FCC ruling will force Verizon to offer tethering plans for free to tiered data customers. While that’s sort of already happening on Share Everything and not necessarily new, this report suggests that there isn’t a way for Verizon to stop unlimited customers from doing this as well. That remains to be seen, but feel free to check into it.

So really who knows right now what this means for us unlimited data folks.
 
This is a step in the right direction. I don't tether myself because it's against my tos, but if doing so wouldn't be a violation I can see times it might come in handy. I agree that it remains to be seen whether us grandfathered unlimited users will be charged for using the newly available apps. I would imagine it would take a bit of determined digging on VZW's part to root out tetherers though.
 
NEW YORK (AP) -- In the first move of its kind, the Federal Communications Commission on Tuesday said it's accepting a $1.25 million settlement from Verizon Wireless to end an investigation into whether the company asked Google Inc. to withhold so-called "tethering" software for Internet sharing.
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WoW verizon BUYS their way out again, Paying off Officials. :mad:
People use to go jail for this (bribes). What's wrong with us
that we allow these gangsters to get away with this.:confused:





Hit the thanks button if this helps you it makes Me:)
 
ImgBurn said:

WoW verizon BUYS their way out again, Paying off Officials. :mad:
People use to go jail for this (bribes). What's wrong with us
that we allow these gangsters to get away with this.:confused:





Hit the thanks button if this helps you it makes Me:)
Click to expand...


Verizon didn't commit a crime, they violated the terms for buying spectrum. The punishment for that is a fine. FCC's role here is closer to that of the seller of a product than that of a regulatory body.

And this is no more of a bribe then you paying a fine for a speeding ticket is.
 
Well the good thing is most roms already include NATIVE tethering so we don't have to download apps anymore.. you just turn it on in the regular tethering settings.

But good part on the FCC
 
treb1797 said:
I would assume so. It's just LTE is the now & future so commenting on 3G wouldn't be necessary & assumed included. Just my 2 cents.
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Thanks for the reply. I'm thinking along the same lines - can't see why it would be different for 3G. I haven't tried it yet, but I expect it's very slow and I'll only use it in a pinch :) Still, nice to have as a fallback.
 
treb1797 said:
I would assume so. It's just LTE is the now & future so commenting on 3G wouldn't be necessary & assumed included. Just my 2 cents.
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No, from what I've read this covers 4G only because of the T&Cs when VZW purchased the C-block spectrum. They brought it knowing there were certain obligations they had to fulfill and what they could and couldn't do.

If anything I could see them coming down harder on us 3G users to get us off onto 4G - and hopefully signing a new 2 year contract in the process.
 
Rachel_Ambler said:
No, from what I've read this covers 4G only because of the T&Cs when VZW purchased the C-block spectrum. They brought it knowing there were certain obligations they had to fulfill and what they could and couldn't do.

If anything I could see them coming down harder on us 3G users to get us off onto 4G - and hopefully signing a new 2 year contract in the process.
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Agreed. But first they have to get 4G out to all of us who have 4G phones but are stuck in 3G service areas.

Stinkin' Verizon. Snazzy new SIII and I'm stuck on 3G.:mad:
 
Rachel_Ambler said:
No, from what I've read this covers 4G only because of the T&Cs when VZW purchased the C-block spectrum. They brought it knowing there were certain obligations they had to fulfill and what they could and couldn't do.

If anything I could see them coming down harder on us 3G users to get us off onto 4G - and hopefully signing a new 2 year contract in the process.
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Which I will happily do as soon as I'm eligible for an upgrade :) It would be rather ironic if they continue to charge users with 3G handsets for tethering service while it's free for users with 4G handsets. It's only the handsets we're talking about, right? There aren't 3G Vs 4G plans AFAICT.
 
I think the thing to take away from this is that the FCC is watching Verizon pretty hard on the block C stuff. It will be interesting to watch verizon having fits over it, as it goes against a lot of their legacy business practices of maintaining complete control of their network.
 
Hey zetroc, I merged this into the existing thread on this subject, in the Verizon forum... THanks for understanding. :)
 
zetroc said:
So, am I to understand the article below to mean that I can tether my unlimited data plan as long as I'm tethering on LTE?

Any app recommendations?

FCC ends Verizon 'open access' investigation over tethering apps, levies $1.25m fine | The Verge
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This is one of the paragraphs. See the highlighted sentence.
___________________________________________________
you can now download whatever third-party tethering apps you so choose on your LTE-enabled Verizon handset. As part of recent pricing changes, users on tiered data plans won
 
I don't understand why unlimited has anything to do with the ruling? I"m on 4G, the rule states I can use it how I want to? Was there really something in the purchase that said "oh unlimited people can still get charged". I think these articles are being somewhat pushed by vzw so people will say "hey i can have free tether if I give up my awesome unlimited plan, shut up and take my money!"
 
gruss said:
I don't understand why unlimited has anything to do with the ruling? I"m on 4G, the rule states I can use it how I want to? Was there really something in the purchase that said "oh unlimited people can still get charged". I think these articles are being somewhat pushed by vzw so people will say "hey i can have free tether if I give up my awesome unlimited plan, shut up and take my money!"
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Prior to the shared data plans and this ruling, Verizon's policy stated that you can't tether without a) paying for tethering service and b) using their tethering app.

This decision eliminates b), but a) is still around. Verizon also made tethering free on the shared data plans, but it's not free for other users and has nothing to do with this situation. The FCC lets people charge for services

And yes, I'm absolutely certain Verizon is pushing articles on how they violated FCC rules to restrict consumer access to apps/services. That would definitely help them sell phone service.
 
Verizon's policy is null and void when the FCC tells them they can not do it. They allow me on the band, the FCC just told them they can't tell me how to use it.

Not pushing articles, but paying for some spin is what I'm suggesting, the negative stuff was going to come out anyway so why not get a little blurb in there about how you would be better off on a tiered plan anyway, instead of the evil unlimited data plans.
 
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