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When did Verizon start Censoring the Android Market?

  • Thread starter Thread starter NorthVandea
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NorthVandea

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Perhaps I have missed the boat here but when did Verizon start censoring the Android Market? Is it even legal for them to be doing that?:eek:

Is there anyway to get around or undo the censoring?

Come on Google! You were always about the freedom of information but you're actually going along with carrier enforced censoring? If that is true SHAME ON YOU! I like Android because it's free and open. But App censoring is bad :mad: and sounds a lot like the Apple Appstore. I hate Apple for their censoring efforts.
 
More details on exactly what Verizon is supposedly censoring would be helpful. Google will pull apps that are malice or will root your phone.
 
I believe they mean PDAnet and tethering apps.
Verizon has blocked access to apps that allow the user to "break the rules". They (VRZ and ATT) were very clear about tethering and going after folks who did...no surprise that they are blocking the easy way to do it.
There are ways around it, of course.
 
I wonder if you use Wifi instead of 3G, would that stop the filtering?

EDIT: Nope :(
 
I noticed that easytether had been removed from the Verizon censored Android Market. It is true that easytether violates their terms of service. But I believe that Verizon censoring Google's Android Market is fundamentally wrong. Just because something is wrong doesn't mean they can block it. It's a matter of principle. For example, if I want to look up, say, a counterfeiting printing press on the Internet, that would obviously be wrong, but the Government can't do anything to prevent me from looking it up. I feel the same principle holds here. If Google doesn't want it, they can pull it because they own the Market but the carrier should have no authority to do that.
 
Do you mean enabling wifi in airplane mode allows you to use PDA Net or find it in the market. I'm still unable to find it in the market. I'm rooted and don't care, but my wife wanted it for her phone.
 
briman4031 said:
Do you mean enabling wifi in airplane mode allows you to use PDA Net or find it in the market. I'm still unable to find it in the market. I'm rooted and don't care, but my wife wanted it for her phone.
Click to expand...

Apparently not and Verizon is grayed out when you try to access it from the market on a computer to. You might have to try xda or the developers web site.
 
For now they seem to have only blocked the tethering apps that non-rooted users can access. It makes one wonder why they have never tried to block all of the root apps (ie: ROM Manager, barnacl, etc).

My guess is it is such a small group and if you can root your phone most likely you will know how to get them anyway.:D
 
Instead of using the marketplace, why not just download Tether or PDANet directly from their sites? Once installed, how can Verizon stop you from using it?
 
So far at least they can't stop you from using it. And they can't remove it from your phone either. As far as I know only Google can remotely remove apps.

I was looking around for more information on this and I read that there is some text file that you can edit (if rooted) that will remove Verizon's censors. Too bad the whole reason I liked Easytether was that it didn't require root...
 
With lte they can stop you phone side. LTE phone can report back to verizon every app on a phone and require you to get the right plan to match your apps. If you install tethering app, they will know with lte.
 
RiverOfIce said:
With lte they can stop you phone side. LTE phone can report back to verizon every app on a phone and require you to get the right plan to match your apps. If you install tethering app, they will know with lte.
Click to expand...
Proof or just an invalid statement?
 
It would seem that now Easytether, (the lite version at least) is now available on my Droid X again. Go figure...
 
As an FYI, after a week of ONLY 3G access to DL apps in market, I contacted Verizon here in WNC and they told me they no longer were allowing apps to DL over WIFI from the Market. So now you sue your DATA instead of your WIFI. Bummer!
 
Google has always bent to the carriers wishes. If big red and ma bell say do not let our customers download these apps and Google refuses to comply then they could just refuse to carry anymore android phones. The majority of android users are not posting on android forums and would be just as happy to start using an iPhone next time they upgrade so it would hurt Google more than the carrier
 
labwizard said:
As an FYI, after a week of ONLY 3G access to DL apps in market, I contacted Verizon here in WNC and they told me they no longer were allowing apps to DL over WIFI from the Market. So now you sue your DATA instead of your WIFI. Bummer!
Click to expand...
That makes no sense at all; why would they want to increase their network usage by forcing that on users? You talked to an idiot.
 
Yeahha said:
If the start the tiered data soon then it makes perfect sense
Click to expand...
But they haven't started tiered data yet. As of right now, they are just increasing their network usage for no reason other than to censor applications. Plus, if they forced that onto users with a tiered data plan, they would get slapped with so many lawsuits it wouldn't be funny. Another reason they aren't doing this is because, well, they aren't doing it; I just tested it on my phone and WiFi for app downloads is working fine.
 
Yeah I turned on my WiFi hotspot and my wife was able to use the market on her d2g with my LTE connection
 
NorthVandea said:
Perhaps I have missed the boat here but when did Verizon start censoring the Android Market? Is it even legal for them to be doing that?:eek:

Is there anyway to get around or undo the censoring?

Come on Google! You were always about the freedom of information but you're actually going along with carrier enforced censoring? If that is true SHAME ON YOU! I like Android because it's free and open. But App censoring is bad :mad: and sounds a lot like the Apple Appstore. I hate Apple for their censoring efforts.
Click to expand...

You clearly do not understand the relationship between cell service providers, device manufacturers, and operating system developers.

If anything is being censored out of the market it is google, not verizon.Verizon may have asked google to remove apps like wireless tether because using it is in fact a violation of terms and conditions. I am really not interested in having a philosophical argument about how data is data and because your phone has unlimited, you should be able to tether. If you don't like it, stop complaining and move to another carrier (oops, they all do that) or complain to the fcc who shall promptly remind you that you have no grounds.
 
Well here's a thought: When high-speed cable Internet access was new, all the service providers made it against their terms of service rules to connect more than one computer to their modem. And since they still do that I agree with you completely.


...Oh wait! They don't have that dumb rule anymore. So perhaps efforts to strike that rule from mobile broadband will eventually succeed.

Oh and sorry about the philosophical argument (but you brought it up after all...)
 
When Verizon got greedy and gobbled the extra bandwidth up for sale by the FCC they agreed to play nice and no longer cripple their phones or prohibit 3rd party or manufacturer apps. They may still be within their rights to prohibit PDANet for 3g, but not for 4g.

They can still throttle bandwidth fro big useers and perhaps should do that for heavy streaming users watching videos ont heir cell phones, but data is data and realistically surfing websites or reading email from a tethered computer to a cellphone is probably less data intensive.
 
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