[stamatgeorge]

Just logged into my Bell Mobility account ... I only tether my laptop with the "Tether" app. Updated to the new version a few weeks ago... now I am getting slapped with over 800 megs of pay-per-use tethering charges.

Has anyone noticed the same on their bell.ca account or got billed for using Tether app ?

Read this link: Bell Mobility - Tether usage now showing up as Pay Per Use ($6/Meg) | Tether

This is a copy/paste of my bell.ca account:

Mobile Browser Usage: In-plan 4.3265 MB
Data Usage: Pay-per-use 12.2881 MB
BlackBerry Usage: Unlimited 57.0177 MB

Total In-plan 4.3265 MB
Total Pay-per-use 12.2881 MB
Total Unlimited 57.0177 MB

[MobileMadness002]

Some glad I don't tether. Being on Telus would probably give the same results.

[Lord_Tubington]

I experimented with tethering on Bell two weeks ago. I used Desktop Manager to Tether for approx 3 KBs. On my bell.ca page, it also shows Pay Per Use.

Used
Data Usage: Pay-per-use 0.0040 MB
BlackBerry Usage: Unlimited 75.3188 MB

So I think regardless if you use tether app or DTM, they're going to nail you to a cross.

Oh and btw, when I inquired about tethering a few weeks back, I was quoted $8 per MB

[jax200]

does anyone know if the same issue happened with Telus user's? I logged into my account but there is no data used showing since May 15th. So I cant even check to see what or if I am being charged right now.

[Tether]

There was an issue with the carriers and thats why it was happening. It should be resolved now. Call and check with the carrier.

[webmeister]

Time to stop using the Tether app for now!!! I've been using it off and on for the last few months and it would seem that Bell has found a way to track its (mis)use. Obviously you take your chances with this type of app. I got slapped with a huge bill by Bell, my first indication that something was wrong being some courtesy text messages from Bell telling me that my data usage had exceeded $500 and that I should call ASAP.

I called the supplied 1-800 number, and after spending a long time on the phone with a Bell CS rep, he offered to change my data plan to one that includes tethered use retroactively to a date before the charges took place Do the math. 500 MBytes of tethered use at $6/MByte was over $3000!! He changed me to a 1GB data plan which erased the bill since the 1GB data plans now include tethering. If I'd waited two more days I would have been out of luck since I only had that many days left in my billing cycle and he couldn't have made the retroactive change. I've been sitting pretty on an unlimited data plan that I've had since I bought my 1st BB just over 1.5 years ago and which only costs $65 inclusive of my voice plan but which doesn't include tethering.

Net result, spending just over $10.00 to "upgrade" to the 1GB plan (which includes NHL Unlimited, TeleNAV, Voicemail-to-text and other cool "features") saved me a lot of money.

[Tether]

Did you get the fees for "tethering" or just going over your allowed data? From what your saying it sounds like you had a 500mb data plan or something, so did you go over your data limit because you would see expensive overages for that not necessarily for tethering.

[Pete6]

There was an issue with the carriers and thats why it was happening. It should be resolved now. Call and check with the carrier.

What was the issue with the carriers, please?

Tether's ability to mimic normal BlackBerry browser traffic and thus not identify the users' as tethering is the only reason I use Tether.

If that goes away....

Can you please try to shed some light on just what happened here.
Thanks.

[webmeister]

Did you get the fees for "tethering" or just going over your allowed data? From what your saying it sounds like you had a 500mb data plan or something, so did you go over your data limit because you would see expensive overages for that not necessarily for tethering.

I had an unlimited BIS data plan (per my post).

[webmeister]

What was the issue with the carriers, please?

Tether's ability to mimic normal BlackBerry browser traffic and thus not identify the users' as tethering is the only reason I use Tether.

If that goes away....

Can you please try to shed some light on just what happened here.
Thanks.

Please refer to this thread which I started in General Discussion and which got moved to 3rd Party Apps...

http://forums.crackberry.com/f35/sto...harges-480654/

Short story...I think they're on to it!

[Pete6]

Please refer to this thread which I started in General Discussion and which got moved to 3rd Party Apps...

http://forums.crackberry.com/f35/sto...harges-480654/

Short story...I think they're on to it!

I really want to read a reply from Tether before I press any alarm buttons.

I like Tether and I do not want to hurt the company.

I hope that Tether comes back with a full and complete answer. It is inappropriate to simply say "stop using product x" which is somebody's livelihood until the fact are known.

In any event this needs to be judged on a carrier by carrier basis, worldwide.

[jax200]

I really want to read a reply from Tether before I press any alarm buttons.

I like Tether and I do not want to hurt the company.

I hope that Tether comes back with a full and complete answer. It is inappropriate to simply say "stop using product x" which is somebody's livelihood until the fact are known.

In any event this needs to be judged on a carrier by carrier basis, worldwide.

Yeah, that's nice of you for giving them (Tether) the benefit of the doubt, but people are saying they got charges from version 1.1.0.6. and so they released 1.1.0.7. That's an expensive mistake in my eyes. $1000's of dollars were billed to customers because of it. Are you willing to keep ising the app knowing this?

So far, the error has only affected bell users. Telus is doing upgrades to their on-line system and I can't check my data usages. So I have no idea if I'm being charged or not, therefor I have stopped using the app for now.

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[Tether]

A Tether employee has posted in the other thread titled "stop using Tether immediately". Does that answer your concerns or should I explain in this thread about the carrier issue.

[webmeister]

A Tether employee has posted in the other thread titled "stop using Tether immediately". Does that answer your concerns or should I explain in this thread about the carrier issue.

Ideally, I'd like to hear how you've tested it and have some assurance that I'm not going to incur charges again when I use this software. In short no. This little "error" has seriously affected my opinion of your software and came close to costing me $3,395.00 in data usage fees, so you'll understand my basic reticence in saying "case closed". I'm not going to be your lab rat. You've got my contact info from when I bought your $50 piece of software, why haven't you reached out to me? Basic customer service.

As I said in that thread, I'll wait and see if other Bell Mobility customers are still having a problem first.

/ES

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[Pete6]

So far I have not incurred any charges on O2. I shall use Tether at a very low level for the next couple of months to see if I am charged extra.

I still want to know from Tether, the company excatly what is happening.

I like this program. It is very useful as it gives me the internet in all sorts of useful places.

However if it is going to cost me loads of money then I shall delete it from my phone and feel bad about having purchased such an expensive program that cannot do what it is supposed to do.

Tether, please explain what is happening in general and with specific carriers if you feel able to do so.

[piwh1000]

Hi Pete6,

Patrick from Tether, again. Basically what happened was in 1.1.0.6 we introduced a new APN automation for Bell and only Bell. Our system would pre-fill the APN settings so the end user didn't manually need to add them under Options > TCP/IP.

The set of APNs we used for Bell were wrong and were immediately corrected in 1.1.0.7. The APN we used, Bell charges for so when data was beginning to flow through it, they charged for it. It didn't matter that it came through the Tether application or any other application.

This issue was isolated to less then 100 Tether customers and not all of them used Tether during this timeframe.

Thanks!

So far I have not incurred any charges on O2. I shall use Tether at a very low level for the next couple of months to see if I am charged extra.

I still want to know from Tether, the company excatly what is happening.

I like this program. It is very useful as it gives me the internet in all sorts of useful places.

However if it is going to cost me loads of money then I shall delete it from my phone and feel bad about having purchased such an expensive program that cannot do what it is supposed to do.

Tether, please explain what is happening in general and with specific carriers if you feel able to do so.

[webmeister]

Hi Pete6,

Patrick from Tether, again. Basically what happened was in 1.1.0.6 we introduced a new APN automation for Bell and only Bell. Our system would pre-fill the APN settings so the end user didn't manually need to add them under Options > TCP/IP.

The set of APNs we used for Bell were wrong and were immediately corrected in 1.1.0.7. The APN we used, Bell charges for so when data was beginning to flow through it, they charged for it. It didn't matter that it came through the Tether application or any other application.

This issue was isolated to less then 100 Tether customers and not all of them used Tether during this timeframe.

Thanks!

Hello Patrick. I'm in Halifax this week (your home base, right?) with my Bell Mobility BB 9700. Being one of the affected users (!!) I'd be interested in knowing whether you'd be willing to put your money where your mouth is and test my BB 9700 this week to see if your fix has truly fixed things. I'd like to use the application, but am as nervous as can be to try it again given how close to disaster I came with my data usage. This is your chance. If you're interested PM me, and we can post the results of our test on this forum and put the whole thing to rest and bolster your product's reputation. I think this is fair, don't you?

[crotalian]

if you are charged for Tethering at that rate it's because it is not inlcuded in your data plan (out of bundle rates are way lower if you have a plan that includes Tethering)...if you have an unlimited data plan Tethering won't be included, so thats why you are getting charged...nothing to do with any software...change your plan or get one of those sticks and problem solved.

[webmeister]

if you are charged for Tethering at that rate it's because it is not inlcuded in your data plan (out of bundle rates are way lower if you have a plan that includes Tethering)...if you have an unlimited data plan Tethering won't be included, so thats why you are getting charged...nothing to do with any software...change your plan or get one of those sticks and problem solved.

If you'd been following the thread you'd know that the whole purpose of the Tether application is to avoid tethering charges by fooling your wireless company into thinking that it's browser vs. tethered data usage. If it stops doing this and you start incurring charges then it's broken.

You've contributed no new information.

Simple n'est-ce-pas?

/ES

Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com

[trotsky#AC]

So i have read through this post and I am curious.

I have an unlimited data plan on my Verizon tour. I would like to use my netbook to access the web while I am sitting in non wifi areas. I talked to Verizon and they specifically told me that if I tether my phone I will incur charges, no matter whether I use their software or a third party software.

Now with "TETHER" being all new, does this mean I will not incur charges despite what Verizon tech-support said?

What would these charges be listed as on my phone bill so I know what to look for if I decide to test it myself?

[webmeister]

So i have read through this post and I am curious.

I have an unlimited data plan on my Verizon tour. I would like to use my netbook to access the web while I am sitting in non wifi areas. I talked to Verizon and they specifically told me that if I tether my phone I will incur charges, no matter whether I use their software or a third party software.

Now with "TETHER" being all new, does this mean I will not incur charges despite what Verizon tech-support said?
Theoretically, yes.
What would these charges be listed as on my phone bill so I know what to look for if I decide to test it myself?
You'd have to ask VZW to be sure, but it should be some type of "pay-per-use" data charge, reflecting the fact that it consitutes traffic outside your in-plan data usage.

See replies in red above.