1. the_sleuth's Avatar
    Carriers crackdown on all tether apps not just Blackberry's:

    (http)://tinyurl(.)com/5v5dnzb

    I think Carriers fear tablets taxing their networks and tethering from established data plans would disrupt their business model. Carriers want to charge a premium for tethering. FCC should crack open this oligopoly market by not approving ATT & T-Mobile merger. It will only make matters worse! More competition is required not less!

    P.S. I am a newbie so unable to post links, please remove parentheses.
    trsbbs likes this.
    04-30-11 07:31 AM
  2. ekafara's Avatar
    I saw this on the Apple part of CrackBerry.com. It seems they will let you change your contract. And if you don't they will just change it without you. They have a way to tell who is tethering too. So there are going to be many angry people over this.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    04-30-11 07:38 AM
  3. johnenglish's Avatar
    If you didn't see this coming you're an *****.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    Seriously, the fact that you need to use apps to try an hide the fact that you're tethering from the carrier should have been a warning that there would be a crackdown on this eventually.

    The whole "It's a sad day when we can't use the data we pay for in the way we want" argument is silly. You're paying to use your carrier's network. They dictate how you can use the network since they own it. Just like how if you rent an apartment the landlord can set out rules as to what you can and can't do with the property.

    I'm not saying that that it's right that tethering is so expensive or that carriers can charge so much for data but that's the reality of the situation.
    04-30-11 12:56 PM
  4. lamnguyen2020's Avatar
    just my luck. i just bought tether cuz it was on sale 50% off
    04-30-11 02:20 PM
  5. greggebhardt's Avatar
    I think you should pay for tethering. If not we would have trouble due to lack of bandwidth.

    All carriers will charge according to how much bandwidth you are using. AT&T already has plan on how to attract it's few customers with the Unlimited Data Plan, just wait and see. I still got mine but know it will not be for ever.

    Tethering is a whole new story. I find it funny that people did not think that you could tether their PlayBook without paying tethering charges.

    AT&t needs our money!
    04-30-11 03:00 PM
  6. Snipperdo17's Avatar
    The carriers give you a certain amount of data so you should be able to use that amount however you want. With AT&T you're paying for 2GB so why not be able to tether up until you use that amount of internet? Just my opinion though..
    04-30-11 05:45 PM
  7. kyroguy's Avatar
    You "should be able to" do what the contract you signed says. Don't like the rules, don't play the game. Like I have said before, if the tether app was used for legit purposes (not stealing service) it would be about $5. People pay $50 ONLY because they can use it to skirt fees. Get real people.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    04-30-11 07:46 PM
  8. TLS2000's Avatar
    We had a big debate about tethering when Rogers was thinking of charging for it about a year ago. It actually got to the point where people were petitioning Rogers en masse to let them know that we don't view tethering as "stealing".

    Why should it be? I don't pay them for each computer I have hooked up to my cable modem through my router. Why should I pay them to have other devices using the 6GB of data that I'm paying for? Data is data, regardless of how you use it. You should never have to pay them extra to access the data you've already paid for.

    edit: BTW, in the end Rogers agreed to allow us to use our data in any way we wanted, provided we had >1GB plans.
    04-30-11 08:58 PM
  9. ekafara's Avatar
    We had a big debate about tethering when Rogers was thinking of charging for it about a year ago. It actually got to the point where people were petitioning Rogers en masse to let them know that we don't view tethering as "stealing".

    Why should it be? I don't pay them for each computer I have hooked up to my cable modem through my router. Why should I pay them to have other devices using the 6GB of data that I'm paying for? Data is data, regardless of how you use it. You should never have to pay them extra to access the data you've already paid for.

    edit: BTW, in the end Rogers agreed to allow us to use our data in any way we wanted, provided we had >1GB plans.
    I didn't think about it like that with thr router/computers. It's a good point. But I'm sure the companies will have something to counter it. Right now they have it in their ToS but I think there will be lots of people trying to change their minds.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    04-30-11 09:08 PM
  10. kyroguy's Avatar
    Try as you might, its called a contract. I don't like it either but we don't have much choice. It is your phone to use as you please...but it is their network to use as they please. Don't like it? Get your own network and free market beat them at their own game. Until then, you have no choice but to play by their rules. You aren't robin hood, you are a petty theif if you tether without paying the fees you agreed to pay when you signed the contract. After all, isn't your word worth something...

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    04-30-11 10:31 PM
  11. trsbbs's Avatar
    Some folks need to see what is before them and have the will and courage
    to say enough is enough.

    Some will simply follow and pay through the nose twice for something.

    That what's wrong anymore. United we stand and divided we fall.

    Go ahead and pay them, just like you do for gas, wall street bail outs, higher taxes and the list goes on and on.

    At some point and time, people need to scream "enough is enough"!

    Tim
    04-30-11 11:55 PM
  12. ImGeorgeous's Avatar
    05-01-11 02:40 AM
  13. DenverRalphy's Avatar
    Despite what many may think, Wireless Carriers don't have an unlimited/infinite amount of bandwidth. The flow of the data needs to be monitored and controlled to ensure performance.

    Only a year ago, tethering required a smartphone to be physically plugged into a laptop or whatever other device you wished to have internet/data access, and the person tethering was limited to one device. At the time mobile devices like smartphones consumed far less data than their laptop counterparts (and is still mostly true to this day but the gap is closing) as people on their laptops would be transferring much larger files, videos not optimized for smaller devices, etc. So while people had an 'Unlimited Data Plan', that plan was designed for mobile devices, and tethering to more powerful machines that consumed a lot more data/bandwidth would basically kill the basis behind which the plan was intended.

    Today, smartphones are growing more powerful exponentially and are chewing up data in much larger chunks (video streaming alone is a major culprit). Today, your typical average smartphone user can easily hit 5GB in a day or two without breaking a sweat, whereas a year or two ago you had to make a concerted effort to hit 5GB in a month. Now couple that with the point that smartphones today are tethering wirelessly and can tether 8-10 devices at the same time, the impact is staggering.

    If the carriers had an unlimited supply, or at least a large enough supply to appear so, they would be more than happy to practice a business model where the consumer were rewarded for higher consumption (like the beverage business where it's cheaper per ounce if you buy the larger bottle). The carriers would be making a lot more money than they already do.

    Unfortunately, that's not the case. With the limited supply growing at a slower rate than the consumer's demand, carriers have to encourage their customers to consume less data. Hence the adoption of tiered data plans and stricter enforcement of tethering.
    05-01-11 11:05 AM
  14. southlander's Avatar
    Seriously, the fact that you need to use apps to try an hide the fact that you're tethering from the carrier should have been a warning that there would be a crackdown on this eventually.

    The whole "It's a sad day when we can't use the data we pay for in the way we want" argument is silly. You're paying to use your carrier's network. They dictate how you can use the network since they own it. Just like how if you rent an apartment the landlord can set out rules as to what you can and can't do with the property.

    I'm not saying that that it's right that tethering is so expensive or that carriers can charge so much for data but that's the reality of the situation.
    The problem with this is carriers bill you based on data used, not "how" you use their network. It is not honest to bill someone for unlimited data and then complain when they find a way to use more data. So then if they really do not want you to be able to use "unlimited data" (unlimited means one thing to me), then they should not call it that. Ahhh, but calling it unlimited allows the price to be increased. If they said, let's see your getting a BB phone and the average BB phone uses 150MB of transfer/month. So we'll sell you a plan to fit that. Would you be willing to pay 29.99 for 150MB? No? Me neither. So then the sales people will kind of promote the unlimited plan on say VZW and say, well if you think you'll use a lot, better safe than sorry. So then you have incentive to use a lot of data. Using these apps is a way to do so.
    05-01-11 11:18 AM
  15. DenverRalphy's Avatar
    The problem with this is carriers bill you based on data used, not "how" you use their network. It is not honest to bill someone for unlimited data and then complain when they find a way to use more data.
    Actually, the carriers do indeed dictate how you use the data and their network. And they make no secret about it either.
    05-01-11 11:31 AM
  16. alKuK2011's Avatar
    Despite what many may think, Wireless Carriers don't have an unlimited/infinite amount of bandwidth. The flow of the data needs to be monitored and controlled to ensure performance.

    Only a year ago, tethering required a smartphone to be physically plugged into a laptop or whatever other device you wished to have internet/data access, and the person tethering was limited to one device. At the time mobile devices like smartphones consumed far less data than their laptop counterparts (and is still mostly true to this day but the gap is closing) as people on their laptops would be transferring much larger files, videos not optimized for smaller devices, etc. So while people had an 'Unlimited Data Plan', that plan was designed for mobile devices, and tethering to more powerful machines that consumed a lot more data/bandwidth would basically kill the basis behind which the plan was intended.

    Today, smartphones are growing more powerful exponentially and are chewing up data in much larger chunks (video streaming alone is a major culprit). Today, your typical average smartphone user can easily hit 5GB in a day or two without breaking a sweat, whereas a year or two ago you had to make a concerted effort to hit 5GB in a month. Now couple that with the point that smartphones today are tethering wirelessly and can tether 8-10 devices at the same time, the impact is staggering.

    If the carriers had an unlimited supply, or at least a large enough supply to appear so, they would be more than happy to practice a business model where the consumer were rewarded for higher consumption (like the beverage business where it's cheaper per ounce if you buy the larger bottle). The carriers would be making a lot more money than they already do.

    Unfortunately, that's not the case. With the limited supply growing at a slower rate than the consumer's demand, carriers have to encourage their customers to consume less data. Hence the adoption of tiered data plans and stricter enforcement of tethering.
    And you think this is OK? That we should just pay for it?

    Unlimited data plan is unlimited plan data. This is BS from the carriers, just another way to charge easy money. In fact I do believe they were overcharging for the usage, now the game is turning to our side and when fares start to become fair they find a way to get more money from us.

    This is not very different from home internet.

    Following your reasoning I assume you would you be happy when your ISP put a cap on max devices connected to the internet even if you have an unlimited data plan!

    I current have six slots for cable connections plus wireless in one device.

    So I could easily have 6 cable plus X wireless connections at any time; but that do not bother my ISP, as I have an unlimited data plan.

    Nowadays is very easy for a couple to have 2 laptops, 1 game console, 2 mobiles and 2 tablets connected at any one time (maybe more if you have visit) and I would not like my ISP to put a cap on this. Probably no one would.

    And so should the carriers!

    Cheers,
    05-01-11 01:46 PM
  17. DenverRalphy's Avatar
    And you think this is OK? That we should just pay for it?
    Well somebody has to. Are you insinuating that the carriers eat the cost?

    Unlimited data plan is unlimited plan data. This is BS from the carriers, just another way to charge easy money. In fact I do believe they were overcharging for the usage, now the game is turning to our side and when fares start to become fair they find a way to get more money from us.
    No, it's unlimited data for the device for which you have activated for the service. The offer of unlimited data is based on what your device can reasonably be expected to consume month to month. Just like an All-You-Can-Eat Buffet is based on what one person can reasonably eat in a sitting, you wouldn't expect to be able to stuff your purse and pockets full of food before exiting.

    This is not very different from home internet.

    Following your reasoning I assume you would you be happy when your ISP put a cap on max devices connected to the internet even if you have an unlimited data plan!

    I current have six slots for cable connections plus wireless in one device.

    So I could easily have 6 cable plus X wireless connections at any time; but that do not bother my ISP, as I have an unlimited data plan.

    Nowadays is very easy for a couple to have 2 laptops, 1 game console, 2 mobiles and 2 tablets connected at any one time (maybe more if you have visit) and I would not like my ISP to put a cap on this. Probably no one would.

    And so should the carriers!

    Cheers,
    The internet access you have coming into your home via cable is an entirely different entity. Their capacity and capabilities far exceed what the wireless carriers can provide. Just as I said above, if the carriers had enough bandwidth that they could provide unlimited data in any form, they'd be more than happy to provide it. In the case of the cable companies providing internet to your house, they actually DO have the supply to meet the demand, thus have the luxury of a different business model, and as a result, a plan more accommodating to the consumer.

    Furthermore, your home internet provider will on occasion throttle your service to slower speeds when it needs to, and not just because you yourself are consuming large amounts, but because of overall consumption and traffic load in your geographic area. It's just less noticeable because the speeds are much faster and nobody really grumbles much when it happens.
    05-01-11 02:13 PM
  18. iN8ter's Avatar
    Even DSL companies are starting to Cap the DSL service and it has a lot to do with people sharing fast internet connections via Routers (put it by a wall so your neighbor can get access for free, etc.) in addition to people abusing the service to constantly seed things like torrent down/uploads and run server services off of residential internet connections.

    This is the only major smartphone forum where so many people seem to think tethering should be a freebie. You mobile phone contract is for the device you activate it for, quite specifically (and on every carrier). A smartphone has a hard time doing 4-5GB data in a month for most people so it's practically unlimited. That's why they call them unlimited.

    However, when you tether it to a real computer, things change. Lots of content on teh web is

    Carriers have generally ignored people tethering for free because there weren't really that many people doing it in the past. With the smartphone market growing so damn much and the popularity of services like YouTube, Hulu, Netflix, HBO Go, etc. it has recently become an issue.

    All of them have started cracking down on it lately...

    T-Mobile started shutting down people tethering for free months before AT&T started doing something about it...

    And yes, normal ISPs are starting to institute caps. Satellite internet companies do it. Radio connections usually are low mbps and don't need it. But, DSL companies are starting to cap them as well. I know AT&T is going to be capping it's DSL service at 150 GB per month and U-Verse at something like 250 GB.

    I think DSL uses data from the same source as smartphones so if a company is like AT&T and has a huge DSL subscriber base in addition to tons of smartphone users the "free tethering" can potentially be an issue. It lowers speeds for everyone and can be disruptive service. Meanwhile, those users aren't paying anything back into the system to facilitate network upgrades and capacity fortifications. So... If they make tethering free, the data plans will likely go up as a result anyways.

    You will never win, nor should you.
    Last edited by N8ter; 05-01-11 at 03:28 PM.
    05-01-11 03:24 PM
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