AT&T Threatens Customers Over P2P Usage

In a public letter to the FCC today, AT&T senior vice president in charge of federal regulation issues, Robert Quinn Jr., warned that AT&T customers caught using peer-to-peer (P2P) software such as applications using BitTorrent protocol, on their mobile phones could have their contracts terminated.

Specifically the note said that "AT&T does not use network management tools to block the use of P2P applications by its mobile wireless broadband customers. However, AT&T’s terms of service for mobile wireless broadband customers prohibit all uses that may cause extreme network capacity issues, and explicitly identify P2P file sharing applications as such a use… use of a P2P file sharing application would constitute a material breach of contract for which the user’s service could be terminated.” Quinn was quick to add that “AT&T has not yet found it necessary to terminate anyone’s service for such a use."

The letter continues, explaining that "Today’s P2P file-sharing applications are inappropriate for AT&T’s mobile wireless broadband network, which is optimized to efficiently support high data rates for multiple users that send and receive intermittent or ‘bursty’ traffic generated by activities such as browsing the Internet and sending email. Because P2P file sharing applications typically engage in continuous (rather than bursty) transmissions at high data rates, a small number of users of P2P file sharing applications served by a particular cell site could severely degrade the service quality enjoyed by all customers served by that site."

Quinn also added that all major carriers have similar policies but only AT&T has been vocal about their intentions to terminate customers' contracts. I'm not sure why they wanted to make this policy so public, since it probably won't change anything and will incite the freedom-loving P2P crowd. Analyst firm Techdirt also warned that AT&T will have a bigger problem if Apple certifies any P2P apps for the iPhone.

A full copy of the note is available at IP Democracy.

[via WirelessWeek]

Bookmark/Search this post with:

 •    •    •    •    •    •    •