Consumer Complaints About WiFi Hotspot Blocking To The FCC (Oct 2014-Dec 2015)

2000B - Billing, Privacy, or Service Quality Complaint
Before my recent upgrade to Iphone 6 from Iphone 45, I could turn on personal wireless
hotspot tethering feature. But that no longer works unless I pay verizon $20 more per
I month. An FCC settlement in 2012 prevented them from charging for that feature. I want
verizon to start allowing that feature again for all users without paying extra. Here is the
link to verizon's copy of the press release:
https://community,verizonwireless.com/thread/779067
Attached is the FCC press release.
I 2000F - Other Communications Complaint Not Covered by Form 2000A through Form 2000E
Kendall Park
NJ
08824
Complaint Information
Stayed at Day Inn Motel complained to front desk and Headquarters regard not able to
receive strong WiFi signal in the reserved room.
2000F - Other Communications Complaint Not Covered by Form 2000A through Form 2000E
1 4-C0061 8735-1
Web
10/03/2014
Rejected
Corn
mation
Essex
MA
21221
Blocking active Wifi ho spot signals to force attendees to pay for expensive in-house
WIFI service.
1101 Shoreway Road

US 101 at Ralston Avenue/Marine World Parkway
Belmont CA 94002
has installed jamming technology to force users who have phone's with hot spots to
purchase their wifi. When I entered the room I had rented, I lost my signal to my phone. I
have a hot spot and the phone worked just fine every time I left the building in which my
room was in. It was only when I entered my room that I lost my signal.
II was told I had to purchase wifi though I could have used my hot spot that had 3G of
data. Trying to receive phone calls was also very hard.

14-C00618801-1
Web
1OIO3I2O14
_____________
Other
Alleged Rule Violation
Complainant Information
11i
Modesto
CA
95355
I Joie de Vivre Hotels
The ruling today with regard to Marriot blocking wi-fl reminded me of an issue I had a few
months ago while staying at the Waterfront Hotel in Oakland, CA, operated by http:/I
I www.jdvhotels.com . My hot spot was blocked and every attempt to surf pushed me to the
hotel's page. It wasn't until I went across the street that I could access my own wi-fl.
There are undoubtedly numerous hotels which do this so the message that it is illegal
needs to be more widely circulated.
2000A - Deceptive or Unlawful Advertising or Marketing Complaint

14-C00618871-1
Web
10/04/2014
Billing Practices/Rate Structures
I have a grandfathered unlimited data plan from ATI. When I upgraded my cell phone, I
was assured that the mobile hotspot feature on the new phone would work with my
current plan.
I signed on to a 2 year, after ATT reps said it would work on my new phone.
After failed attempts to use the feature, I called ATT customer service. Now they refuse
to turn on the hotspot feature, and says I'd have to upgrade my plan, increasing my $$ to
them.
200DB - Billing, Privacy, or Service Quality Complaint
They block persona! wifi & force u to pay per 12 hour period. They r by disneyland.

1 4-C00620048-1
Web
10/08/2014
_________________
Broadband
_________________
Availability
Clarence
MO
63437
Motel 6
.::: Motel 6 in Denver, CO week of 9-29-14 thru 10-3-14. Motel's WIFI acted like a virus.
Would not remain disconnected. Excluded my phone's hotspot and forced me to pay the
daily fees in order to access the internet on my laptop. Also, their telephone help line
neglected to inform of the situation or the fact that their intervention was necessary to
"push" the authorization code thru on any system newer than Windows 7, requiring daily
calls of approx. 30 mm.

14-C00620347-1
Web
110/09/2014
Service
________________
Network Busy Signal
i mountainside
NJ
07092
I am unable to use my own wifi (through Verizon) on my smartphone when waiting for a
plane at Newark airport. Instead, the airport blocks my Verizon wifi access and instead
requires that I pay to use its service. Since I already pay Verizon for this service, I don't
know why I should have to pay again to get access to wifi at the airport.
during our 3 day leadership training put on by office of the superintendent of public
instruction we were blocked from using our phones. Our phones experienced extream
battery drainage as well. This was mentioned multiple times in forms of complaints and
was verbally recognized by OSPI on several occasions. Some thought jamming was
occurring to punish ospi for no buying the wifi service. We therefor without cell service
I would not be able to make hotspots with our phones. The was the opinion by many.
Rember the was their conference center not the hotel itself.
14-C00620968-1
W'eb
10/12/2014
Other
Other
Portland
OR
97217
Kla-Mo-Ya Casino
My wifi on my cell phone, which I use frequently for internet access while on the road, is
being jammed and I am unable to use at this location. In the Klamath Reservation at their
Casino.
The wifi for their casino shows up, but my wifi, while turned on, does not show up for my
computer. Having read about that major hotel which was found to be jamming WiFi I think
the same must be going on here. I have reset both laptop and self phone, and the WiFi
still does not show up, except on occasion suddenly it will be there then gone.
2000F - Other Comm unications Complaint Not Covered by Form 2000A through Form 2000E
iFrnniiiinvzi Web
1 4-C00620992-1
10/12/2014
Other
C
p ainant Information
-Blythe
CA
92225
Aquarius Hotel and Resort, Laughlin, Nevada
Cell phone jamming and personal WiFi hotspot blocking. The hotel/resort is blocking cell
phone reception throughout the propert. Cell phones do not work, even in the hotl rooms,
despite having line-of-sight view of the cell phone towers nearby. There is also a large
amount of RE interferencce coming from the hotel in the 140-440 mHz range. The RFI
and phone/wifi jamming is a constant ongoing occurance.
I was at a meeting at the Red Rock Resort. I have a voice and data package on my
phone. When I tried to use data on my phone it showed I had a signal but would not log
on to internet. I spoke to at least 10 other attendees of our convention who had the same
I problem, Some could not even get voice on their cell phone. I called the front desk of the
hotel to complain, they connected me to their IT department. I asked the IT person if they
were doing anything to stop my cell phone signal. He said they were not. On Friday,
10/10/2014 I was in the convention center. A hotel employee asked how the convention
was going. I said fine except my cell phone internet would not work. The employee said
that's because the convention center blocks wifi signals. I asked why they do that? The
a employee said because wifi in the convention center is a paid service. I then asked if they
heard about the FCC fining Marriott corp for blocking their customers signal. The
employee said yes they had heard that.

14-C00621193-1
Web
10/13/2014
Non-Telecommunications
New Orleans
70116
Horseshoe Casino Bossier City, LA
This hotel is obviously blocking mobile hot spots. My friend and I have been kicked off
our hot spots multiple times in the last 24 hours. Then rate to use the hotel Wi-Fi is
I $11.95 per day.
The Hotel AC Ponferrada, Spain by Marrioft is blocking wifi signal in the rooms. This is
unfair, How can I conduct business in the hallway or lobby where they do provide wifi
1 access? I can't access any other wifi hotspots. I have to use my cellular data plan.
On several occasions I required internet access to communicate with my tax consultant. I

have tethering capabilities on my phone and have used it many times at other locations. I
was able to work around this limitation with a USB cable. Sharing with other devices such
as tablets was impossible.
You would expect a resort with thousands of rooms to have a few people unknowingly to
have wifi on. Only Hilton wireless showed up. Last, I checked with a wifi signal meter on
a second phone and saw nothing. I changed hotels for the last two night of our stay and
wifi tethering worked again.
14-C00622561-1
Web
I believe the retailers jamming mobile data access to force its customers use WiFi so
they can track in store movements and searches as well as serve ads.
2000B - Bifling, Privacy, or Service Quality Comp

1 4-C 00622682-1
10/19/2014
ii bought At&t international data roaming. As part of that, they push downloading their wifi
application to find wifi and save data usage. however, their customer service has
informed me that that they, in fact are counting that time and adding charges regardless
of whether connected to wifi or not, there are additional steps that have to be taken for
that to be true, however, they are not disclosing that when ordering online (or on the
phone, in my experience), when i called, craig small was the customer service rep. he
said, 1) he had no capability to reverse charges; 2) it didn't matter that they were not
disclosing the issue and 3) he blamed me.
20000 - Emergency or Public Safety Complaint

14-C00623199-1
'eb
1 0/21/2014
Other
Elmhurst
IL
60126
Las Vegas Convention Cente
The Convention Center seems to be blocking personal portable \MFi signals. I have
experienced blocked service for 2 days while on site, and the service is restored when I
leave the convention center.
The Convention Center seems to be blocking personal portable WiFi signals. I have
experienced blocked service for 2 days while on site, and the service is restored when I
leave the convention center.
2000F - Other Communications Co
plaint Not Covered by Form 2000A through Form 2000E
14-C00623518-1
Web
10/22/2014
Other
_________________
Trade Show Internet
San Francisco
CA
94123
Smart City Networks
We had two clients complain of their WiFi being jammed at the Orange County
I Convention Center in Orlando, FL during the NBAA trade show. One client gave up on
using our rental equipment and purchased internet service from the in-house provider,
Smart City Networks. They had no such WiFi jamming issues with Smart City's WFi
services. I contacted Smart City and they denied any wrongdoing, but we were able to
collect the attached router logs indicating deauthentication was taking place. This
I behavior continued until 10/21, at which point it appears to have subsided.
2000 F - Other Communications Complaint Not Covered by Form 2000A through Form 2000E
14-C00624090-1
Web
10/24/2014
________________
Other
Other
ComplainanT Information
i Waunakee
Wi
53597
Indianapolis Convention Center
On the date above, we were at this location helping to run an event. We have a wired
connection with the convention center, however several of us generally opt to use
tethering capabilities on our phones. At this event, we were having great difficulty
I: connecting to any wireless access point. We tested two wireless routers (one I personally
use at home) and was unable to connect to these networks. (in one test, I placed my
personal router within three feet from two laptops, and neither computer could connect)
This extended to my phone's wifi hotspot functionality. I could connect fine when tethered
via USB, however wirelessly I could not connect. This included trying to connect
wirelessly when the phone was resting on the palm rest of the laptop trying to connect to
lit. Similar experiences were reported by several others in the event hall.
ions Complaint Not Covered by Form 2000A through Form 2000E
I beieve that the Hilton Hotel in Phoenix is preventing wireless access by any wireless
networks oither than the for-pay wireless network they provide, as Marriott Hotels had
been found guilty of doing. My cell phone's personal hotspot, which I ordinarily use for
WiFi access in lieu of paid WiFi, was prevented from connection from my other devices
when I was a guest at this hotel on this night. The hotel is 2435 S 47th St, Phoenix, AZ
F 85034 ph# 480-894-1600
14-C 00624540-1
Broadband
_________________
Access Caps - Cuto
Access to my wireless data network was blocked while I was in the airport terminal.
Attempts to connect with the internet were redirected to the airports's wi-fl service where I
was required to view an advertisement for Sprint. I did not want to connect to the internet
through a wi-fl connection, I simply wanted to connect via my cellular data provider, but it
appears that access was deliberately blocked. The following is the link to which I was
redirected when attempting to connect with the internet: http://airportwifl.com/BWI?
MAFO%3AD1 %3AA9%3A59%3A05%3A34&link-login-only=https%3A%2F%
2Fbwi.gateway.airportwifl.com %
2Flogin&r=mikro&err=&in=vIan9O6&ip=1 92.1 68.200.80&sc lanq=en
UUUb -
billing, vrivacy, or service
Ui
1 4-C00625425-1
eb
10/29/2014
Identity Fraud
Francisco
CA
94122
verizon/california federal comunications comittee
beging in 2012 while liveing at the chase hotel in san francisco (l200blk of Market St.)
room 404 with my now ex girl friend i started having trouble with my online and phoneline
accounts, after almost three years of trying to figure out the problem .1 think i have .this
all started with probl;ems weith my google account and at the time i had a dell lap top
thatl would get internet for through my mobil hotspot on my iphone . wireless company at
F the time was verizon. in the beging it was just getting around the internet. Ways that I
would use to accomplish certain things werent working . As they once did. At the time I
I had been using a computer since 2008. so i think the ways that i had usually used to
accomplish differt things such as logging in to gmail accounts sending and recieving
email didnt work as they did before . some 4 or 5 my privacy was gone and all that went
with it through online sites such as creative commons and many developers add ons for
app aevelopers.
I 2000F - Other Corn
unications Cornplaint Not Covered by Forrn 2000A through Forrn 2000E
14-C00626000-1
'eb
10/31/2014
Broadband
Interference
Complainant intormation
Houston
TX
77005
Four Seasons Orlando
I Unable to access Verizon MiFi 4510L hotspot at hotel. Hotel offers free low speed
internet access. High speed available for a daily fee. Hotel tech denied blocking wifi, but
I also said they only support Four Seasons network. Suggested I call verizon to
troubleshoot - unable to troubleshoot because lP address for hotspot is blocked by hotel.
I recently stayed at the Westin at the Yorktown Center in Lombard IL while attending a
conference. During my stay I experienced difficulties using my smartphone (calls, texts,
and the internet). My phone indicated that the signal was very week or that I didn't have
a signal at all. Once I left the building my phone service was back to normal. The hotel
had WiFi for guest which was $3.95 to use.
2000F - Other Communications Complaint No Covered by Form 2000A through Form 2000E
14-C00627780-1
Web
11/09/2014
Service
Corn
Dead Spots
Information
NengHetty's Fine Accessories
Winston Salem
NC
27103
Complaint lnforrnation
EMBASSY SUITES AT ST. PAUL PL. BALTIMORE MARYLAND
I am here on government business with the Department of Veteran's Affairs. I am

staying here until November 14, 2014 and there are many others from the VA here as
well. I and many others have noticed that we are unable to use our smartphones and
, tablets as a hotspot. For some reason, they are seeming to be blocked entirely from
.tethering and no matter how you try, your smartphone is blocked and will not work as a
tether. The wifi is freee for us from the VA but, the service is so weak and slow, you are
forced to either leave the building or just pay the expensive fee to get fast wifi. No doubt,
all tethering capabilities are completely blocked. Please help. Thanks in advance.
I (b)
(6)
2000D - Emergency o Public Safety Complaint

14-C00628487-1
I1EtffII!1TE1Z!!!1 Web
111/13/2014
______________
Service
Availability
Staten Island
NY
10303
Marriot Hotel
For the last 8 months I have consistently had problems connecting to a wireless signal in
my office next to the Marriot Hotel at 350 Jay Street, Brooklyn, NY. Employees and
customers have repeatedly complained about compromised cell phone and data service
in the building connected to the Marriot. Many cell phones experience zero bars and no
signal next to the Marriot, and once several yards away, service restarts. This is
extremely problematic for the city employees working next door. I've seen a problem with
AT&T cell phone service and Verizon Wireless hotspot service. Thank You
2000F - Other Communications Complaint No Covered by Form 2000A through Form 2000E
_______
14-C00629889-1
1112112014
-
Other
DPS, Inc
Carmel
IN
46032
indiana Convention Center
My company was an exhibitor at the IFDA conference/trade show. We had thoroughly

tested our internet and wifi access using our mifi at the convention center twice prior to
the conference, both times during events. We had strong reception the day of the show
right up to the opening of exhibit hours at 1:00pm. From then on we were not able to use
our wifi due to interference or scrambling of the signal This continued for the duration of
I the show. As we relied on our wifi for a presentation of our latest software technology
(DPS is a software development company), we lost a significant tool for the attendees to
interact with. I spoke to customer service at the convention center and they denied
I having any involvement. It certainly was not due to too many devices as it was a
F relatively small event with probably less than 100 exhibitors and very few exhibitors
besides us using wifi for presentations. We declined their wifi access as the fee was
exhorbitant. Similar to Mariott?
The hotel convention center appears to be blocking/interfering with personal wireless hot
spots. I have tried to set mine up repeatedly and can not get either my laptop or iPad to
connect. I can of course opt to pay for their wireless service but I have already paid for
mine and would like to use it. Per the running against marriot/Gaylord hotels, I believe I
I should be able to.
McCormick Place in Chicago is violating section 333 of the Communications Act. They
are blocking legitimate wifi access for visitors and forcing exhibitors to pay exorbitant
rates for access. They even outline their practices in this document: http:II
www.strictlysailchicago.com/assets/cabinets/Cabinet28O/McCormick%2OPIace%
2OTelephone-Cable-Jnternet%200rder%2OForms%20-%2OCBS 1 5.pdf This should be
[stopped.

Consumer Complaints About WiFi Hotspot Blocking To The FCC (Oct 2014-Dec 2015)

Uploaded by

Document Information

Original Title

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Consumer Complaints About WiFi Hotspot Blocking To The FCC (Oct 2014-Dec 2015)

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

2000B - Billing, Privacy, or Service Quality Complaint

1101 Shoreway Road

2000B - Billing, Privacy, or Service Quality Complaint

Alleged Rule Violation

2000A - Deceptive or Unlawful Advertising or Marketing Complaint

200DB - Billing, Privacy, or Service Quality Complaint

2000B - Billing, Privacy, or Service Quality Complaint

2000B - Billing, Privacy, or Service Quality Complaint

Network Busy Signal

Alleged Rule Violation

2000B - Billing, Privacy, or Service Quality Complaint

On several occasions I required internet access to communicate with my tax consultant. I

2000B - Bifling, Privacy, or Service Quality Comp

20000 - Emergency or Public Safety Complaint

Alleged Rule Violation

2000F - Other Communications Co

plaint Not Covered by Form 2000A through Form 2000E

Alleged Rule Violation

Indianapolis Convention Center

ions Complaint Not Covered by Form 2000A through Form 2000E

Access Caps - Cuto

billing, vrivacy, or service

I 2000F - Other Corn

unications Cornplaint Not Covered by Forrn 2000A through Forrn 2000E

I am here on government business with the Department of Veteran's Affairs. I am

2000D - Emergency o Public Safety Complaint

Alleged Rule Violation

My company was an exhibitor at the IFDA conference/trade show. We had thoroughly

You might also like