Small Businesses Not Exempt From ISP Six Strikes Plans → Really?

"That's ok, argues the CGI's Executive Director Jill Lesser, because if you're sharing your broadband over Wi-Fi, you're already violating your ISP's terms of service."

That's funny. I don't recall our TOS restricting the use of our customer's connections. We really don't care what you do with your connection as long as you are not breaking the law. In the case you are breaking the law we are going to do only what the law requires us to do. I.E. if you are not an Law Enforcement Agency or you do not have a subpoena in hand you will never get a chance to talk to anyone who could supply you with anything.

AtlanticBB has this policy written in their TOS but as a business customer all you need to do is tell them you want that language out because you "will" be using it for a hotspot and all it takes is a revision from the legal department and your good to go.

We provide service to a large number hospitality based customers so it's a given that they are going to operate some sort of hot spot type service for their customers. The way I designed our network it's almost impossible for 1 customer to effect the other customers so if you end up flooding your pipe 100% 24/7/365 the only thing you can do is cause your self harm.

Terrorist! Pirate! Obviously you are not informed as the Six Strikes Policy requires that ALL ISPs be under the TOS-control of the CCI. To go against this would be unpatriotic.

I have a business class DSL product from Frontier and there's nothing in the AUP that would prohibit me from setting up a hotspot or even from charging money for access to it. The residential AUP has such prohibitions but not the commercial one.

The usual prohibitions against UCE, child porn, etc. still apply of course. Some ISPs will ask you to install a web filter of some sort if this becomes a recurring problem with hotspots -- PenTelData has asked several businesses I know of to do this -- but that's about as far as it will go. I've never heard of an ISP that terminated a commercial account over activity on a hot spot.

"The residential AUP has such prohibitions but not the commercial one."

We don't operate a residential network otherwise we would have some language not to prevent an open hotspot but to prevent people from trying to use a residential circuit in a business setting.