Spectrum Auction No. 66 updateToday's USA Today has this article

Spectrum Auction No. 66 update

Today's USA Today has this article about the spectrum auctions, which, they report, could end today. How do the results reported in this article compare with the interim results discussed earlier on this blog? Do you see any change in strategy by the carriers as the auction proceeded?

Technorati Tags:
Wireless, spectrum, auctions, Verizon, T-mobile, cellular, 3G

Martin Weiss

Mobile Broadband Access - Myth and Reality - No IM allowed

I posted something similar already in September 2005 about E-Plus and Skype, but VoIP is VERBOTEN.

This time the phun comes from T-Mobile UK, regarding their web'n' walk professional product, which proudly presents it's great value for 20 Pounds a month:

Web n walk professional makes surfing the internet on your laptop simple and easy. Just put the web n walk card in your laptop and away you go. And it's great value.

• Download and send large files and emails quickly
• Fast download and upload speeds
• No data download limits*

You see the * - Watch OUT, it is in very small print:

*Web n Walk professional is subject to a minimum term contract and credit check. Compatible handset or device required.

OK, this is normal

To ensure a high quality of service for all our customers, a fair use policy applies. T-Mobile defines fair use as total UK data use (both sent and received) of up to 2GB per month. T-Mobile may contact customers who exceed this volume of data in two (or more) consecutive months in any six month period to ask them to reduce their usage. If usage is not reduced, notice may be given, after which network protection controls may be applied which will result in a reduced speed of transmission.

So unlimited means 2GB. And note the ENSURE high Quality for ALL OUR CUSTOMERS: you must not use it too much, because if two or three of you bastards are in one cell, there will be troubles. This definitely leads to the next statement, which is outragous:

Use of Voice over Internet Protocol and Messaging over Internet Protocol is prohibited by T-Mobile. If use of either or both of these services is detected T-Mobile may terminate all contracts with the customer and disconnect any SIM cards and/or web n walk cards from the T-Mobile network.

Not only VoIP, but also IM is VERBOTEN. And because they cannot prevent it technically, they do it in the contract.

So no Skype, Jabber, Messenger, etc. not even with text messages.

They must have a lousy network, if even text messages are degrading it.

What applications will they block next? Video download from Warner Bros? Large File tranfer? VPNs?

This raises one question: is the contract really terminated. Since the above 20 quids are for a 18 month minimum contract, do they simply throw you out or do you have to pay the fully monty?

I suspect the latter, because otherwise this would be a nice way to get out of such a contract ;-)

Richard