Rogers steers customers away from public wi-fi: A symptom of usage-based billing?

Rogers is dissuading their customers from using public Wi-Fi networks (including their own), in order to promote their Internet sticks, report Michael Geist and Phillip Dampier of Stop The Cap (see below).

Rogers is dissuading their customers from using public Wi-Fi networks (including their own), in order to promote their Internet sticks, report Michael Geist and Phillip Dampier of Stop The Cap (see below).

With the start of almost universal usage-based billing (Internet metering) on the horizon, we wonder: could Rogers be seeking to jump ahead of the problems Internet metering will cause for those who share Internet connections?

Internet metering, for those who don't know, is a pricing system that imposes caps on Internet usage and charges punitive fees to those who use "too much Internet". And if you share an Internet connection, or don't have it properly secured, you're much more likely to exceed your usage cap. Coffee shops, libraries, universities, etc. that offer public Wi-Fi may be out of luck as well -- a metered Internet simply doesn't allow for sharing.

Article by Phillip Dampier for Stop The Cap:

Rogers, one of Canada’s largest telecom companies, will do anything to sell you their 3G wireless broadband Rocket Stick, even if it means scaring you away from using their own Wi-Fi hotspots.

Michael Geist, a popular columnist in Toronto, called Rogers about another matter, but the customer service agent soon began asking if Geist’s family used a laptop to access public Wi-Fi networks.

When I said that I did, he asked if I knew the dangers of using public Wi-Fi, which I was told included the possibility of hackers accessing my data or inserting viruses onto my computer. Given the risks, the agent continued, might I be interested in the Rogers’ Rocket Stick?

Geist was completely unimpressed with Rogers’ attempts at upselling through scare tactics.

“Mobile internet services are good products that can and should be sold on the basis of the convenience they provide, not by scaring consumers into thinking that alternative access services are unsafe,” Geist wrote.

More importantly, the irony of Rogers’ statements can’t be missed, as Geist notes:

• Rogers operates hundreds of public wifi hotspots across the country. When promoting its hotspots, it describes them as providing “high-speed, secure access to the Internet.”
• Rogers permits Internet tethering from many smartphones. Many users may find that tethering provides a more cost effective solution than purchasing yet another mobile Internet device. The agent did not mention this alternative.
• There are risks with public wifi, but those can be mitigated through a variety of steps on users’ computers. Advice on what do include Microsoft’s advice on public wifi networks, Lifehacker on how to stay safe on public wifi networks, and Ars Technica on staying safe at public hotspots. Read more »

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Read more at stopthecap.com

Sign the petition to stop Internet metering at http://www.StopTheMeter.ca

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