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WiFi At Logan Airport Leads To Turf War
lucabrasi999 writes "Yahoo News is running an Associated Press story on how Boston's Logan International Airport is the site of a battle between the Massachusettes Port Authority and Continental Airlines. Seems that Massport, which runs a pay wireless service at the airport, doesn't want Continental to provide free wireless service to the members of its frequent flier club. Massport claims Continental's free service interferes with its pay service. This battle is now in the hands of the FCC." From the article: "Last month, a Massport attorney warned the airline that its antenna 'presents an unacceptable potential risk' to Logan's safety and security systems, including its keycard access system and state police communications. Massport told the airline it could route its wireless signals over Logan's Wi-Fi signal, at a 'very reasonable rate structure.' In response, however, Continental said using Logan's Wi-Fi vendor could force the airline to start charging its customers for the service."
how about using all this time and energy towards getting me from the ticket counter to the air in a reasonable amount of time, so i don't need WiFi access in the terminal
Everything is easy when you don't understand the problem.
I understand that the FCC is probably the only recourse for the aggrieved party [poor little Logan Airport], however, has the FCC not essentially said that it does not interfere in matters for wifi and other unlicensed bands? I thought that by making it unlicensed, they essentially do not apportion spectrum or rule in matters of its use.
Seems like a matter for nuisance law, rather than the FCC, which would be much more fun and allow for comparisons to pig farms and "noxious vapors".
In Vino Veritas
Massport may be bluffing, in order to have an excuse to shoulder out their competition and have monopoly status.
That said, they may not be bluffing, in which case, any terrorist with a little knowledge regarding computer networks now has access codes to all of the airports secure areas! This is regardless of Continentals role, since their network, in all likelihood, has no interraction with these systems.
Either way, Massport looks like a bunch of jerks.
Do you run your security system, keycards, and police radios all on unlicensed 2.4Ghz spectrum? I doub't it (and if you do, you have to share it just like everyone else.. Part 15 regs). They're trying to cop out some pitiful sounding reasons to stifle competition..
Lord High Crapflooder The Right Honourable Vlad Craig Esther McDavenpherson III
Destroyer of Mercatur.Net
WiFi is not for critical services.
WiFi IS NOT for critical services.
WIFI IS NOT FOR CRITICAL SERVICES.
It seems to me like the airport made sure to put something important over WiFi so that they could try to exclude everyone else. As far as I understand it, in Wifi interference is not a concern of the FCC, so long as you are below power limits. It is on an open band, and anyone can do anything there. Taking an unlicensed service and putting important infrastructure on it is an attempt to grab control of it for yourself only.
Now, someone please let BPL providers know about this too. I already heard musings about putting critical control systems on BPL, and I imagine in a few years HAM's will be getting nailed for causing interference from a licensed device (amateur radio) to an unlicensed.
Massport is claiming that the reason Continental can't have their antenna is it presents a risk to their security systems. Basically, they are claiming it can cause interference. Well, that's the FCC's domain, when one system interferes with another, the FCC gets to decide who gets to do what. Like cell phones are fully FCC approved, but cannot be used on planes because the FCC has determined they can interfere with the plane's operation (nevermind that they don't work anyhow, you're too high).
What it looks like to me is Massport is angry that Continental is giving it away, but there's probably nothing in Continental's lease that prohibits it. So they are trying to play the "screws with our systems" card. My bet? It doesn't and the FCC will say it's fine.
When you have a scarce but unregulated resource, in this case, spectrum, you wind up with the tragedy of the commons.
Here's the way I see it:
Either
1) it's a free for all, which, legally speaking, it probably is, and both parties are free to jam each other to death,
OR
2) there is a legitimate threat to security and it goes to court, in which case a judge will either order the security officials to use other frequencies or order EVERYONE else off of them,
OR
3) the two sides will come to some kind of agreement, and agreement NOT binding on anyone else in the airport, which means we'll go back to 1 or 2 anyways.
Knowledge is how to play a game, intelligence is how to win, wisdom is knowing what game to play.
Oh damn, so any time a story is posted on Fark it should be held off of slashdot? Like when September 11th happened slashdot should have been all like, "whoa, Fark beat us to it, I guess our users won't get a chance to discuss this major event." If it is an interesting story, Slashdot should be able to post it without assuming everyone here reads fark simultaneously.
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WHO ATE MY BREAKFAST PANTS?
That's easy: Massport knows that the Logan reps are filthy fucking liars making a financially expedient but logically inconsistent argument in order to take out the competition. Proceed to Step 3.
The type of behavior really disgusts me.
I suggest making things really ugly: Sue the airport for putting its passengers at risk. Performing functions that are critical to security using equipment that can be made to malfunction by interference in an unregulated spectrum is clearly negligent for an airport. Their statement to Continental Airlines regarding their secuirty concerns is proof that they're aware of this risk but have no intention of correcting it. If Continental's wifi system represents a security risk, then so does anyone with a laptop or PDA equipped with a wifi adapter.
I love the free wifi service at PDX. Its fast and it is everywhere at the airport. Could the Bostonians please ask the Portland people how they did it?
Maybe technology and security is not the problem, but greed is?
There are too many businesses benefitting from the "terror threat". It would seem to me that they would benefit somewhat from the threat not going away. People can easily be convinced to pay more for everyday stuff in exchange for "security" from terrorists.
Come to think of it, some politicians too have recently used the terrorists to their advantage. They claim to have special talents for fighting terrorism. <sarcasm> Evidenced by recent global decline in terrorism. </sarcasm>
I don't get Massport's claim at all. Continental and Massport are both using WiFi, which is 802.11. Massport claims that their system doesn't interfere with their system but Continental's does? This leaves two possibilities:
1. Massport is using a different frequency or media sharing technology that's different from Continental's WiFi.
2. Massport is full of shit.
But if Massport is using a different system than 802.11, then how can their customer expect to use their WiFi devices with their APs? That leaves only one conclusion. Massport is full of shit.
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Unfortunately, Huge-Ass Corporation already has the World Bank and the US government (NAFTA & CAFTA) on its side in this regard. Replacing municipal government services, such as water & sewer and road & facilities maintenence, with for-profit multinational corporate services is already on the agenda of every government beholden to the World Bank for their survival through loans. Forcing open competition for municipal services is the "not quite hidden in fine print" vigorish. The double-whammy to those same economies occurs when they are forced to accept American IP laws (like extended US patents on generic pharmacuticals) and the DCMA.
Of course, the Dubya regime already considers anyone who violates US copyright or IP patents to be terrorists. So any non-G8 member state that either encourages (or doesn't discourage) these violations can expect free extended vacations for their government officials or corporate lumenaries in such exotic locales as Guantanamo Bay, Egypt, Syria, or Turkey. The truth about Dubya's corporate national socialism sort of takes the wind out of the sails of those neo-Con(artists) that proclaim their love of, and dedication to, free enterprise.