Internet Provider Blocking Website

[Guest]

http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Canada/2005/07/24/1145417-sun.html

An internet dialup service, in this case a telephone company, is blocking subscribers access to a website. They are not permitting access to the website of their own employees union, because there is a strike going on.

This has been something that has been long feared--that ISP's would block access to sites for their own business reasons.

Might your cable company block access to Yahoo but allow access to MSN because Microsoft is an investor in that cable company. Or block access to shopping sites that do not pay the ISP a cut of each transaction.

Whether you agree with unions and strikes is not the issue.

Should an ISP be allowed to decide what sites you cannot see?

 

[rgraham666]

No.

We don't agree that governments can do that. I see no reason why an ISP can.

 

[minsue]

That's chilling. Not surprising, but chilling just the same.

 

[Dar~]

I think that is really wrong. No one shoul be able to tell me what I can and cannot look at or research.

 

[Guest]

Anyone here a Telus customer?

 

[sophia jane]

Anyone here a Telus customer?

If I were, I wouldn't be anymore. The best way to piss me off is to tell me I can't do something.

SJ

 

[pop_54]

If I were, I wouldn't be anymore. The best way to piss me off is to tell me I can't do something.

SJ

You and me both love... they'd be past history in my bank statements by now... As Graham said we don't let our Governments do that sort of crap, so certainly not an internet provider company... although it was eventually bound to happen somewhere on the internet... maybe a case for breach of contract against the provider if they didn't make it clear in their selling blurb that they reserved the right to block individual sites for commercial reasons as well as mis-use.

 

[sophia jane]

Just cuz I can (tho it's not all that interesting) the blocked site


edited to add that Telus probably harmed their cause more than they imagined they could by blocking the union site. International coverage of their censorship can't be good for negotiations.

SJ

 

[impressive]

It's all in the fine print. No doubt their lawyers poured over it to ensure it fell within the "terms of service."

 

[Liar]

Should an ISP be allowed to decide what sites you cannot see?

Only if they're very upfront with it. Then you can tell them to fuck off, and they'll lose customers. Hopefully they'll lose a bundle of them over the bad publicity.