WiFi access under threat

Experts are warning that details in the Digital Economy Bill could threaten free public WiFi access throughout the UK.

There are concerns that the penalties associated with the failure to comply with new requirements of the Bill could see providers of WiFi hotspots ceasing the service, in fear of the fines they will face if they break the rules.

Lilian Edwards, professor of internet law at Sheffield University, says the Digital Economy Bill could “outlaw open WiFi for small businesses.”

She told ZDNet: “This is going to be a very unfortunate measure for small businesses, particularly in a recession, many of whom are using open free WiFi very effectively as a way to get the punters in”.

She added “Even if they password protect, they then have two options – to pay someone like The Cloud to manage it for them, or take responsibility themselves for becoming an internet service provider effectively, and keep records for everyone they assign connections to, which is an impossible burden for a small café.”

As well as small businesses, public libraries and university campuses would have to adhere to the Bill. According to Lord Young, a minister at the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) exempting libraries “would send entirely the wrong signal and could lead to ‘fake’ organisations being set up, claiming an exemption and become a hub for copyright infringement.”

Share with others...