Marriott fined $600,000 for jamming guests' Wi-Fi

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20141003/us--marriott_jamming_wifi-5e33ef1d0c.html

Oct 3, 2:06 PM (ET)
By SCOTT MAYEROWITZ

Marriott International will pay the government a $600,000 fine for jamming conference attendees' own Wi-Fi networks at one of its hotels, forcing them instead to pay as much as $1,000 each to use the hotel's own connection.

Frequent travelers often carry personal Wi-Fi hotspots — tiny devices that can connect to the Internet via cell phone towers. For $50 a month, they can connect to the Internet on the move, often avoiding hefty fees charged by hotels, airports and conference facilities. Last year, a conference attendee at the Gaylord Opryland Resort and Convention Center in Nashville, Tennessee — which is managed by Marriott — found that the hotel was jamming their device in its ballrooms and complained to the Federal Communications Commission. In the complaint, the guest noted that it had happed previously at another Gaylord property.

The FCC said Marriott charged conference exhibitors $250 to $1,000, per device, to use the Gaylord's Wi-Fi connection. The FCC declined to release the initial guest complaint except if requested under the Freedom of Information Act, a process that can often take weeks.

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