New York cable co gets heavy on wireless

NEWS US cable companies are getting tough on customers who set up wireless access points to allow free internet access to neighbours and passers by. Time Warner Cable in New York City has sent 10 customers letters asking them to shut down their wireless access points or face disconnection, according to Cnet. The company is planning to send out more such letters, and AT&T Broadband is preparing a similar message, according to the site. Wireless networks based on the 802.11b standard are becoming an increasingly popular means of sharing internet connections. However, these public access points effectively allow customers to have several broadband connections for the price of one - a situation that the telcos may not tolerate for long, as they seek to maximise their subscriber numbers and roll out 802.11b networks of their own. A spokesman for UK cable company Telewest said: "We have not experienced any issues with customers attempting to share our broadband internet services in this way. However, our terms and conditions state clearly that customers who are abusing their broadband internet service may have their connections suspended or even terminated." Other UK broadband providers were not able to return our requests for comment.