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INTERNET SHARING OVER 802.11 WIRELESS NETWORKS
This is a reformatted document of an email I sent to the ACA in
August 2003 and it's response. Apologies and thanks to Gary Fraser of
the ACA's Licensing and National Interests Team. -- TomFifield [1]
-------------------------
Greetings.
I am just enquiring in an attempt to try to finalise the legal issues
surrounding the sharing of an Internet Connection on an 802.11-Based
Wireless Network, on the 2.4Ghz ISM band.
IS IT LEGAL TO JOIN NETWORKS OR MACHINES, USING 802.11 EQUIPMENT, IN
SUCH A WAY THAT A WAN CONNECTION WITH INTERNET ACCESS, FOR EXAMPLE A
RESIDENTIAL XDSL INTERNET CONNECTION, IS EFFECTIVELY SPLIT BETWEEN TWO
PREMISES?
Tom,
I understand from your email that you propose to use a network unit
to supply Internet access via wireless to other users. The network is
therefore being used to supply carriage services (data is a carriage
service)to the public. The concept of supplying to the public is
discussed in section 44 of the Telecommunications Act 1997 (the Act),
and in that regard you are supplying ouside your "immediate circle".
Section 41 states that the owner of a network unit that is used to
supply carriage services to the public must hold a carrier licence.
However as long as you are not receiving any monetary payment or
other form of tangible reward from the supply of carriage services
over the network unit you can claim exemption on the grounds of
'non-commercial' use in regard to section 34 of the Act , being the
use of a base station which is part of a terrestrial
radiocommunications customer access network .
Note that the exemption on the grounds of 'non-commercial' use is
only available in regard to the use of a designated radiocommunication
facility which is a base station that is part of a terrestrial
radiocommunications customer access network. This means that an
exemption on the grounds of 'non-commercial' use cannot be claimed for
single line links or multiple line links.
THE PERSONS INVOLVED WILL NOT BE DOING THESE ACTIVITIES IN A
FOR-PROFIT RELATIONSHIP, HOWEVER, IF THE TWO PARTIES AGREED TO SAY,
\'HALF THE BILL\', WOULD THIS ALSO AFFECT THE ISSUE?
However, the splitting of the bill with your neighbour would not
qualify as 'non-commercial' as you are gaining an advantage by
providing the service to your neighbour. He will be paying for half
the cost of supply which is an advantage to you. You would need to
supply your neighbour for free to be classified as non-commercial.
DOES DISTANCE OF THE PREMISES COME INTO THE EQUATION? ARE VERY SMALL
GAPS(I.E. NEXT-DOOR NEIGHBOURS) LEGAL, WHERE OTHERS ARE NOT?
Statutory distances are not applicable in regard to designated
radiocommunications. The signal only needs to be between two points.
However line links, such as cable, are restricted by statutory
distances between distinct places.
WHAT WILL MY ISP SAY ?
I would also caution you that the ISP or the provider of the ADSL
line may have some concern regarding what you propose. I am certainly
not qualified to comment, however you may want to look at the service
agreements with these entities.
Regards
Gary Fraser
Licensing and National Interests Team
DISCUSSION
BE CAREFUL WHAT YOU ASK
I'm not certain we got the answer we wanted, and I think if the
question was asked from a different perspective then a different
answer would be given.
* What if I live at two premises (perhaps one during the week, and
another during the weekend) and want to split the connection between
my own two premises?
* What if I were a parent and want to provide internet access to my
children who are renting close to the university they are studying at?
* Is legal to share internet access on a single premises with
non-family members? How do students who are house-sharing get around
this if this is illegal?
-- TysonClugg [2]
DISCUSSION REOPENED
I am trying to revive this discussion in the framework of FAUC
(Future AUstralian Carrier).
* Facebook | FAUC (Future Australian Carrier) Interest Group | A few
thoughts on where to direct ire [3]
-- Sjors
Links:
------
[1] http://melbournewireless.org.au/?TomFifield
[2] http://melbournewireless.org.au/?TysonClugg
[3]
http://www.facebook.com/topic.php?topic=4676&post=13090&uid=24899134121
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