uWireless Companies Have A Plan To Make Your Mobile Data Faster And Better… But It Might Break WiFir

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  Over the last couple of years we’ve all finally gotten used to 4G LTE being the mobile standard our phones use… so of course, the next network tech is already in development. The wireless companies’ plans for expanding LTE networks sound simple: piggyback off spectrum that’s sitting right there, available for anyone to use, so the metaphorical pipes can be bigger. Except that could cause big problems for basically all the wireless tech we already use.

  The new idea is called LTE-U, and there are a bunch of businesses fighting in Washington to have their say over how it comes to be.

  What is LTE-U?
  LTE-U is a new technology, still in development, that expands the networks mobile phones use to move data into the unlicensed (that’s the “U”) spectrum space.

  Great! And in English, that actually means…?
  The entirety of our modern data infrastructure, since the dawn of broadcast media over a century ago, relies on one basic principle of physics: information can travel through the air if you send and receive in certain parts of the electromagnetic spectrum.

  The full EM spectrum is admittedly rather large, but the specific set of frequencies where radio waves travel — which includes all the bands we use for radio, broadcast TV, WiFi, and mobile communications — are fairly limited. When too many things try to use the exact same frequency in close proximity to each other, the signals interfere and nothing works. So the FCC regulates who can use which stretches of frequencies, through licensing and auctions and so forth.

  For example, your favorite FM radio station has a very specific frequency you have to turn your digital dial to while you drive around. That broadcaster has a license from the FCC to use that frequency, and exactly that frequency, for radio. But WiFi is a little different. All of those wireless data networks, from public hotspots to your home router, occupy essentially the same set of waves: either the 2.4 GHz or 5 GHz band. You don’t need a license from the FCC to broadcast there, as it were; you just need your hardware (router, laptop, tablet, etc.) to meet approved specs.

  So what LTE-U does is kick over some cellular device connectivity into that 5GHz band where WiFi currently lives. Because it’s unlicensed territory, anyone can use it without first going through the FCC’s licensing process.

  Don’t we already have tech that moves mobile features over to WiFi?
  Yes, but they’re a little different.

  Sprint, T-Mobile, and AT&T all offer (or will shortly offer) WiFi calling on handsets that support the feature, including any iPhone running the latest versions of iOS. Rather than blending use of cellular tech and WiFi tech, those calls simply take place exclusively over WiFi when you dial.

  It’s also slightly different from plans like Cablevision’s Freewheel service, which only operates over WiFi, and doesn’t have an LTE or cellular component at all.

  LTE-U would basically bridge the two systems, drawing on the spectrum the WiFi infrastructure uses to boost LTE functionality.

  What are the benefits of LTE-U?
  Existing mobile tech, 4G LTE, is hitting the limits of its capability. For faster, stronger, better signals — something the rapidly expanding mobile market clearly can support and would use — businesses need new tech. So mobile manufacturers are saying, hey: look at this! We can boost existing LTE with this fancy new idea, and that will create more bandwidth that works faster and better so everyone can go stream more video, hooray.

  According to Qualcomm, one of the businesses developing and pushing LTE-U, the combination of licensed and unlicensed spectrum harnessed together in aggregate makes “the end-user’s experience seamless creating a fatter data pipe whenever a data boost is needed. In essence, users get an enhanced mobile broadband experience with all of the benefits of LTE Advanced.”

  In short, it’s a way of boosting networks. Consumers would get faster, more reliable mobile data and mobile businesses would get to save a lot of money, by using existing technology and infrastructure instead of having to build and deploy something entirely new.

  Okay, and what are the problems with LTE-U?
  That unlicensed spectrum isn’t empty; we’ve got WiFi in it. WiFi that people are using a lot. And that could pose a problem.

  The technical ways in which the current iterations of LTE-U access the unlicensed spectrum can interfere with the performance of tasks over WiFi. Instead of, basically, queuing neatly in the ether and waiting their turn, LTE signals can interrupt existing WiFi transmissions. Those interruptions could lead to degraded, lower-quality data and slower response times over the network.

  In other words, the worry is that if you are working along just fine streaming video to your tablet over WiFi, and someone on the other end of the room makes an LTE-U call, your video (or call, or upload, or game, or…) might stutter or cut out, which would drive every consumer crazy and have potential financial harms for some businesses.

  This sounds complicated. Who’s fighting it out over what happens next?
  The businesses most strongly favor of continuing to develop LTE-U as-is are the ones with a big stake in it: Qualcomm (which develops the chips that power the mobile phones), Nokia, Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile. Sprint did not file a comment with the FCC; however, the CTIA, a mobile industry trade group which includes Sprint among its many members, did — also in favor of LTE-U.

  The groups backing LTE-U formed a new lobbying venture at the end of September to try to convince the FCC to take their side.

  Businesses that stand to face harm, on the other hand, have expressed concerns to the FCC. Cablevision, which operates Freewheel exclusively over WiFi, wrote in their comments that the “incumbent licensed carriers have an economic incentive to use LTE-U and LAA [a similar technology] to undermine competition.”

  The NCTA, the trade group for the cable industry (and therefore, for most of the WiFi broadband providers) is also against the current iteration. “Without a dramatic change of course, both LTE-U and LAA will gravely harm the unlicensed ecosystem,” the NCTA’s comment explains.

  Consumer advocate groups, including the Open Technology Institute, Public Knowledge, Free Press, and Common Cause, also all urge caution, and back up Cablevision’s perspective that wireless carriers could use LTE-U in anticompetitive ways, and urge the FCC to push for “robust co-existence features in the tech.

  At the heart of all the comments, on both sides, is the “good neighbor” principle. Proponents of LTE-U say that polite network behavior that doesn’t trample anyone else can be baked into the system from the start; opponents have their very strong doubts that, absent regulation, businesses have any incentive or desire to do so. Comments in the middle more or less say that the good neighbor behavior needs to be taken into account, and encourage the FCC to make sure it is.

  But the FCC gets the final word, right? So what do they have to say?
  In remarks he gave in September, FCC chairman Tom Wheeler strongly encouraged the industry — or rather, industries, mobile and cable both — to come together to create one broad-based standards process that would work for everyone.

  Should the various technology businesses not feel like cooperating with each other, however, stronger FCC intervention would be called for. In the meantime, the commission has been collecting comments and information in an open docket.

  
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by Kate Cox via Consumerist

uMartinelli’s Recalls Mini Cider Bottles That May Give Off Sparkling Glass Chipsr

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• What is going on recently with apple cider and glass shards? First, bottles of Angry Orchard hard cider were found “re-fermenting” and creating extra pressure when opening, leading bottles to break or cider to overflow when opened. Now Martinelli sparkling fruit juices, the product you drink at celebrations at work because you aren’t supposed to have booze in the office, is being recalled because the bottles can chip at the opening, potentially pouring those chips into your glass.

  There’s only one size of sparkling non-alcoholic cider affected in this recall: the mini bottles are 8.4 ounces and styled to look like a small champagne bottle. Flavors of sparkling juice included in the recall are Gold Medal and Northwest Blend sparkling apple ciders, sparkling white grape juice, and sparkling red grape juice.

  If you have one of the affected bottles, you should bring them back to the store where they were purchased for a refund. If you have any questions, contact the company at 1-800-662-1868.

  Martinelli’s Sparkling Cider Mini Bottles Recalled for Possible Glass Fragments [Food Safety News]

  
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by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

uYou Can Buy The Right To Name A New Moth Speciesr

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• Calling all lepidopterists: if you’re obsessed with moths, now is your chance to name a newly discovered species whatever you want (might I suggest The MBQ?) — all you need is enough money to outbid the other moth fans out there.

  You can win clothing, electronics, collectibles and other products on eBay, so why not the naming rights to an entire species of insect? A moth that was discovered eight years ago at White Sands National Monument in New Mexico by entomologist Eric H. Metzler has finally reached the part of the approval process where it can finally get an official name, reports the Associated Press.

  Usually the person who discovers a new species is the one who chooses its moniker, but Metzler wanted to do something good for the Western National Parks Association. So he asked it to hold an online auction for the naming rights, and take the proceeds.

  “I am not a rich man and I don’t have a lot of money to give to charity but this is the way I could give them money in the form of service. I could use my brains to help them,” Metzler said.

  The bidding started at $500 on Saturday and ends Oct. 23. As of this writing, the highest bid is $5,800. That’s not too bad, considering you’ll probably be the only person anyone knows who’s gotten to name any kind of species.

  Once there’s a winner, Metzler will work with that person to Latinize the name, and it will then need to be approved by an international organization.

  This isn’t the first time wildlife has gotten a new name via auction: Nova Southeastern University auctioned off the naming rights to a new type of sea lily last year for $6,150.

  Public has chance to name new moth species [Associated Press]

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

uFacebook Will Now Alert You If You’re The Victim Of A Government-Sponsored Cyber Attackr

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  Are you sick of those boring old Facebook notices for birthdays, group updates, event invites, and even the occasional “poke” from someone who still thinks it’s 2007? Maybe you need some international intrigue to liven up your day. Thankfully, Facebook will be there to let you know if your profile has been targeted by a government-sponsored cyber attack.

  Friday evening, Facebook’s Chief Security Officer Alex Stamos posted that the company “will notify you if we believe your account has been targeted or compromised by an attacker suspected of working on behalf of a nation-state.”

  Stamos explains that Facebook will show the warning “if we have a strong suspicion that an attack could be government-sponsored. We do this because these types of attacks tend to be more advanced and dangerous than others, and we strongly encourage affected people to take the actions necessary to secure all of their online accounts.”

  Affected users will receive notices that read, “We believe your Facebook account and your other online accounts may be the target of attacks from state-sponsored actors.” They are then advised to turn on two-factor authentication through Facebook’s Login Approvals settings.

  What this does is send a security code to the user’s phone whenever someone logs onto their account from a new device or browser. That person would need that unique code to continue.

  Stamos warns users that people who receive these notices from Facebook may have a computer or mobile device that has been infected with malware.

  “Ideally, people who see this message should take care to rebuild or replace these systems if possible,” he writes.

  Perhaps the biggest frustration with these notices is that Facebook can’t really tell you much about them, even if you’re a target.

  “To protect the integrity of our methods and processes, we often won’t be able to explain how we attribute certain attacks to suspected attackers,” explains Stamos. “That said, we plan to use this warning only in situations where the evidence strongly supports our conclusion.”

  
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by Chris Morran via Consumerist

uDear Travelers: Please Don’t Choke Your Fellow Passengers Over Reclined Seatsr

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  Last fall, airlines suffered a spate of incidents in which travelers just couldn’t agree on the proper etiquette regarding reclining seats, leading to a number of trips being diverted mid-flight. While that unfortunate trend seemed to dissipate for a time, it’s apparently back, and more violent than before: a Southwest Airlines flight made an emergency landing this weekend after one passenger choked another over a reclined seat. 

  The Sunday evening flight, traveling to San Francisco, returned to Los Angeles when a fight broke out between two passengers, NBC News reports.

  Witnesses say the incident started shortly after takeoff when a man reportedly began choking the woman sitting in front of him, simply because she tilted back her seat.

  Crew came to the woman’s aid and the pilot took steps to return to Los Angeles. A spokesperson for the airline confirmed that the flight made the emergency landing, citing a “rapidly escalating situation” between two passengers.

  “Our initial information is that flight attendants swiftly coordinated with pilots on the flight deck to get the aircraft on the ground safely and quickly after a physical altercation by one passenger against another,” a spokesperson for the airline tells CNN.

  Upon returning to the airport, authorities met the plane at a gate. The FBI tells NBC News that an individual was detained, for questioning but no arrests have been made. The investigation is ongoing.

  The remaining 136 passengers were transferred to another plane and arrived in San Francisco early Monday, about five hours after their scheduled arrival time, CNN reports.

  Southwest Airlines passenger chokes woman for tilting her seat back [NBC News]
  Southwest Airlines flight turns back to LAX amid violence on board [CNN]

  
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by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

uHome Depot Customer Sues For $250K Over $28 Late Feer

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  Earlier this year, Home Depot charged an Oregon customer a $28 late fee for allegedly missing a payment on his store line of credit. The subsequent dispute over that fee resulted in more fees, a 100-point drop in the customer’s credit score and now a $250,000 lawsuit against the retailer.

  According to the complaint [PDF] filed earlier this month in Multnomah County, OR, the customer claims that until April 2015, he’d regularly paid his Home Depot bill in full each month.

  Then, after making a purchase of $115, the customer says he scheduled an online payment through his bank to pay the full balance on his card on April 26.

  This is where things get sticky. The customer claims that the transaction went through on time — or at the very least that it was “delivered within hours or minutes of that date,” which he deems “an immaterial delay.”

  Even so, he claims that the retailer hit him with the late fee. But according to the complaint, Home Depot has giving the customer varying accounts of when it actually received the payment — anywhere from 0 to 48 hours after it was due.

  The customer called for the late fee be erased from his account, but Home Depot denied his request.

  At this point, says the plaintiff, Home Depot “embarked upon a harassment campaign designed to bother, vex and leverage” the customer, resulting in allegedly dozens of automated phone calls.

  Even after the customer made requests for the calls to stop, he claims they continued in alleged violation of Oregon state laws against telephonic harassment.

  The customer also alleges that Home Depot interfered with his ability to refinance his home loan by falsely reporting the late fee — and the fees that have been added to that late fee — as unpaid debt to the credit reporting agencies.

  By insisting to the credit bureaus that the customer was late with payments on a monthly basis, his credit score dropped 100 points, according to the complaint.

  Alleges the lawsuit: “Home Depot knew this conduct was wrongful and knew its statements were inaccurate and misleading and made these statements in an attempt to leverage payment to which it was not entitled.”

  After he realized that the late fee dispute was going to impact his ability to refinance his mortgage, the customer says he offered to pay Home Depot, but says the retailer refuses to withdraw its previous statements to the credit bureaus.

  The lawsuit seeks a court order to correct his credit reports, $209 in damages for the money he paid to end the late fees, and another $250,000 in damages which the complaint says represents the additional interest the customer will have to pay because of the damage done to his credit.

  One potential problem with this lawsuit, as noted by the Oregonian, is that Home Depot’s brand may be on the credit card in question, but the actual servicing for the card is done by Citi.

  
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by Chris Morran via Consumerist

uMicrosoft Begging Windows 10 Users To Please Not Switch To Another Web Browserr

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  Microsoft really really wants customers to use Edge, the web browser that’s replacing Internet Explorer. So much so that it’s apparently willing to beg Windows 10 users who switch their default browers to say, Chrome or Firefox, to pretty please just give Edge a chance. Just a teeny tiny chance.

  A leaked Windows 10 preview spotted by The Verge shows a new prompt that pops up when users switch their default browser from Edge to something else, reading “give Microsoft Edge a shot.”

  To try to convince users, the dialog box informs people that you can write on webpages with Microsoft Edge, and it’s integrated with Cortana and has a reading view and rainbow sprinkles will shoot out of your computer every time you use it, showering you in sweet, candied love.

  “Don’t switch and try now,” the prompt reads, sending users to Edge instead of setting a rival browser as the default. The same sort of desperation appears when users attempt to switch other default apps, including photo and music apps, urging folks to stick with the built-in programs instead.

  This could always change, however, as this is a leaked build of a Windows 10 update that won’t ship for a few more weeks. Microsoft could decide it’s too proud to beg, or perhaps just change its tack.

  It could be a good move if Microsoft wants to avoid ticking off Mozilla and Google, considering the former already expressed its annoyance over the fact that the new version of Windows overrides current preferred apps by default, unless the user knows how to change this while installing Windows.

  Microsoft Begging Windows 10 Users To Not Switch To Another Web Browser [The Verge]

  
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by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist