UPDATE: A Verizon spokesperson has since responded to Ars Technica, which first reported the news, and said it would provide Tully Free Library an account credit for the full amount of $880.33. “We are crediting the customer’s account and have reached out to let them know.”
Original Story:
Libraries do their fair share of bill collection what with all the overdue fines patrons rack up. Sometimes, however, it’s the library that ends up on the receiving end.
Take the Tully Free Library. It recently received a shocking surprise in its monthly Verizon bill. The Library was dinged $880 for a mere 440 megs of wireless data, thanks to a combination of re-tooled contracts and exorbitant roaming penalties, Ars Technica reported.
Tully is a quiet New York town about a half hour south of Syracuse in Onandoga county. Its population of just under 2,800 is served (appropriately enough) by the Library.
Like many areas in the U.S., there’s a decent population in Onondoga county that doesn’t have access to quality high speed Internet access. The Library came up with a way to help those folks out: lending out mobile hotspots free of charge.
For a long time, things worked beautifully. Users checked the devices out and surfed to their hearts’ content. Then came the new contract.
Two important things changed. The first was that unlimited data went away. With a cap of 25GB on full speed data, the Library had to started advising patrons to limit their Internet use. No more streaming video. No more software downloads.
The other big change: Verizon switched the Library’s international roaming preference. It had been blocked on the original contract.
That’s a bit of a dangerous situation in Onondoga county because of its proximity to the Canadian border. U.S. carriers are more than happy to charge international roaming fees as soon as a device pings a tower in Canada.
All it took was one Tully Fee Library patron crossing over to take a friend to the airport with a hotspot in his car. Less than half a gig later, the library was on the hook for $880 in roaming charges.
Ars Technica points out that amount is more than half the Library’s annual budget for the hotspots. Ars also notes that Verizon offers an international plan that includes 500mb of data for about $70 a month… so it sure seems like they could cut the Tully Free Library a break here.
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