Hilton fined by FCC for obstructing Wi-Fi blocking investigation

queviv | special for Paste BN

Hilton Hotels & Resorts has been fined for refusing to cooperate in an FCC investigation regarding the hotel chain allegedly using Wi-Fi blockers to prevent guests from accessing their own wireless internet devices, and forcing them to purchase the pricey offerings provided by the hotel. The complaint stems back to a 2014 incident at the Hilton in Anaheim, California.

Hilton will now be forced to pay $25,000 in fines, which is nothing compared to the $600,000 fine levied against Marriott last year for jamming customers' personal Wi-Fi access at a Nashville property.

According to the notice from the FCC:

In November 2014, the Enforcement Bureau (Bureau) began a Wi-Fi blocking investigation of Hilton Worldwide Holdings, Inc. (Hilton or Company) after receiving a complaint that the Hilton hotel in Anaheim, California blocked visitors’ personal Wi-Fi hotspots unless they paid the hotel a $500 fee for Hilton’s Wi-Fi. The Commission has also received complaints about other Hilton properties. To this day, however, Hilton has refused to comply with the Bureau’s Letter of Inquiry (LOI) ordering the Company to provide documents and information about its Wi-Fi management practices for all relevant Hilton properties."

The FCC also announced an even larger fine of $718,000 against electrical contractor M.C. Dean, Inc for blocking personal Wi-Fi hotspots at the Baltimore Convention Center in order to entice conference-goers into purchasing its wireless service. M.C. Dean, the FCC's announcement notes, was charging customers as much as $1,095 for internet access per event.

Travis LeBlanc, Chief of the FCC’s Enforcement Bureau, said of the fines:

“Consumers are tired of being taken advantage of by hotels and convention centers that block their personal Wi-Fi connections. This disturbing practice must come to an end. It is patently unlawful for any company to maliciously block FCC-approved Wi-Fi connections.”

A spokesperson for Hilton insists that the FCC is making a mountain out of a molehill, and says Hilton has in fact complied with requests to share information with the investigators:

"Throughout this inquiry, we have cooperated with the FCC, providing extensive background and details in a timely and efficient manner. We believe that the FCC has no basis for vastly expanding the initial inquiry based on a single complaint at a single Hilton hotel."

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