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Does AT&T Hate The First Amendment?
According to Gizmodo, AT&T has modified its Terms of Service in such a way that could allow the carrier to drop customers who say things that the company doesn't like. Holy 1984, Batman.
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According to Gizmodo, AT&T has modified its Terms of Service in such a way that could allow the carrier to drop customers who say things that the company doesn't like. Holy 1984, Batman.Here is a look at the offending addendum to AT&T's Terms of Service:
AT&T may immediately terminate or suspend all or a portion of your Service, any Member ID, electronic mail address, IP address, Universal Resource Locator or domain name used by you, without notice, for conduct that AT&T believes...(c) tends to damage the name or reputation of AT&T, or its parents, affiliates and subsidiaries.
As I read this -- and please note that I am not a lawyer (nor do I play one on TV) -- AT&T has the right to drop any customer who says things about it that the carrier does not like. Now, I don't know about you, but as an American, I take it as a God-given right to complain about anyone I do business with, especially if the service they're giving me is below my expectations. On the other side of the coin, I usually go out of my way to praise those who give me excellent customer service (as well as those companies that adopt practices that I personally approve of).
Does this mean that AT&T could discontinue my service for some of my blog entries? I am not an AT&T customer, but if I were, might I suddenly wake up one day with no cell phone service because I wrote something that AT&T didn't like?
What do you think? Does AT&T have the right to add this to their Terms of Service? Is this a violation of its customers' constitutional rights?
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