The WiFi Porn Party Is Over At American Airlines
American Airlines has changed its mind about its liberal anti-porn-filtering policy and will, indeed, attempt to stop that guy in a trench coat from downloading naughty content.
Why did it change its mind? Who knows. Previously, the plan was to let flight attendants be the porn police and instead only block Skype and other internet phone services.
Now the Dallas Morning News says:
American said that it is working with Aircell LLC "to implement technology to filter pornographic content over the Gogo inflight Internet service."
Delta will also be filtering porn when it launches its own WiFi service.
American to filter out porn on its Wi-Fi [DMN via Gothamist]
(Photo: benh57 )
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Comments:
@Dooley:
Actually, I must say that the service is rather decent, considering that you're 35,000 feet in the air. I had the opportunity to use the GOGO service last week on my flight from NY to LA, and I ran a speed-test..
I got 2500 down, 250 up. Not bad!!!
I was able to stream video from ABC.COM and watch the premiere episode of "Life on Mars" which came through clean as a whistle.
I would probably be a little uncomfortable if the passenger next to me was watching porn, so I'm all for this move.
To whom is downloading porn such an important aspect of their life that they can't take a break from it for a couple of hours?
"GoGo Inflight Internet Service" without smut? Oh the irony.
@humphrmi: I think you're looking at it wrong. It's not SO important... it's just, you're bored, you have your laptop and no common courtesy, and BAM! Porn on a plane.
Did I miss something? Were people watching online porn during flights or something? Airlines truly have become the Greyhound Buses of the skies.
The sad thing about the filtering is that you know there's going to be some surgeon flying from NY to LA and they can't review some medical site because the filters think it's porn.
Great, now I won't be able to read Salon or Boingboing or thousands of other legitimate sites that are blocked by this sort of filter. "Porn" filters make wifi spots virtually useless-- I often can't even check my email or read a newspaper. I assume the airline would charge for use of the service, so a lot of travelers may be demanding refunds when they find out they can't reach the sites they need.
I agree you shouldn't watch porn on an airplane, but commonly used filters block way too much.
I still don't see how this will help. If you want to watch porn on the flight, just make sure it is stored on your hard drive? No?
you mean there's other stuff on the net besides porn? who knew...
As Alexei said, I don't like these filters because they block several legitimate sites.
But then it is pretty easy to circumvent so F' them.
@humphrmi: To the same people who buy Hustler in the airport news stands.
Speaking of which, is there any rule against viewing porn in print form or viewing porn that has already been downloaded to a laptop?
Ehhh, do what many people do that have porn sites blocked...
DL to their own site in a directory only they can reach, then surf that locale.
No filters on it...
Can users connect to proxy servers over these connections? If so, most any filter can be bypassed.
@Dooley: I was actually pretty suprised that airlines were rolling this out. Airlines generally have an interest of keeping you ignorant of what is going on in the world outside the plane at that moment. Finding out about deaths, politics, the economy, etc. at 35,000 ft. doesn't always end with quiet dignity.
Although I don't want to see others porn on a flight I really don't want to fly on an airline that makes moral choices for me.
Does anyone think about anyone but themselves anymore?
Jeese, if you need to "spank it" on a flight go to the bathroom and watch something you downloaded on your hard drive.
Yay! Something thatnever was a problem, and would never be a problem, was averted! Next issue, installing anti-Mothra missiles on the plane.
@Dooley: Refreshing Consumerist 200 times an hour, duh. What better way to post a rant about the airline industry then while flying on an airplane.
@humphrmi: I worked for a while implementing a porn filter for internal use at a telecom. You might be surprised at the volume that was coming across the network. Some people literally spent 6 hours of their 8 hour work day actively surfing porn of all kinds even after they had been alerted by HR that internet use monitoring had started.
That was a fun, fun job.
@quail:
The sad thing about the filtering is that you know there's going to be some surgeon flying from NY to LA and they can't review some medical site because the filters think it's porn.
I can't imagine why that would matter.
Flight Attendant: OMG THIS GUY IS CHOKING! DOCTOR! DOCTOR!
Surgeon: I'm a doctor.
Flight Attendant: SAVE HIM!
Surgeon: Okay. Let me quickly look up the correct procedure on WebMd.com
FIREWALL: Request Denied. This site has pictures of penises and vaginas.
Surgeon: NOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!
Although I don't want to see others porn on a flight I really don't want to fly on an airline that makes moral choices for me.
How do you determine what is and isn't a moral choice? People scream "MORALITY POLICE" when porn is restricted on a semi-public airplane flight where minors could be present, but barely a peep was made when all the airlines banned smoking.
I think some people just enjoy protecting porn.
Without Porn, I guess I will have to join the Mile High Club the old fashioned way
And their excuse for blocking VOIP is what?
The airline isn't making a moral choice for you. It's saying that watching porn in public is not appropriate. And I completely agree, with the added caveat that it's not good anywhere.
Those of you whining about airlines encroaching upon your freedom, try going into any store shirtless or shoeless and see what happens. It's called public decency and basic respect for human dignity.
Whats the whole point of this anyways. I can bring a Laptop in with the DVD "Debbie Does Dallas", does the Porn filter stop that? Of course not.
...pointless
What I don't understand is how your wireless devices, which interfered with the plane's navigation system only two months ago, are now totally safe to use on the plane.
Did someone sneak into my house in the night and replace my laptop's wifi card with an "airplane safe" model or something?
@InfiniTrent: Banning smoking doesn't inadvertently block people from inhaling other things. Blocking porn almost always results in blocking "innocent" sites as well.
@quail: Seriously, if your relying on an airline's 'free' WiFi to get your work/research done before you get to your destination...well maybe you really aren't qualified for your own job.
@AzaleaMachaon: The same reason so many people protested when they talked about setting up micro-cell sites for cell phones. People have an aversion to hearing other people's telephone conversations. I've never understood why this bothers them so much more than conversations with people in the next seat, or screaming children, but apparently it does.
Why is wifi available on a plane to begin with? People need to shut up and read a book or quietly give their boyfriend a handjob under the AA blanket.
I can't imagine that people are downloading porn in transit -- wouldn't the connection on a plane be too slow/dodgy for that to work well?
@GuinevereRucker: So saying something is not appropriate, is not a moral choice? Right....
Also, no shirt/no shoes in a store is a health issue, not a public decency issue. It is not illegal to go barefoot or shirtless in public.
@jag164: A surgeon might be a bit rusty on proper first aid, given that all they do all day is cut people up, not preform the hiemlich.
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Exactly. Next time I fly American I am so playing some loud ass porn off my HD through my headphones so the attendants will know exactly what I am watching.
This isn't a moral choice the airlines are making, it's a legal liability choice. If you were sitting in a public park watching porn on your laptop (and likely even if you were doing it in your car where no one could see what you were watching) you would be at best cited for public indecency, more likely arrested. It's illegal.
I have no problem with people watching all the porn they want in private, but once it's in public you are infringing on the rights of others to not watch it.
Let me guess, now flight waitresses can have you charged with computer terrorism along with interference of a flight crew at the drop of a hat....
I can't believe that anyone would make a conscious decision watching pornography on an airplane, and think it's somehow okay to decide to want to do that irregardless of the people around. It doesn't matter if its on a laptop, or an iPod, whatever... I agree with the airline's decision. I think public decency, especially in an enclosed area like a rocketing aluminum tube, should hold some precedence.
@silver-bolt: It's not a health issue, though; people just like to phrase it as such because we don't like to talk about etiquette any more. There's nothing that you'd catch from man-nipples that you wouldn't catch from man-arms. It's just a cultural thing.
The point missed here is that as a user of their service, you agree to be bound by whatever (reasonable) terms of service they set. If it includes pr0n filters, that's the end of the discussion. If you feel like they are the morality police because you are 'entitled' to watch porn wherever you like, you are off base - the point of that policy is to make the experience less likely to cause problems for other passengers. The same as refusing alcohol service, for example.
Frankly, if a person is so focused on their need to watch this type of material when sitting inches away from total strangers, I'm pretty sure they have their own cache of material at their disposal already downloaded.
@revmatty: Rights of others to not watch it? Wouldn't they be able to excersize that right by... you know, not looking? If someone's not holding a gun to your head, noone's infringing on your ""right to not watch porn""
No VOIP, no PORN, what's left?