Google offers its excuses for blocking phone calls
INTERNET SERVICES JUGGERNAUT Google has offered its excuses to the FCC in an ongoing row with AT&T over allegations that it blocks phone numbers on its VoIP service Google Voice.
The company released a response to the FCC on Wednesday explaining how Google Voice works and why it blocked certain numbers.
Though much of the letter replied to FCC inquiries about how Google Voice operates, the company also answered commission questions on reports that it blocked some phone numbers, possibly in violation of FCC rules.
In the letter [PDF], Google explained that it blocked around 100 numbers that it believed were connected with a "sex chat" billing scam the company had described earlier this month.
Google said the phone numbers in question accounted for only 1.1 per cent of its traffic but were racking up over 25 per cent of its operating expenses.
Google said it found that calls were being routed to carriers in rural areas that were charging excessive connection and termination fees. The company said it filtered out the offending numbers in its Google Voice service in order to protect itself.
"Google Voice now maintains a restricted list only for those specific telephone numbers that match our data filters and appear to be associated with local carriers and associated businesses generating substantial in-bound traffic," the letter read.
"We utilize a look-up table which is checked on every outbound call to determine if the number being requested is inactive."
The response is the latest in what has become an ongoing tussle between Google, AT&T and the FCC over the voice service. AT&T has accused Google of violating net neutrality rules by blocking the numbers, but Google maintains that it is using a perfectly legal method that other carriers also use to counter billing scams. µ
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We cancelled our mobile cell phone service because O2 was blocking calls to a local access number for my prepaid calling card. I strongly urge neutrality as a matter of policy.
Would make more sense they'd call the cops or sued when they are being scammed, it's not like they can't afford a lawyer.
Thinking of blocking as a first response is something someone that is evi.. wait they say they aren't 'evil' so that can't be it.
Yes, calling the cops might get the fraudsters in jail, but that does not mean that Google gets the money back from the scammers.
It is so common practice that companies take measures to reduce their losses to crime that it would reflect bad on Google if they did not stop the leak. Going through the trouble to recoup the money generally isn't worth it as it most likely will be spent. So best is to give the fraudsters no money at all in the first place.
It are not illegal services, they are just stretching the law to its fullest.
Its whit like some of the SMS services, most of them follow more ore less esthetically rules but some of them abuse the system to its fullest and try to get top dollar for minimum service
So Google can only block them, suing them would be pointless