T-mobile told a federal judge on Wednesday that it has the right to pick and choose which text messages are allowed to go out on its network.
T-mobile are currently being sued by EZ Texting — a provider of SMS short codes, eg those text “GRASS” to 420420 ads you see around — because T-mobile blocked EZ Texting from using the T-mobile network after a medical marijuana dispensary signed up for the service.
The case is notable, because it will ultimately decide whether mobile carriers are to fall under the same “must carry” obligations as wired carriers are.
T-mobile claim that they have the right to pre-approve every client on their network, in order “to protect the carrier and its customers from potentially illegal, fraudulent, or offensive marketing campaigns conducted on its network.”
They then claim that as EZ Texting failed to submit the dispensary for approval, T-mobile are within their rights to disconnect EZ Texting from their network. EZ Texting claim that the decision will destroy their business.
[via Gizmodo]