COSHOCTON, Ohio -- The actions of one person caused free wireless internet to be shut down in Coshocton, but as of Friday afternoon the service is back on.
Coshocton county official Michael LaVigne says the county decided to put in the free wi-fi service at the county courthouse about four years. The internet cloud stretches about 1000 feet from the courthouse. The service was put in so that business people from out of town could access the internet and residents could enjoy the service as they sat on the lawn of the courthouse.
LaVigne says the county was notified by its ISP that someone had downloaded an illegal movie, and requested that the county terminate the account or stop service for that individual. The ISP had been notified about the offense by Sony Pictures Entertainment. However, it was impossible for the county to identify the single person who had committed the offense. So rather than risk punishment, the county decided to shut down the service altogether.
LaVigne says the news of the shut down spread very quickly from D.C. to California in less than a week, and people from across the country bombarded Sony Pictures Entertainment with complaints about big companies picking on small towns. Finally, LaVigne explains that Jim Kennedy, SVP of Corporate Communications for Sony Pictures Entertainment, e-mailed the county and asked them to turn the wi-fi service back on because of the complaints. LaVigne says Kennedy promised the company would help the county identify ways to prevent similar offenses from happening in the future.
The county turned the wi-fi service back on this afternoon. The county commissioners will meet on Monday morning to discuss ways to prevent problems in the future.
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