A Dorset resident has questioned why library WiFi users are met with a commercial homepage instead of public information — and says it could be changed “in minutes at no cost.”
David Partridge, of Bridport, says that anyone logging on to free WiFi in Dorset libraries is first taken to MSN — a Microsoft-operated platform carrying advertising, celebrity content and curated news.
When you connect to the free WiFi in a Dorset library, the first thing you see is not a library.
It is MSN - a commercial platform carrying advertising, celebrity content, and algorithmically curated news with a particular editorial slant.
This is not accidental. It is a configuration choice, baked into the library’s WiFi system, that sends every user to Microsoft’s platform the moment they connect.
It can be changed in minutes, at no cost.
I have been raising this with Dorset Council since August 2025.
Libraries Connected - the national body representing public library services - took the matter seriously enough to circulate it to all member library services within hours of hearing from me.
Cambridge and Devon have both configured their library WiFi to redirect users to locally relevant civic pages instead.
Dorset has not. A library’s first word to its users should not be an advert.
DAVID PARTRIDGE
Bridport
Should public library WiFi open with adverts, or with local information and services?
Have you used library WiFi in Dorset — what did you see when you logged on?
Do you think councils should control what users first see on public WiFi?
Would you prefer your library to direct you to council news, events and services instead?
Is this a minor technical issue, or does it say something bigger about the role of libraries today?
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