With Starbucks Move and Widespread 3G, Who Pays for Wi-Fi at Hotspots?
Starbucks switch on July 1st to all-free service in the US leaves paltry few American users to pay at a dwindling number of fee-based destinations: Starbucks is the latest entry to the free party, deciding the Wi-Fi is an expected amenity to attract customers, rather than an exceptional service for which the coffee chain should be expected to receive some benefit. Although free Wi-Fi took a long time to ignite, the drop in price for 3G cellular data along with cheaper smartphones and the 3G model of the iPad likely mean free will ultimately trump fee. AT&T’s been a big help in that direction, both in decreasing 3G costs and in making Wi-Fi freely available to its customers. That trend really started in 2008, when Starbucks moved to AT&T’s network, and started offering limited free service with a Starbucks Card. That represented a significant expansion of AT&T hotspot network. AT&T purchased Wayport, which operated McDonald’s network and well over 1,000 hotel properties and a few airpor
