WiFi Hotspots To Expensive For Casual Use

Here's a column from the Hartford Courant making a point that we make here often enough: commercial WiFi hotspots are way too expensive. The prices are designed for people who are using them constantly - perhaps their only internet connection. If you just want to pop into Starbucks occassionally and check your email, it's way too pricey. The columnist points out the same thing that plenty of people have been saying now: free WiFi access is a promotional item that restaurants and cafes should use to draw in new customers. It's not a profit center. It's not core to their business, and it doesn't make sense to charge for it. If they keep it up, they'll continue to draw one or two people a day - when they could be offering free access, bringing in many more paying customers for their regular business.
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