Local Commercial Hotspot Providers?

Yes, everyday there are another bunch of stories about another bunch of places getting WiFi hotspots. I'm trying to resist the urge to post them all, and focusing in on some of the more interesting ones or pulling out some of the trends. So, here's a story about a company that is launching a bunch of commercial hotspots in the Raleigh, North Carolina area under the "SitSpot" brand. The article (press release, really) doesn't give any details on things like pricing. It's a press release, so you expect it to hype things up a bit, but I'm still wondering what these sorts of businesses are thinking. Why are they starting up local hotspot deals when all the evidence says you simply can't make money charging for such things? They're going to end up competing against (a) free hotspots and (b) larger national providers. If they were doing something different, and innovative, they might have an argument, but these are clearly "me too" plays, in an arena that is going to get crowded fast.

Filed Under: wifi, wi-fi