European WiFi Study Predicts Good Things For Hotspots
A study of the European hotspot market suggests that they'll be rolling in cash before too long, but doesn't seem to explain how. There have been plenty of complaints concerning the ridiculous prices most European hotspots currently charge, but very few have spoken about competition from free WiFi in Europe. While there are plenty of stories in the US about shops and restaurants offering free WiFi, it's unclear (from here, at least) how popular it is in Europe. Still, you have to wonder how anyone is going to make that much money from subscription based WiFi going forward. The trends are pretty clear that there's going to be tremendous downward pricing pressure on anyone who operates hotspots, and the bottom of that barrel is free. That doesn't mean there's no reason to offer WiFi, as many free providers have discovered it helps bring in more business. However, it does make me skeptical about predictions for high subscription revenue for hotspots.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
