Would you pay for WiFi Hot Spot Access?

Wombat · 04-05-2003

With all the news about all kinds of companies wanting to set up WiFi Hot Spots for paying customers I was wondering . . .

Would any of us choose to sit in a coffee shop, restaurant, fast food outlet, bookstore, or other place in order to surf, or just surf at home?

jgb1503 · 04-05-2003

I do a lot of traveling, so I love it when I can jump on the net and check my email and such. I would much rather use a free community netowrk or hotspot, but i would pay to use one, depending HIGHLY on the costs involved..

agentgrn · 04-06-2003

Quote:

Originally posted by Wombat
Would any of us choose to sit in a coffee shop, restaurant, fast food outlet, bookstore, or other place in order to surf, or just surf at home?

If I were in a place where I could chill out, enjoy some java, and not worry about getting booted, I'd pay for hotspot access...something small like $2-$3 for the day.

It DOES have to be accessible for however long I choose to sit though...some places like to shuffle customers out the door to make room for more...and that's just wrong.

Hotspot access for a decent sitting should cost less than the coffee does, IMHO.

blackwave · 04-07-2003

Quote:

Originally posted by Wombat
Would any of us choose to sit in a coffee shop

you bet, but most places i have seen here in irvine already offer it, and those that don't are in the plans of doing so

but I certainly don't mind if they raise their coffee prices to balance out the wifi costs... but I don't hang out more than a few times a month... so not too sure how accounting would handle it... if i did have to pay i would certainly expect some feature such as ssh-vpn reliability so others nearby couldn't sit there and sniff my packets..

LNB · 04-12-2003

I don't pay for TV and I think wireless should be free also... there are plenty of advertisers on it so ,,, why should there be a charge... I think it should be subsidized by the gov... ha LMAO... seriously,, it should be free.. that was the whole concept of the internet... I don't think anyone should hack into other peoples computers or files,, but it should be legal to use some bandwith if it is available and not harming anyone... if it is in the air,, it should be as free as the oxygen we breathe..

Mr.White · 04-12-2003

Quote:

it should be free.. that was the whole concept of the internet

A great many people would agree with you. That is why they set up publicly accessable APs and advertise that fact that the access is free. The number of open public APs grows every day.

Quote:

but it should be legal to use some bandwith if it is available and not harming anyone... if it is in the air,, it should be as free as the oxygen we breathe..

But your ideals of a free internet do not give you free reign to access networks you deem "available". If it's clearly marked for free access, then surf away. If it is a misconfigured or out-of-the-box AP with it's fly open, does not mean it's free.

I think water should be free. Christ, there's enough of it to go around. But that does not give me the right to water my lawn with my neighbors hose. He is paying for that service. Therefore, HE gets to decide how it is used. If he wants to wash everybody's car, it's up to him. It is not up to me or anybody else to tell anybody what THEY are supposed with the services they pay for.

P.S. The internet was not created to spread hippie love. It was developed for the military as a military tool.

LNB · 04-12-2003

If your neighbors hose was spraying your lawn,,then you would use it wouldn't you,,, just joking,, man you guys take everything too seriously,, if you look at what i meant,, as long as you aren't causing problems,, with thier service,, then I don't think it should be illegal,, now if you were,, then you should get popped..besides,,there are ways to prevent unauthorized use so why make it illegal to use "authorized AP's..mine is open to anyone who finds it..my computers and network is locked downso unless they are outside in my driveway,,causing my network to be overload or whatnot,, not carying on illegal net activity,, then surf away...

phighgate · 04-12-2003

Sure I'd pay for it, as long as the price was reasonable. There are t-mobile hotspots all over town here in starbucks, but the price is just way out of line (not to mention the scary bandwidth costs when you go over the cap on their metered service).

I do travel quite a bit, and would love to see a nationwide wireless ISP that serves all the major airports/hotels for a reasonable price. But $40 a month for something that I may use 8-10 times a month, at best, just doesn't seem like a good deal.

View Poll Results: Would You Pay for WiFi HotSpot Access
Yes	6	17.14%
No	10	28.57%
No, surfing is why I go to work	6	17.14%
Yes, in order to do things using someone ELSE's IP	1	2.86%
Yes, especially when traveling.	12	34.29%
Voters: 35. You may not vote on this poll

04-05-2003	#1 (permalink)
Wombat Registered Member Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: Smalltown, AZ Posts: 82	Would you pay for WiFi Hot Spot Access? With all the news about all kinds of companies wanting to set up WiFi Hot Spots for paying customers I was wondering . . . Would any of us choose to sit in a coffee shop, restaurant, fast food outlet, bookstore, or other place in order to surf, or just surf at home?

04-05-2003	#2 (permalink)
jgb1503 Drunken Stumbler Join Date: Jan 2003 Posts: 179	Hmm I do a lot of traveling, so I love it when I can jump on the net and check my email and such. I would much rather use a free community netowrk or hotspot, but i would pay to use one, depending HIGHLY on the costs involved.. __________________ No trees were harmed in the sending of this message.... Although, quite a few electrons were terribly inconvenienced.

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04-12-2003	#5 (permalink)
LNB Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 5	I don't pay for TV and I think wireless should be free also... there are plenty of advertisers on it so ,,, why should there be a charge... I think it should be subsidized by the gov... ha LMAO... seriously,, it should be free.. that was the whole concept of the internet... I don't think anyone should hack into other peoples computers or files,, but it should be legal to use some bandwith if it is available and not harming anyone... if it is in the air,, it should be as free as the oxygen we breathe..

04-12-2003	#7 (permalink)
LNB Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2003 Posts: 5	If your neighbors hose was spraying your lawn,,then you would use it wouldn't you,,, just joking,, man you guys take everything too seriously,, if you look at what i meant,, as long as you aren't causing problems,, with thier service,, then I don't think it should be illegal,, now if you were,, then you should get popped..besides,,there are ways to prevent unauthorized use so why make it illegal to use "authorized AP's..mine is open to anyone who finds it..my computers and network is locked downso unless they are outside in my driveway,,causing my network to be overload or whatnot,, not carying on illegal net activity,, then surf away...

04-12-2003	#8 (permalink)
phighgate Registered Member Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Modesto, CA Posts: 23	Sure I'd pay for it, as long as the price was reasonable. There are t-mobile hotspots all over town here in starbucks, but the price is just way out of line (not to mention the scary bandwidth costs when you go over the cap on their metered service). I do travel quite a bit, and would love to see a nationwide wireless ISP that serves all the major airports/hotels for a reasonable price. But $40 a month for something that I may use 8-10 times a month, at best, just doesn't seem like a good deal.