High and confusing prices 'hampering' Wi-Fi take-up

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Wi-Fi take-up in Europe is being hampered because the prices being charged are generally too high, and also vary widely between operators, a senior analyst claimed on Wednesday. Speaking at The Wireless LAN Event in London on Thursday, Ross Pow -- managing director of Analysys Research -- said that the Wi-Fi industry was "all over the place" with its charging models. "This fragmentation, and what is in effect often a very high price per hour of access, is very off-putting for customers, especially corporate customers," Pow said. A year's subscription to a UK-wide Wi-Fi network can cost an individual up to £1,000 per year. BT Openzone charges £85 per month for unlimited access to its hot spot network, although more competitive pricing is available to businesses who buy a multi-user licence. Megabeam charges a similar amount, for a service that covers several European countries. Smaller operators such as Internet Exchange charge lower prices for access to their hot spots, while Broadscape has begun operating "virtually free" wireless networks in London. Such a range of offerings, and prices, are understandable given the nascent nature of the Wi-Fi industry, but according to Pow they are a handicap in terms of take-up, especially in the enterprise space. "This variety [of price points and pricing models] puts doubt into the mind of those who have to pay for corporate access," Pow warned.
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Talkback

I have over the last week or two taken a very close look at the Wi-Fi market, and have come to the dissection that this product should be used as a complementary service. A value added service if you will, with no charge to the end user. Set-up cost range from £250 to £1500 for a single large area of 100m to 800m. Depending on the layout of the area to be covered.

Proving a wireless solution for the general public is not expensive, but will over time produce a steady increase in business for the person, who has the foresight to get in now while the industry is still growing,

Age 38 I can remember the negative talk about mobile phones they will never take off to big, to heavy, etc and the phones were to big and to heavy, are they now? No!
Only big businesses well have them. Do only big companies have mobiles? No! the last stats I saw said that over ¾ of the UK own a mobile phone.

Given time logging on to the net in a coffee shop, pub, or park bench will be as commonplace as the mobile phone.

The current charge per hour of £6 by one provider is way over the top for this technology. Britton needs to embraces such technologies making them available to everyone, and to give our nation a flying jump on the rest of Europe companies in the UK should not charge for this service but look at it as an investment in both its local community and itself.

Regards
Darren Russell

via Facebook 17 February, 2004 11:45
Reply

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