Cheaper WiFi On The Rise

from the well,-look-at-that... dept

We've been saying for ages that no one is going to make any money selling WiFi access. It needs to be a promotion for something else, whether it's food or DSL. Now, it looks like SBC is taking a hint from Verizon, who has been quite happy with the success of their free WiFi offer in Manhattan for Verizon DSL customers. SBC will now be offering free to cheap WiFi on a much wider scale for their DSL customers. The initial promotion is for free WiFi until April of next year, at which point the price becomes $1.99/month. Unlike Verizon, which just offers WiFi in Manhattan, SBC has a fairly wide network of WiFi hotspots, thanks (in large part) to their relationship with Wayport. Obviously, SBC isn't looking to profit off the $2 they'll get each month from customers, but if this keeps more customers on their DSL lines, rather than moving off to cable or some other broadband alternative, this should more than pay for itself.

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