Maybe the better question would be should you pay for Wi-Fi access in your hotel room. How much time do you spend in your hotel room anyway? And during that time, how much of it is spent online?
Msnbc.com’s article “Hotels pinched by tech-savvy guests,” confirms something many travelers already do…use our smartphones to connect online and bypass the hotel’s Wi-Fi system. Why should we pay an additional $10 – $15 for 24 hours of accessibility when we can connect our laptop or tablet by tethering it through our smartphones? And because of this, hotels are seeing negative results in their bottom line.
Many are starting to think that the Wi-Fi fees will go the way of the telephone fees. I remember the days where it cost more to use the hotel phone for local calls then using the payphone down the street.
Wi-Fi isn’t the only thing the tech-savvy aren’t paying for. Pay-per-view movie rentals are taking a hit as well. Why purchase a movie from the hotel when you can stream it from Netflix?
Hotels are working tirelessly to keep up with the technological changes of personal media. To stay in the game, many are furnishing their rooms with large flat screens and media panels so the guests can “plug in” their own devices.
Hopefully we’ll see Wi-Fi as a complimentary amenity in more hotels soon. Many of the low-cost and budget hotels already do this and see the value in it.
So, will you pay for Wi-Fi during your next hotel visit?
