T-Mobile WiFi service in Bay Area Starbuckses is facing "invisible competition" from nearby cafes, wireless ISPs, and freenets. Unfortunately, this competition hasn't leaked into any of the caffeine dens I frequent in the Mission, where there's hardly a WiFi signal to be had (there's a freenet just barely available from the table to the left of the front door of the Espresso Bravo, and that's it).
Bucks, the famous Silicon Valley breakfast haunt of venture capitalists, had two Wi-Fi providers as early as March 2002. Both wireless ISPs, Airwave and Wi-Fi Metro, have since exited the WISP business or failed entirely. So the owner of Buck's, Jamis MacNiven, decided to provide free access to his well-heeled clientele. MacNiven says, "I pay $60 for 1.5 mps signal which I need anyway. Charging for the online usage would be, for me, like charging for salt and pepper. It is a tiny cost of doing business and we are glad to give it away. I can't see how the wireless providers will make money in public places…."
(via WiFi News)
