Should Wi-Fi be free in hotels?
One of the ironies of business travel is that many of the higher end hotels that businessmen and businesswomen stay at charge an additional fee for Wi-Fi. The reason why this is ironic is because a backpacker who stays at an eight dollar a night hostel is likely to have free high-speed Internet included in their stay.
Supply and Demand
Many business travelers have asked why. Why is it that some hotels charges for Wi-Fi, while others that are usually on the lower end of the spectrum, give it to their guests for free?
One of the arguments that have been made is that business travelers need Internet. For them, it is not a luxury. So even if a hotel charges for it, the business traveler will pay. However, a backpacker may be just as content walking down to the local Internet café and paying a few dollars to be connected to the Internet for an hour or so.
Another argument is that business travelers can claim the Internet as an expense. It goes against their taxes. In most cases, business travelers are not fronting the expense for their hotel stay anyway, so why not charge them for a service they are going to use?
