McDonalds asks in SF, NYC: "Would you like Wi-Fi with that?"
Maybe we should be listening to the various analysts who're warning of a Wi-Fi bubble in a New York Times story when McDonald's jumps on to the Wi-Fi bandwagon according to this Wall Street Journal story (subscription required).
Wi-Fi is going to be ubiquitous. It is already at our home in Los Gatos. But soon it'll be available at all kinds of commercial establishments...and when one of those starts to offer it for free as a perk, how long will the others continue to charge for it? It'll be like the HBO of the last decade, when offering that premium channel was a big plus at hotels and motels across the country. Now? Every hotel had better have HBO! Same's going to be true for Wi-Fi in two years.
McDonald's move, part of a pilot program, is the latest attempt by a high-profile chain to capitalize on Wi-Fi, the wireless technical standard behind the increasing popularity of high-speed Internet access among laptop users on the go. Borders Group Inc., Starbucks Corp. and others have all begun to offer wireless "hotspots" in their outlets, giving patrons the ability to check e-mail or surf the net away from home or office.
...Many skeptics have questioned whether wireless providers and chain operators can ever hope to profit from Wi-Fi, especially a chain like McDonald's accustomed to fast customer turnover. But analysts including Gartner Inc.'s William Clark say restaurants are, in part, trying to use wireless to attract customers during off-peak hours and to get them to spend more on food.