Would you pay extra for airplane Wi-Fi?
There are a lot of things people think should be free.
Health care is one. Swift, prudent justice is another. In some circles, the right to force a national election every other laundry cycle is, too.
Yet when we come across something we’ve perceived as on the house, and then – hey, wait a second, you’re charging me for this?! – that’s when we really get pissed off.
Such is the case on hundreds of airplanes zipping above you right now, where a battle over the cost of Wi-Fi brews and looks primed to churn on.
The Wall Street Journal reports that, since many major outfits began offering wireless Internet on their flights, travelers and airlines have been butting heads over what the service should cost – if it isn’t to be included free with the already-outrageous price of a ticket, anyway.
Now, get this … and I hope you’re sitting down. As sure as it would mortify children to find out Gilbert Gottfried is the guy voicing that adorable parrot in Aladdin, airlines have this funny idea they should be charging bloated fees for the use of onboard Wi-Fi. I know, whoda thunkit?
Only, problem is, travelers thus far simply don’t want to pay it. According to the WSJ, in-air Wi-Fi use has received a “ho-hum” response from customers, peaking in the rare cases where the service is free and plummeting in use to less than 10 per cent of passengers when money is involved.
So as a result, what we have now is a kind of tug-of-war between airlines and passengers to find the right price to place on the service, an issue that – as far as air travel is concerned – has no real precedent to draw on as a reference.
What’s clear is that, obviously, people don’t want to pay for onboard Wi-Fi (Alaska Airlines even tried offering the service for $1, yet still found few would bite), but to be fair, the current prices really aren’t that bad.
On many flights, you can get Wi-Fi access for anywhere between $5.95 and $12.95, depending on the duration of the trip. That’s not mind-blowing cash considering the appeal of Internet use to business travelers, where time is money and all that keep-a-step-ahead-of-the-other-guy stuff.
Given that, then, airlines might actually have a reasonably priced (by airline standards, keep in mind) product here. But they’re overlooking one huge thing:
To entice Wi-Fi users, wouldn’t it make sense to fit many planes with power ports at every seat? I know a select few have plugs already, but given what Wi-Fi connectivity does to a laptop’s battery, a lack of outlets might actually be a major obstacle keeping Internet use on planes from taking off.
In any case, would you pay extra for airline Wi-Fi or do you think it should be included in the original ticket price? Or maybe you want this nonsense off the planes altogether …
By Jason Buckland, MSN Money
Posted by: bigted | Sep 2, 2021 12:20:29 PM
Not ever will I pay for WiFi. I don't need it enough to pay for it when I get it for free or from what I am already paying for. I would rather have a plug-in at my seat than WiFi, but if it adds to the price then leave it out. They haven't yet figured out how to charge me for reading my own book - but I am sure they are working on it.
Posted by: Phill | Sep 2, 2021 12:47:42 PM
Most airline flights are less than two hours in duration. In my opinion, anyone who cannot be without an internet connection for two hours is perilessly close to an addiction. Besides, have you ever tried to wrestle with a laptop in the cramped confines of an Air Canada seating row? At 6' 1'', with my knees tightly wrapped around my ears or under my chin, I just can't do it.
Posted by: Warren | Sep 2, 2021 10:13:48 PM
Everything costs money...
The airlines pay to offer Wi-Fi (internet service, equipment, etc),
Why wouldn't I have to pay for it?
I need to pay for use of 'hot spots' (wifi at coffee shops, etc), and am usually happy to do it.
I am more than willing to pay a reasonable price to have internet in the sky.
Posted by: John Warburton | Sep 7, 2021 1:41:49 AM
I would not use it if you had to pay for it. The price of a air line ticket is enough to cover the cost. Wi-Fi in our local coffee shops are free. It is offered to loyal paying cutomers and so should air lines.
Posted by: AC | Sep 7, 2021 1:35:21 PM
Listen, the cost of a flight in Canada is rediculous to begin with. I just paid $768.00 for a flight from Hamilton to Winnipeg...explain that. I also just got a flight from Buffalo to Orlando for $61.00 hum... Look, the reality is that the airline is already making a killing off of us despite what you hear in the news. WiFi would be great but the industry is not getting one red cent more from me. Shame on the airline. The cost to the airline for WiFi is nil. Perhaps the airline industry should offer the service free to entice sales.
Posted by: BA | Sep 7, 2021 2:04:02 PM
Why has it somehow become the norm for people to expect free Wi-Fi? Don't get me wrong -- I like anything I don't have to pay for. But it's wireless INTERNET -- it's not like it's *radio*... Oh wait, bad example. I forgot -- you DO have to pay for radio these days, at least if you want to listen to Howard Stern. And funny... I don't see the same indignation about having to pay for that.
This is internet access. It costs money to supply people with a "complex series of tubes" that can send your message to the other side of the world in the blink of an eye -- even more when you're sitting in a metal tube in the next layer of the earth's atmosphere, hurtling at just under the speed of sound. You pay for it at home, you pay for it at work, you pay for it on your phone. Just because wireless is invisible doesn't make it any less costly to provide as a service.
And now people expect it free on an airplane, in an industry that's already struggling to stay alive. To paraphrase Louis CK -- you're sitting in a CHAIR in the SKY, surfing the Internet wirelessly. How quickly the world OWES you something you only discovered 10 minutes ago.
Unlike some, I feel like the primary service of an airline is to get me from one place to another, fast, and preferably in one piece. However, if you and I want a few extras along the way, great -- I just don't see why Grandma in the next row has to pay for your World of Warcraft addition. If this service has any value to you, pay for it and stop whining. If it doesn't, don't use it, and stop whining. And if someday the people providing it can figure out a way to give it to you for free while still making money (or at least not losing their shirt), I'm sure they'll do that.
In the meantime, if the airline is going to provide me any free services, I'd rather they make sure that the guy who checks the lug nuts connecting the engines to the wings is getting his paycheque on time. The 3rd-party Wi-Fi nerds can worry about their own profit and loss.
Posted by: Sandra | Sep 10, 2021 1:25:08 AM
I'd rather not have WiFi on the plane period. I welcome the relief from being "plugged in" and if they offer WiFii on flights then I would be expected to work on the plane instead of taking my usual nap.