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July 1, 2004

Coffeeshops in Seattle Say Free Wi-Fi for the Masses

By Glenn Fleishman

My hat is off to Winda Benedetti who has written the definitive article on free coffeeshop Wi-Fi for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer: This lengthy, funny, accurate article on the increasing number of coffeeshops who offer free Wi-Fi as part of their basic business model takes the cake—the coffee cake. It’s the best piece written on the subject. (Disclaimer: I write regularly for a competing Seattle newspaper, and have written about coffeeshop Wi-Fi, too, so I’m crying espresso tears as I praise this piece.)

Benedetti extracts all the different facets to the free-versus-fee battle in this realm, including the expectations of the shop owners, the kind of traffic they see (more anecdotal than dollars-and-cents), and some of their righteous anger against competitors who have the temerity to charge for a connection.

There are some nifty subsections about the etiquette that coffeeshops hope their customers engage in—like buying stuff if they use the network—and whether paying for service buys you more reliability than using free networks.

The article ends with a long list of coffeeshops in the Seattle area with free Wi-Fi. I now have several within a two-mile radius of my office—two are within one block, even.

Posted by Glennf at July 1, 2004 8:58 AM

Categories: Hot Spot, Mainstream Media

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» Free WiFi in Seattle's Coffeehouses from Anita's LOL
Glenn Fleishman at Wi-Fi Networkworking News pointed to this excellent article about free WiFi at Seattle coffeehouses, espresso places, and other public gathering spots. [Read More]

Tracked on July 2, 2004 3:45 PM

» Europe get overpriced Wi-Fi, while free hotspots thrive in the US from Muniwireless
Here's another reason for the growing Wi-Fi digital divide (Europe versus US). While more cafes in the US are offering... [Read More]

Tracked on July 3, 2004 12:02 PM

» Europe gets overpriced Wi-Fi, while free hotspots thrive in the US from Muniwireless
Here's another reason for the growing Wi-Fi digital divide (Europe versus US). While more cafes in the US are offering... [Read More]

Tracked on July 3, 2004 12:04 PM

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