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Story URL: http://networks.silicon.com/broadband/0,39024661,39166242,00.htm

Broadband service for biz travellers launches
Free and slow - or fast and pricey?

By Gemma Simpson

Published: Wednesday 07 March 2007

When getting online at hotels, business travellers can now choose between a potentially free but slower broadband service or a high-speed package that comes at a price.

ISP iBahn has launched a hotel broadband service that allows customers to pick a high or low speed broadband connection.

With its Fair Wi-fi campaign silicon.com is looking to...

♦  Raise awareness of the problem of hotels overcharging

♦  Inform the hotel industry about the strength of public opinion opposed to excessive charging

♦  Encourage hotels to be more open about their charges and better inform consumers

♦  Publicise user demand for wi-fi access

♦  Provide expert opinion and highlight best practice where hotels have shown it is possible to offer reliable and cost-effective wi-fi services

♦  Enable consumers to make more informed decisions about where they stay

The speedier service will cost £15 per day or £6 per hour with users getting a minimum speed of 2Mbps - with higher bandwidths available, depending on the speed of the network at the hotel the traveller is staying in.

iBahn will offer the slower service - with speeds of up to 128Kbps - for free. But the final pricing will depend on the hotel's policies - meaning travellers could still be charged for using it.

Both services can be accessed via a wired or wireless connection - and are available in more than 2,100 hotels around the world.

silicon.com launched its 'Fair Wi-fi' campaign earlier this year to highlight the issue of rip-off prices for internet access at hotels.

The campaign has been gathering support from the likes of The Good Hotel Guide and our online petition has accumulated more than 2,000 signatures.