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 You would have thought that by now, with the advent of smart phones and availability of 3G to afford online connectivity, guest demand for WiFi would have declined.
Not so, according to a recent survey conducted by Hotel Chatter.
According to them, hotel guests vastly prefer to use WiFi rather than 3G or 4G connectivity, in spite of the fact that they may have to pay for it. In fact, the availability of Internet connectivity has now become a criterion of making a reservation; if you don’t offer WiFi, the guest will choose a hotel that does. It’s no longer just an amenity but a requirement.
So the prevalence of 3G/4G connectivity has failed to materialize, at least not in hospitality locations. Guests still can use 3G on their iPhones, Palms, Blackberries and other devices, but it’s not the same. For starters, 3G is not available everywhere. Once you leave center city, coverage may be spotty or completely unavailable. Stray too far from downtown and you may have phone coverage but you won’t be able to Tweet, Friend, Unfriend (now a real word!) or message. And 4G is just coming into its own and isn’t yet widely available.
Let’s face it, the things people most want from the Internet – movies, music, photos, social networking – for the most part necessitate a lot of bandwidth, and more than 3G can provide. Even if capable under optimal conditions, watching videos on a 3” x 2” screen doesn’t make for a great evening’s entertainment, particularly if there’s more than one of you. And Tweeting, composing emails, or updating your Facebook page is clumsy using even the most advanced smart phone with its teeny, tiny keys.
Some hotels say they offer free WiFi but when guests arrive, they find that said connection is only available on one or two PCs in the Business Center. Doubtful guests will return if that’s the case.
Gizmodo, the highly-regarded tech blog, covered the Hotel Chatter survey and one reader posted this response:
“As far as I am concerned, they can keep the little soaps and shampoos and give me what I really want, and that’s Wi-Fi. Seriously, like water, a phone and electricity, Wi-Fi should just be considered as one of the necessary utilities. In fact, they can keep the phone, I won’t use it.”
Do they mind paying? Not according to this guy on the Gizmodo site:
Makes sense: more expensive hotels = higher income guests & business travelers = less likely to care about forking over $10/day on Wi-Fi.
I've experienced this firsthand - when on business trips, I don't hesitate to pay for hotel Wi-Fi if they charge extra - it's just going on the expense report, and is an easily justified business expense.
So providing WiFi should be a given. But doing so creates an alliterative plethora of probable problems.
What are you lookin’ at?
Let’s accept the premise that your guests are going to use Wi-Fi for email, Twitter, and Facebook. No problem; they don’t consume much bandwidth since they’re primarily text-based. But things take a dramatic change when guests’ kids start wanting to play on-line games. Or guests want to download songs from iTunes, watch videos on YouTube, or enjoy entire movies on Hulu. Such voracious use of the Internet tubes will drag down your throughput and create enmity among all guests sharing your Internet feed from your property. And with video being the quickly dominant application on the ‘net, such problems are going to become more prevalent.
ZyXEL recommends hotels, bed and breakfast inns, coffee shops and other properties invest in a gateway designed specifically for use in hospitality venues. It should provide secure Internet access by free or changed based policy as the business owner wants. Of course it should provide authentication, and accounting functions for both wireless and wired clients.
The gateway should enable the property owner or manager to customize the log-in page and redirect users to an online ad/or provide limited Internet access to the owner's home page. For easy deployment, it should support PoE (Power over Ethernet) so you can deploy your hotspot solution without having to be concerned about the location of the power outlet.
And clearly you’re going to need equipment that can reign in power users and those whose appetite for videos over the ‘net can hog all your bandwidth. The newest gateways allow you to do just that. They also address your concern about limiting access to porn and other sites guests probably shouldn’t access, particularly on your dime if you’re allowing free access. Parents will appreciate your concern for keeping the little nippers off sites they should not be cruising.
Finally, protect your guests’ privacy and stave off malicious threats. Hackers don’t just target individual’s houses; you’re a target too. It’s best to have a high degree of security to stave off potential threats, hacks and viruses. Look for features including Layer 2 isolation security, SSL login page and administration, VPN (IPSec/PPTP/L2TP) pass through, pass through IP and MAC address, custom SSL certificate, and administration access control.
Conclusion
Even with 3G and 4G available, guests are demanding fast, stable, and available Internet connectivity from hotels, inns, coffee houses, restaurants and other hospitality locales. If you don’t provide it, they will go elsewhere. Smart hosts will provide it using hardware that offers:
• Ease and flexibility of installation
• Speed
• Powerful management and accounting features
• Enterprise level security
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