Starwood Preferred Guest - Starwoods Hotel Sees $$$ in Wi-Fi

NEW YORK -- Having invested heavily in Wi-Fi at hundreds of locations worldwide, hospitality giant Starwood Hotels & Resorts is crossing its fingers that the unrelenting promise of a wireless world will justify the million dollar investments...

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http://www.atnewyork.com/news/article.php/2223851

Wifi is cheap. How did it cost them so much?

And second... HUH?

Not too many SPG properties have this...

BoSoxFan45,

My read on WiFi is it will, sooner than later, become a "must have" and will trend down to becoming a "freebie" service like phone or cable in the room; a true discriminator that *if* a property fails to offer broadband, it will get left in the dust.

Yes, Starwood seems to be on the leading edge of really trying to raise phone prices, but are they sure taking PR hits for doing this, and IMO, just provide more incentive for travelers to use cell phones. "Within reason" is always ok; $2 for toll-free is outside the boundaries.

In my limited experience, Hilton is already offering if for free (when they have it installed), so tough for me to see starwood long-term charging for the service. By year's end, it will become a true discriminator, I sense, for most business travelers. It already is for me with rare exception.

My question to you - do you see $10-$14.95 per day being charged much longer ? The analogy is not dissimilar to toll-free service...WIFI is about to become free in most major cities, at least in densely-populated areas.

Does anyone have a list of which Starwood Properties offer Wi-Fi (as opposed to broadband)???

I agree with ILUVCITIBANK.

This whole phone, broadband, wifi thing is so simple to me, and I cannot figure what Starwood is thinking. They price them all so high that I REFUSE to use them under any circumstance (regardless if I am paying or the client is).

For example, if the broadband rate was reduced to say $4.95, I would think they would get 4x the users thus doubling their revenue. What do I know though, right?

The same goes for wifi. For the most part it is a sunk cost, and they already have the high-speed connection into the hotel. If the cost was cheaper, I would spend a helluva lot more time at the Westin LAX bar than I already do (and buy several more drinks..... $$$$). Instead, I never pay for the service, so the hotel gets NADA.

I have used Wi-Fi in many Hilton properties recently. Usually the rates were ~$10 per day. I consider this a reasonable cost of doing business. The best deal was in one particular property where it was free on the executive floors. That I see as a great bonus.

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by AAEXP:
Does anyone have a list of which Starwood Properties offer Wi-Fi (as opposed to broadband)???</font>

Maybe William can help???

I can ask. Not sure when (if) I can expect an answer.

Sincerely,

William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

guest.forum@starwoodhotels.com

[This message has been edited by Starwood Lurker (edited 06-20-2003).]

Your help is appreciated as usual.

Thanks

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by Starwood Lurker:
I can ask. Not sure when (if) I can expect an answer.</font>

Any luck yet William?

<font face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Originally posted by AAEXP:
Any luck yet William?

</font>

Nope. Although I really didn't expect that I would either. http://www.flyertalk.com/forum/wink.gif

Sincerely,

William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

guest.forum@starwoodhotels.com

Omni hotels offer it free. Not every location has it yet but will by the end of the year. Count me as a happy user.

I will be staying at the Westin Maria Christina in San Sebastian, Spain. They are asking 20 Euro/day for ISDN!

Used Wayport at the Sherton PHX Airport a week ago, paid $ 8.95 for it; the service was flawless and very fast. Being a hi speed surfin' junkie, that experience motivated me to buy a 20 use Wayport membership (for $100) to go with my T-Mobile wireless account.

It really hacks me off when I'm sitting somewhere idle during the business day (say, between sales calls or waiting for a flight) and can't access the web except through my cell phone (whose speed sucks!).

from today's Wall Street Journal article on wi-fi:

"Hotel hot spots can be maddening. With few exceptions, Wi-Fi coverage is mostly in the hotel lobby, so remember to put on your bathrobe before toting your laptop out into the hallway. That could be changing, though: A company called StayOnline has installed Wi-Fi access in hotel rooms in about 120 properties, and has recently signed agreements with Boingo and AT&T Wireless.

"Many hotels equipping their properties with Wi-Fi also don't have agreements with service providers, so customers have to pay the hotel directly for the wireless access. Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. has Wi-Fi in roughly 120 properties, including some Sheratons and Westins, but customers will find an additional Wi-Fi fee on their hotel bill the next day for using wireless Internet access in the hotel lobby."

[This message has been edited by fly co to see the yanks (edited 07-08-2003).]