Originally Posted by cedric
I think they are looking at it from the perspective of overall winning over new customers vs. flying/driving and even the bus. They mentioned the student market and obviously you won't be seeing students upgrade to VIA1 in order to gain Internet access, but you may certainly see students choose the train over the bus in order to do so. And of course paying for it once on board for the privilege (no pun intended
). Same goes for anyone else that is traveling but not on business - even if it is just to pass the time, not necessarily for productivity.
I can't see this being a major money-maker for Via. I agree with your point about getting some incremental from students traveling with a laptop, but in doing so they cannibalize one of the major advantages (in my opinion) on Via 1. I personally think that the regular Via service is just fine, and would only pay for Via 1 if it was the only way to be connected for the 5+ hours between Montreal and Toronto. I would bet that some employers would feel the same way.
They have a good product if your plans fits the Via schedule and you want to travel downtown to downtown.