Wireless Internet...why so much?

[Susie444]

I will be going on my first cruise in April 2006, and I was just reading about the Internet situation aboard the Caribbean Princess, which we are going on. I cannot understand why they must charge for Wi-Fi. Once Wi-Fi is installed, it is FREE!!

 

I don't know much about cruises, and I understand why they need to charge for the Internet Cafe (hey computers and Internet cost $$), but Wi-Fi is just a connection..... I'm bringing the equipment, all I need is their Internet connection, which they don't pay any extra for per person...

They need to join the modern world and stop charging for Wi-Fi, or at least charge less than someone who needs to "borrow" their computers to go online.

 

Anyone agree? :rolleyes:

 

Susan

[Splinter]

Wi-Fi is not free in many places. Try to get it free at Starbucks, for example!

 

First, cruise ships use satellite internet, which is much more expensive (yet slower) than dial-up, DSL or other land based connection systems. The last I checked, they can't drag a land-line along behind the ship!

 

In addition, as with everything else "extra" on cruises, it is a profit center with the cruise lines. More and more they are charging for everything extra so they can make more profit. Not what we would like, but there it is.

[DeltaOne]

II cannot understand why they must charge for Wi-Fi. Once Wi-Fi is installed, it is FREE!!

 

I don't know much about cruises, and I understand why they need to charge for the Internet Cafe (hey computers and Internet cost $$), but Wi-Fi is just a connection..... I'm bringing the equipment, all I need is their Internet connection, which they don't pay any extra for per person...

They need to join the modern world and stop charging for Wi-Fi, or at least charge less than someone who needs to "borrow" their computers to go online.

 

They're not charging for WiFi, they're charging you to use the Internet (just like they do when you use their computer in the lab). That's why it's the same price...they're charging you for the same thing. Or look at it this way...you use the computers in the lab for free...you're paying for the Internet connection.

 

BTW, WiFi is not free everywhere. Many places it is free, many places it's not.

[Susie444]

Ok, point taken, I understand that they need to pay for satellite and that it costs more money. But computers cost money too, initially, and to maintain. Someone using a laptop is not utilizing the actual computers.

 

Let's look at it this way, if there was no such thing as Wi-Fi, and there wasn't up until a few years ago, the ship would be paying the same amount for the Internet connection minus the cost of a wireless router ($30). So to allow cruisers with laptops to use the Internet, it only costs the ship an additional one-time $30. They would need the satellite Internet connection anyways. Wi-Fi, to the best of my knowledge, is not something obtained via satellite. It is the Internet connection that needs satellite. Wi-Fi is simply an add-on. The bottom line is that the cruise lines do it because they can. It is a monopoly. That is the only reason. It does not cost them anything (okay, the $30).

One day, Wi-Fi will be available everywhere, and it will be free.

 

Susan

[coiran]

Do you get internet connection for free in your home?

Ron

[Coral]

Actually - Princess has the least expensive internet amongst the cruise lines. Princess charges .35/minute - other lines charge $.75 - $1.00/minute. After you get over the initial shock, you will realize Princess is quite reasonable compared to the other lines.

[Susie444]

Unfortunately, I do not get free Internet in my home, but there are places (Portland, OR for example) that do have it. Because it is so cheap these days, I am just saying that it is unreasonable to charge so much. The only way it makes sense is if they are doing it to simply collect money, and I KNOW that they are doing that. Alcohol costs money, so they charge extra for it on the ship, soda costs money, so they charge extra for it. Wireless does not cost money, so why are they charging extra for it? To collect money because they can. That's all. It doesn't matter that another cruiseline charges 75 cents per minute, both prices are unreasonable.

You will see, one day Internet use will be free. Just like long distance phone calls cost money years ago, now they are extremely cheap, or even free in some cases.

[texkat]

To provide WiFi on a ship would cost much more than a $30 router. You can put in one cheap WiFi router in your home to support a couple of connections in a small area, but you have to have a more robust infrastructure to cover the number of connections and the much larger area of a cruise ship. And don't forget the salaries of the techies who plan, install and maintain that. They don't come cheap :D . And that's just to connect users on the ship together, before we talk about the satellite connection...

 

Satellite = big $$. And the more people you have who connect to it, the bigger the share of it you have to buy and fund. Your connection charges are paying for the cost of building, launching and supporting that satellite.

 

Although it might not seem that adding another WiFi/Internet user would add any costs since you're not really USING UP anything tangible, that user does need to share the costs that already exist to provide the service they want to use.

 

Setting up and maintaining the WiFi network and the satellite connection are very expensive, and someone has to pay for it... makes the most sense for those who use to be sharing that cost.

[Psee]

Ok simply,

 

When you are at home or work (or in a Starbucks), you are close to a wired internet connection. This "wired" internet connection can have "wireless" routers ($30) attached so you can use "Wi-Fi" while you are very close to the wired connection.

 

Now, go 3000 miles out into the Atlantic ocean. Guess what, there is no wired internet connection so you have to use very sophisticated and expensive satellite receivers and routers to have the same service. (It's the same reason a phone call on the ship is $8 a minute.)

 

Hope this helps...:)

[LARGIN]

Do you get internet connection for free in your home?

 

Ron

Ron.. I can, if I want it... We have wireless in our home, secured with firewall, etc. I have a neighbor that has an unsecured wireless in his home. I can access his ISP with my laptop anytime I want... :eek::D:eek:

[Susie444]

From what I hear, there are only wireless "hot-spots". The wi-fi on the ships do serve a large radius. It is only in certain locations. You don't need a powerful wi-fi set-up to provide access to a small area.

[Coral]

If you were surprised about the internet prices, I probably wouldn't ask about phone prices.

[Lynda90]

Ron.. I can, if I want it... We have wireless in our home, secured with firewall, etc. I have a neighbor that has an unsecured wireless in his home. I can access his ISP with my laptop anytime I want... :eek::D

Or you could move to Portland, Oregon and get the free internet that Susie444 mentioned. Only takes about 90minutes to log on and 62,053 commercials to view before you can do anything. Not to mention that you have to agree to view all the ads or the internet hand will reach out to your first born. :D :D :D

[TorontoTL]

They charge for the wifi because they can. As Coral said, it is cheaper on Princess than it is on other cruise lines. They are a business and the last time I checked, they are business to make money. Thus they charge for the access to their internet connection which must cost them a good amount since it is a satellite connection. They also can charge you because you have no other way to access the internet on a ship.

[cusyl]

If you sail 5 or 6 times with Princess you get free internet as part of your Platinum status

[Lynda90]

If you sail 5 or 6 times with Princess you get free internet as part of your Platinum status

That's very true, but still the same charge for wireless.

[Strawberry]

Hello - On my last cruise I asked the Princess Circle Rep on board why they made the Platinum Elite passengers pay for wireless when they can use the computers in the internet cafe area for free. She said she didn't understand why either and has been trying to get them to offer wifi free to those already receiving the free internet service. (I talked to her about this in September - from the postings on this board sounds like nothing has changed.)

Christine

[JLC@SD]

Supply and Demand

 

They have the suppy..........you have the demand.

 

They are the only one that can provide wireless and they have enough people willing to pay what they charge.

 

Their stockholders like that.....:)

[RodneyG]

Its a total rip off , I paid $10 for each 1/2 hr of wifi acess on the diamond in December at rediculously slow rates , 1/2 the time I was waiting for sites to load and it was mainly a waste of money. On Singapore airlines , I paid $4.99 for 2 hrs of internet access on a wifi enabled plane between Sydney and SG at real fast rates. If SG airlines (connection by boeing) can do it at a reasonable rate , so can the ship. I understand the ship is a "business" but the culture of milking or gouging the customer at every turn is somewhat offputting

[rkdahl]

When we last sailed I talked to one of the IT guys. He told me the wireless setup is handled by a 3rd party and they are the ones charging so much. I forgot the wireless rate but it was like $15 for 30 min or something like that. And you bought it using pre-paid cards/passwords with that much stored on the card.

 

I just got off the Disney Wonder and they were charging $.75/min or $39.95 for 4 days unlimited. But wireless was considerably more expensive. They were charging 100 min for $55! Again, they said wireless was provided by a 3rd party.

 

So until the complaints pour in and wi-fi becomes more of a commodity like TV in the cabin, these high rates will most likely continue. The cruise ships have come a long ways the past 2-3 years with Internet access but until they get ethernet or wireless in each cabin, and that will happen soon I predict, we will never be totally happy.

[ggcruiser]

With all due respect, maybe laptops should be left at home and everyone should just enjoy the view... just a thought :)

[rtroeh]

Everyone knows the cost up front and it is up to the consumer whether it is worth it to them or not. You always have to option not to use it, and pay nothing for it. If they were to give it away for free, the cost of the infrastructure and bandwidth across a satellite link would have to be put into everyone's fare, then you would be paying for it whether you use it or not.

 

The original poster does not seem to understand that a wireless connection to the ship's network is not the expensive part, it is the satellite link from the ship to the internet, which you are using regardless of whether you are using their computer lab or wireless.

[Coral]

With all due respect, maybe laptops should be left at home and everyone should just enjoy the view... just a thought :)

 

Maybe in an ideal world, that would be great. But I have an ill parent, and the only way I can get away is to stay in contact and make sure everything is fine.

[HighTech]

Ok, point taken, I understand that they need to pay for satellite and that it costs more money. But computers cost money too, initially, and to maintain. Someone using a laptop is not utilizing the actual computers.

 

Let's look at it this way, if there was no such thing as Wi-Fi, and there wasn't up until a few years ago, the ship would be paying the same amount for the Internet connection minus the cost of a wireless router ($30). So to allow cruisers with laptops to use the Internet, it only costs the ship an additional one-time $30. They would need the satellite Internet connection anyways. Wi-Fi, to the best of my knowledge, is not something obtained via satellite. It is the Internet connection that needs satellite. Wi-Fi is simply an add-on. The bottom line is that the cruise lines do it because they can. It is a monopoly. That is the only reason. It does not cost them anything (okay, the $30).

One day, Wi-Fi will be available everywhere, and it will be free.

 

Susan

 

Ok, I just have to respond to this one, because I work for a Wireless Internet Service Provider and you sound just like alot of users I know, INTERNET CONNECTIONS ARE NOT FREE ANYWHERE, now you might find a city that is providing it free (and I will add there are lots of these so called "free" wifi cities that are closing down all over because duh keeping the internet up costs real money as they are finding out, and if you think they are doing it for free you are the one that is confused, TAX money is paying for it. As for the $30 wifi device, the equipment that a company like princess and other large corporate types use is not the crappy $30 device you would go buy at best buy or circuit city, it is high dollar (sometimes in the 3 to 5k range) that has many features and controls that your little dlink or linksys device does not. Like being able to control little johnny trying to download music and movies (illegally of course) and using up all the internet connection to do it, hence others would be SOL while he was. This take money and manpower and will NEVER be FREE EVERYWHERE like you believe. It also takes towers to provide such services so there will never be "free" wifi over the ocean as well. Hope this helps clear things up for you. Good luck with your quest for free wifi. but in the real world NOTHING is free, someone somewhere is paying for it. Oh and another quick lesson, satellite is nothing more then sending RF signals to the ground which is what wifi does only from towers. Sorry to ramble on but I thought it was important to educate a little bit on the wifi generation

 

Long story short the wireless signal coming to you may be free but the equipment and the maintenance of such is not, just like your dsl connection at home, the phone lines didnt cost any more to put in when they fired it up but the equipment to get it there did (or cable internet if you prefer). :cool:

[coiran]

Ron.. I can, if I want it... We have wireless in our home, secured with firewall, etc. I have a neighbor that has an unsecured wireless in his home. I can access his ISP with my laptop anytime I want... :eek::D:eek:

 

C.mon Larry - you wouldn't do that - would you. Anyway - the OP doesn't understand that Princess has to pay some fee to access the sat network - they sre charging for this, not the wi-fi connection.

Ron