Free Wi-Fi for All AT&T Wireless Customers?

AT&T hotspots have started providing iPhone users with free Wi-Fi access at Starbucks and other locations. AT&T Broadband customers also have free access. One wonders how long it will be before all AT&T Wireless customers will get access. AT&T has talked about that.

That's one advantage of customer and network scale. AT&T doesn't necessarily have to make much actual incremental revenue from the Wi-Fi service. What it does is make its wired and wireless service much more sticky.

And given its scale--100 million customers--AT&T is in position to create other "everybody is on network" services of various types, the same way Skype creates "free calling to all other Skype users."

The difference is that AT&T can mix and match services and features available on its in-region wired, national wireless and global network, including mobile and fixed broadband, mobile and fixed calling, messaging or other services with a "social" or "community" aspect.

Scale has many advantages.