Hotels Frequently Deliver Wi-Fi at 2 Mbps to 5 Mbps

As much as people complain about the quality, persistence and speed of their at-home Internet connections, hotel Wi-Fi is likely to be a bigger problem for anybody who uses hotel Wi-Fi frequently. 

It is not unusual for any single user to experience speeds of 2 Mbps to 5 Mbps at any given moment, according to tests by users of Hotelwifitest.

Run a speed test the next time you are connected to an in-flight Wi-Fi service. You will probably be unpleasantly surprised.

Would You Change Airlines, Give up Legroom or Buy a More-Expensive Ticket to Get In-Flight Wi-Fi?

A survey sponsored by Honeywell claims a significant percentage of fliers would switch airlines, switch flights, pay more or give up amenties such as preferred seating or legroom to get access to Wi-Fi in flight that is consistent and faster.

According to Honeywell, about 22 percent of respondents to a survey say they’ve paid more for a flight with in-flight Wi-Fi, even if a less-costly flight was available.

Some 17 percent of respondents claim they switched from their preferred airline because another carrier had better Wi-Fi offerings.

The 2013 Wireless Connectivity survey found that almost 90 percent of fliers would give up an amenity on their flight--preferred seats, extra legroom and more--to be guaranteed a faster and more consistent wireless connection.

Some might say the findings actually are mostly theoretical. The problem many fliers experience with in-flight Wi-Fi is precisely the inability to predict speed and persistence of connections.

And since so many airlines use the same supplier, switching carriers is not going to help.

In principle, one might agree that some travelers, some of the time, might have switched carriers, flights, paid higher ticket prices or given up a preferred seat to get what they hoped would be a better Wi-Fi experience.

More often, one might argue, Wi-Fi was simply a byproduct of some other important choice, such as flight departure time or day, and fare basis.

That in-flight Wi-Fi is valuable is not the point. The point is the inconsistency, dropped connections and sluggish performance.

OECD Mobile Broadband Adoption 72%, Internet Access Exceeds 100% in Some Countries

Mobile broadband penetration has grown to 72 percent in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development area, according to December 2013 data, showing the importance of mobile as a part of the overall Internet access picture.

Seven countries (Finland, Australia, Japan, Sweden, Denmark, Korea and the United States) now lie above the 100 percent penetration threshold, including all forms of Interent access--mobile, fixed and satellite.

Fixed network broadband subscriptions in the OECD area reached 339 million as of December 2013, making an average penetration of 27 percent.

Digital subscriber line still is the prevalent technology, making up 52 percent of fixed broadband subscriptions, but it continues to be gradually replaced by optical fiber connections, now at 17 percent of subscriptions, OECD notes.

Cable TV high speed access, at 31 percent of connections,  accounted for most of the remaining subscriptions.

Two-digit annual growth in fibre ratio in total fixed broadband was sustained thanks to increases in large OECD economies with low penetration levels such as France (66%), Spain (74%), Turkey (73%) and the United Kingdom (108%).  

Japan and Korea remain the OECD leaders in optical fiber deployment, with fiber making up 70 percent of connections in Japan and 65 percent of connections in South Korea.

Mobile broadband subscriptions in the 34-country group were up about 15 percent from a year earlier to a total of 910 million, driven by continuing strong demand for smartphones and tablets, OECD reports.

As has been the case for at least a decade, aggregate global telecom revenues have been driven by mobile connections.  

The global telecommunications business will generate $2.15 trillion in revenue in 2014, and most of the revenue growth will come from mobile services, according to CMR.

At the global level, CMR projects that global telecommunications service  revenues will grow from $2.1 trillion to $2.4 trillion at a CAGR of 2.1 percent.

Revenue growth will happen in all regions except Europe, where telecom revenue is declining.

Virtually everywhere else, revenue is growing.

Gigabit Network for Time Warner Cable in Los Angeles?

With the caveat that responding to a request for information is not the same as submitting a firm propisal, Time Warner Cable announced the company is "participating in the City of Los Angeles' request for information (RFI) process for the development of a communitywide broadband network that delivers gigabit-capable, high-speed, high-quality and affordable broadband connections to residences, businesses and city government."

TWC's response includes detailed information on its current and future network and product enhancements that will enable Time Warner Cable to deliver gigabit-per-second speeds for consumers in Los Angeles across TWC's existing network that already spans the city and neighboring communities.

That is a somewhat different matter, some would argue, than offering to build a citywide network on terms the city seeks.

But if a gigabit network is built, even only where Time Warner Cable operates, that would be significant.

It might also be useful for Comcast, which wants to buy Time Warner Cable. That promise could help regulators justify approval of the acquisition effort.

Inflection Point for Mobile Wallets?

Forty percent of people who make payments with their smartphones are more likely to use their Google Wallet than their actual wallet, according to Nielsen's second quarter 2014 Mobile Wallet Report.

The study — which surveyed 3,784 people who had used their smartphones or tablets for shopping, banking, or making payments in the previous month — found that using mobile payment services such as PayPal, Google Wallet, and MasterCard PayPass isn't specific to any one demographic.

That could be a sign that use of mobile wallets is nearing an inflection point. That would be good news for proponents who have been waiting for the market to develop.