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Free Public WiFi Taking Customers Away From Local Businesses
My husband and I own and operate a computer store and provide internet services. We have been in business since 1995. Our city has now decided to, in conjunction with a local nonprofit foundation, provide free wireless internet for the town. We have tried to work with both parties to help install equipment, provide technical support, anything to be included in the project. We felt if they were intent on following through with this, though it hurt us (citizens of the community) we could still be involved on some level and hopefully make back some of our lost profits. They have insisted on pushing us to the side and bringing in companies from out of town and out of state to fill all these needs. We have also learned that a person whom we had recently hired and had a work agreement with, declined the job at the last minute because the nonprofit foundation had contacted them directly and made a better offer so this person went to work for them. What do you do in this situation? I know everyone is for anything that is free and everyone in our town is excited about this free internet project. BUT how would you feel if you sold car tires and they started giving away free tires at the city hall. Or maybe if you are a beautician and they started offering free haircuts at the mayor's office. That would seem just a little rediculous don't you think? Does my concern make sense to anyone out there? Can anyone advise me as where to go and how to save my business and also save face in my community and not look like the bad guy trying to take away their free internet? Thanks for listening!
 
  8 Votes Total   |   1 Members   |   3 Comments   |   Started By: my3sons2834   |   Join this Revolution
 
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  1. by TheJonny 3 Years 32 Months 969 Days agoReply
    You gotta go with the flow - what you should do then is make your niche to be providing wireless cards to the town. Advertisements such as "Free wireless internet is coming to town, don't miss out, let us connect you!" Provide training on wireless security such as WEP encryption - "Don't open yourself up to wireless vulnerabilities. Protect yourself, call us!" "Looking for a computer? Not only do we gurantee the same low prices as the competition, but your computer will be ready to go, safe and secure, on the new wireless internet coming to town!" Catch my drift? People will come to you because you've lived there and they'll trust you over big business.
  2. by ih8stupidity 3 Years 32 Months 967 Days agoReply
    I have a different kind of problem with public WiFi, but yours is definitely more of a threat to the livelihood than mine is. My beef is that this public Internet business is creating a world of rudeness where there is enough of it already. I'll put it this way -- ever been in a restaurant, or a library, or a pool, or other public venue with your children when the a-hole with the laptop decides it's time for his daily porn download? How do you explain to an 8- and a 7-year old what it is they're hearing and happened to catch a glimpse of?? And god forbid you have the gall to mention this hideous faux pas to the idiot...you get sworn at for your trouble, which is ALSO in front of your children. Decency is dead, I'm starting to think, and that is just really sad. I'm all for the death of public WiFi, even if we have different reasons for wanting that.
  3. by TheJonny 3 Years 32 Months 964 Days agoReply
    I find it odd that there's such a big push to control file sharing on the net because it is "stealing", but it's OK to push internet providers aside with free WiFi. Who's stealing from who?
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