Consumers Want Citywide Wi-Fi – And Are Willing to Pay for It

A report commissioned by Wi-Fi application vendor, Devicescape has found that most respondents want citywide Wi-Fi (84%) and, surprisingly, many are willing to pay for it (56%) as they would a utility. The report also found that an overwhelming number of Wi-Fi users expect Wi-Fi while on the road (91%) and when traveling, the most-often used device for accessing Wi-Fi was the smartphone, such as an iPhone (vs. laptops). The overwhelming majority of smartphone users (81%) prefer using Wi-Fi over 3G for browsing Web sites, downloading data, Google searches and sending e-mail. Also, 86% of respondents want OEMs to build Wi-Fi into their handsets and 82% of respondents want the service provider to provide an overall 3G/Wi-Fi data package.Many of the statistics within the UK and mainland Europe were similar to the US, but one significant difference is that Nokia is the most used device tapping into Wi-Fi, more than laptops and iPhone users.

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