Free wifi in the City

[apelike 10]

It looks as though Sheffield centre will have free wifi access but with a major catch.

 

https://www.thestar.co.uk/our-towns-and-cities/sheffield/free-wi-fi-to-be-rolled-out-in-sheffield-from-may-1-8879299

 

https://www.thestar.co.uk/news/free-wi-fi-is-on-its-way-to-sheffield-city-centre-1-8889648

 

In order to get it you will have to register for access through a portal where your registration data can be used to promote adverts and also be sold on. It also seems like SCC have given out another long term contract of 10 years.

 

I think this may go the way of the digital region fiasco as I certainly will not accept these terms, but will others?

[ECCOnoob 1,044]

Makes sense to me.

 

I think most adults realise there is no such thing as "FREE". Something or someone is paying for it.

 

Advertising revenue being a secondary purpose of the service is not so much as a "catch" but just "obvious".

 

Its exactly the same reason why every single hotel, coffee shop, bar and restaurant offers "free" wifi but strictly subject to providing your email address and registration.

[apelike 10]

Its exactly the same reason why every single hotel, coffee shop, bar and restaurant offers "free" wifi but strictly subject to providing your email address and registration.

 

Are you sure that is the case and do they also sell on your data? When I was in town a while ago I could connect up to free wifi in some places without registering or giving out my email address. Do you also need to register to use it on the bus as I have never had the time to use it while travelling.

[haddy 10]

Find find it easier to just use my phone data

[The Joker 10]

Find find it easier to just use my phone data

 

very good point!

 

Anybody with cash to spend already has a mobile phone contract, with data plan.

 

The only people to benefit from free WiFi in the city centre will have so little disposable income anyway, there’s no point advertising anything to them

[glyn75 10]

Fair point joker

[FinBak 12]

Paying for 'data'...! The Egyptians got it right First time...Look to the stars.!

[Ontarian1981 10]

very good point!

 

Anybody with cash to spend already has a mobile phone contract, with data plan.

 

The only people to benefit from free WiFi in the city centre will have so little disposable income anyway, there’s no point advertising anything to them

 

I don't have one myself but my wife has a smartphone data plan,. but with limits, so she uses free wi fi wherever it is availlable so she will not receive an unexpected bill, including at home if I am using the decktop. She is never off the bloody thing. lol

[altus 540]

Makes sense to me.

 

I think most adults realise there is no such thing as "FREE". Something or someone is paying for it.

 

Advertising revenue being a secondary purpose of the service is not so much as a "catch" but just "obvious".

 

Its exactly the same reason why every single hotel, coffee shop, bar and restaurant offers "free" wifi but strictly subject to providing your email address and registration.

What about people who use Wi-Fi in the city centre who don't connect to this service? Connecting to someone's Wi-Fi and getting advertising/tracked in return is a fair exchange. Getting tracked (possibly in your own home) because your device has Wi-Fi enabled even though you aren't using their service isn't.

[apelike 10]

For a company that has supposedly invested heavily in Sheffield their accounts, capital and shareholders (1) make for easy reading.

 

https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/company/06422644/filing-history

 

[smiggs 10]

Interesting that out of all 27 companies invited to tender they chose a local company in Idaq to provide the service, their main business is ultra fast broadband to businesses their technology is based on a mesh network of infra red point to point connections with this contract they have just gained a ton of new points. This should give their network much better reliability, it's not about the ad revenue.

[Super Hans 10]

It's there for people to use if they want to, if you are too paranoid to use it then you don't have to.

 

Loads of places offer "free" WiFi, Starbucks, Costa, McDonald's, Gregg's, Weatherspoons, a load of clothes shops etc, just seems odd to me that people are unfairly picking out SCC to criticise.

 

I wouldn't call them collecting data for advertising purposes a "major catch", that's how free internet works.