[mjlee]

My theory is that these hotels were the very first to get wifi, when it was a premium feature. Because it works or perhaps because of contractual obligations with their service provider, they're reluctant to change their model now.

The hotels in East Asia got wifi later, where it was easier to set up and therefore more likely to be offered for free.

[marcus_holmes]

Also, East Asia skipped wired internet completely and went straight from nothing to mobile.

And internet is cheap, really cheap, in East Asia. I'm in Vietnam at the moment and my gf got a SIM card for unlimited 4G/LTE data for 15 days (the length of a visa-free visit here) for $8. That's the expensive foreigner price. I didn't even bother getting a SIM - she hotspots me on the rare times we're somewhere that there isn't free WIFI.

I was in Cambodia earlier in the year, and was paying US$1/week for effectively-unlimited data (250Gb each week). Thailand is a bit more pricey for farang, but still not bad. Australia was AU$1/day for 30Gb over 30 days. It's not a huge expense, but the difference is noticeable.

I think it's the nature of the market. There's no way that SE Asians would pay Western prices for internet, so the price comes down.

[sleepyhead]

> East Asia skipped wired internet completely and went straight from nothing to mobile.

In those countries you mentioned yes. Cambodia isn't representative for SEA, it's a very poor and poorly managed country. Go to Malaysia and Singapore and physical infrastructure is common.

> That's the expensive foreigner price. > Thailand is a bit more pricey for farang

Not sure why you are paying "foreigner price" for sim-card/data in Thailand or Cambodia. You can just go to any shop and you will be charged the same price as anyone else.

> There's no way that SE Asians would pay Western prices for internet, so the price comes down.

A few other things to note:

* There is no net neutrality in these countries, data packages includes 'unlimited' or big data allowances restricted to Facebook/Youtube.

* Data connection is great in cities like Phnom Penh but as soon as you get out on the countryside you are back to a slow 3G connection (improving though). So: it's a lot cheaper to build infrastructure for a limited area.

* Cambodia is a very flat country making it a lot easier to build mobile networks compared to some European countries or in the US.

[marcus_holmes]

It's a common experience to go to a 7/11 in Bangkok and try to buy one of the cheaper top-up packages, and then get told they're not available. Only the expensive ones are available. Yet strangely the cheap ones are available for locals.

Also, people don't seem to have any objections to mobile towers being built near them. In the UK & Australia there's a lot of NIMBYism and fear about mobile towers being built near schools (especially). It can get really expensive to build a tower in a rich suburb.

[sleepyhead]

Ok, haven't had that experience but I haven't really stayed in the very backpacker/touristy areas in BKK lately. Also I usually go to a phone company store and just buy the sim and top up enough for my short stay there.

[sleepyhead]

> The hotels in East Asia got wifi later

Nope. I had wifi in most guesthouses, hotels and cafes when backpacking SEA in 2007. Back in Europe a year later or NYC in 2010 it was still difficult to find wifi in hotels and cafes. Hotels would have a LAN-connection though.

[NullPrefix]

>wifi ... was a premium feature

Which millennium are we talking about?

[mcv]

Wifi isn't all that much older than our current millennium, Mister Time Traveller from the distant future.

[giancarlostoro]

I think you mean decade or something? 'Cause even in the states I remember when we finally setup Wi-Fi in the mid to late 2000's and that was still not too long ago... I guess it didn't feel like a premium feature to people who bought it for their home, but for a hotel who has to rely on their ISP to setup everything for them, it definitely is a premium service.

I wouldn't be surprised if the contracts hotels have are pay per use, so they barely pay much to have the services. Why change that model and give everyone free Wi-Fi. It's the cheaper motels that usually offer free Wi-Fi.

[NullPrefix]

>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wi-Fi

>Introduced September 1998; 20 years ago

[systemtest]

I remember going to Los Angeles in 2006 and having to wardrive and set up camp behind a Chinese restaurant to get free WiFi.