DVC Needs Fee-Free High-Speed Internet

[I'mNoPrince]

OT a bit does anyone know if the wireless at WWoS is free or is it fee based as well.

 

[JimC]

Disney has plenty of competition. DD, the expansion of resort offerings in a variety of price ranges, DVC, intense thrill rides, DME, and free dining are all examples of Disney responding to competitive pressures.

High speed Internet is a commodity, like cell phone service and cable TV. It has become a communication standard expected by our society.

A relevant cost comparison may be Marriott's Cypress Harbour resort. It is part of MVCI in Orlando (near Sea World) and I am an owner. Free wired high speed Internet in villas and wireless high speed Internet property-wide costs owners $1.08 per unit week in 2007. The good news is that it was 20% more in 2006. It amounts to two tenths of one percent of our annual maintenance fee.

I agree with those who expect it will come about when infrastructure costs are recovered and they have a favorable contract in place. Certainly

 

[mikesmom]

Cheap motels even have free Wi-Fi these days.

The cheap motels are the ones where you can be SURE it will be available - that is one of the perks they dangle to try and get you to stay. This year so far I have stayed in a Clarion and an Amerisuites. Both had free broadband. I don't think they had a choice - both were in areas of high availability of cheap motels and did it (I assume) to compete.

On the flip side I stayed in a very highh end hotel on the ocean in la Jolla (San Diego) last September and the broadband was available but not free. Last january at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, same thing. My experience is that the more expensive the hotel, the less likely it is that the Internet connect is free. YMMV

 

[fishermouse]

I use my PC and internet extensivly at work and home, but do not bring my pc on vacation. Therefore I really don't want my dues to go up to cover DSL for those that who think they must get on line. If you want internet access just pay for it it's not that expensive. The idea that it should be "free" IMHO is just wrong, also IMO most people do not use it while on vacation' so veryone will be paying for afew to have it. Bad enough work can find me every other day vacation is for relaxing and getting away from all that.

 

[JimMIA]

The cheap motels are the ones where you can be SURE it will be available - that is one of the perks they dangle to try and get you to stay. This year so far I have stayed in a Clarion and an Amerisuites. Both had free broadband. I don't think they had a choice - both were in areas of high availability of cheap motels and did it (I assume) to compete.

On the flip side I stayed in a very highh end hotel on the ocean in la Jolla (San Diego) last September and the broadband was available but not free. Last january at the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas, same thing. My experience is that the more expensive the hotel, the less likely it is that the Internet connect is free. YMMV

 

[colleen costello]

It certainly does not have to be free, but neither do they need to gouge us... I doubt ANYONE out there is paying $300 per month at home for internet service! $10 per day is insane... It should be $10 per week or $2 per day or something REASONABLE. It is a service that many appreciate and charging for it is fine, as long as it is not some outrageous amount that makes the customer feel taken advantage of... I think $10 per day is crazy.

 

[Margie J]

Until they offer it for free I'll use dial-up. I did all last week and it was fine and free.

 

[JimMIA]

It certainly does not have to be free, but neither do they need to gouge us... I doubt ANYONE out there is paying $300 per month at home for internet service! $10 per day is insane... It should be $10 per week or $2 per day or something REASONABLE. It is a service that many appreciate and charging for it is fine, as long as it is not some outrageous amount that makes the customer feel taken advantage of... I think $10 per day is crazy.

$10 per 24-hour period is the typical price at hotels where you pay for access. No, you wouldn't pay $300 a month for internet at home, but if you're on the road and the hotel charges, that's what you pay. It's not gouging; it's the normal price.

 

[JimC]

$10 per 24-hour period is the typical price at hotels where you pay for access. No, you wouldn't pay $300 a month for internet at home, but if you're on the road and the hotel charges, that's what you pay. It's not gouging; it's the normal price.

At least as long as the guest is willing to pay that amount. See my earlier post about the cost for providing it resort wide. Bulk purchase seems to be very inexpensive. Guess the service is really cheap and only the infrastructure and transmission repairs run up the cost and hence the need to charge quite a bit more.

 

[JimMIA]

At least as long as the guest is willing to pay that amount. See my earlier post about the cost for providing it resort wide. Bulk purchase seems to be very inexpensive. Guess the service is really cheap and only the infrastructure and transmission repairs run up the cost and hence the need to charge quite a bit more.

I wasn't talking about the cost to DVC of changing. Colleen seemed to be horrified at the $10 per day cost, and I was just pointing out that $10 per day is pretty much the industry standard for properties who charge.

I agree that the cost would be doable. I'm not sure whether DVC owns the infrastructure or the provider does, but either way, I don't think it's impossible. I suspect DVC might just prefer to contract it out in return for a % of the proceeds...and I'm not sure that's a bad decision for us.

 

[bavaria]

I disagree. The other items you've mentioned are basics of any resort. Broadband internet access is too. But FREE broadband internet is not.

I don't go to WDW to work, or to play on the Internet. In fact, I welcome the fact that I don't have internet access!

If someone REALLY needs to contact me, they can call my cell. And if I REALLY need internet, I can pay the $10.

Different priorites for different people. My 84 year old grandmother logs onto her laptop every day, does her shopping online, browses various German newspapers, buys airline tickets, plans her trips, and checks to see if her hotel has high speed.

Neither she nor my 90 year old grandfather used a computer during their long careers, but being connected is something that they enjoy during their retirement.

Great that you don't have this priority, but others do. I rarely use the waterpark features at DVC, but wouldn't begrudge someone else that option.

 

[bavaria]

I don't think they really need cable TV either. They don't even have any decent channels.

I beg to differ. I don't watch much TV at home, but living in hotels around the world I am exposed to a wide variety of programming.

Two of my favourite channels are Deutsche Welle at WDW (not available on most hotel TV's in America) and DisneyChannel Germany at DLRP (quite different from the American version)

 

[Horace Horsecollar]

A relevant cost comparison may be Marriott's Cypress Harbour resort. It is part of MVCI in Orlando (near Sea World) and I am an owner. Free wired high speed Internet in villas and wireless high speed Internet property-wide costs owners $1.08 per unit week in 2007. The good news is that it was 20% more in 2006. It amounts to two tenths of one percent of our annual maintenance fee.

That works out to a little over 15 cents per day, with the cost is going down, when it's a resort-wide, basic, "bulk" service.

Thank you for providing meaningful statistics about how much it really costs for a timeshare resort to provide free, resort-wide high-speed Internet in rooms and public areas.

My experience is that the more expensive the hotel, the less likely it is that the Internet connect is free. YMMV

Yes. That's a point I made at the top of this thread. I wrote, "For the most part, the only hotels that still charge for high-speed Internet are full-service hotels that cater to business travelers on expense accounts (such as full-service Marriott and Hyatt hotels)." That applies to convention hotels too.

For one thing, such hotels attract guests who are less likely to object to the charge, because most of their guests can charge the expense to corporate expense accounts.

But probably more significantly, such hotels were early adopters of high-speed Internet, and they're now stuck with contracts with third party providers. As these contracts expire, the hotels will be able to treat high-scpeed Internet as the expected commodity that it's become.

 

[Happy@OKW]

Am I the only one who views this as apples/oranges? DVC is my "home away from home". I have internet access in my home - just as I have a toaster, a washer, a vacuum cleaner, etc. that are not available in a hotel room. If it makes other members feel better, I wouldn't mind paying a reasonable daily price for the service, but I agree that $10 is gouging.

 

[snowbunny]

Clearly it would not cost $10 per day per room. That's the current, ridiculously high "retail" price of the service. My guess is that the underlying cost is pennies per day per room

While I don't go on vacation to surf the internet, as a communication tool it's become a necessity (for me).

I agree with Horace....if the Super8 can sell me rooms at $59 per night (and they do, all over New England) and provide free high-speed wireless, it's not costing much at all.

 

[lisareniff]

I agree that fee-free internet is something WDW should be working toward (along with better TV's and cable). It is becoming a very common path of communication.

We went to the coast of maine last year and were in a remote inn on a peninsula that had free internet! It was wonderful. We were able to plan a few things for our trip, etc. Even get ready for our 180 window for Disney Dining!

 

[colleen costello]

If we DID use the internet at WDW for WORK, perhaps that $10 wouldn't bug me so much... But we use it for FUN, just like we do at home. I love getting on the various Boards and reporting what is going on at OKW or wherever I am staying; I also love posting my latest vacation pics to Disney-obsessed pals back home. It's also nice to check in with family. None of this is NECESSARY but it is fun and for my family it is part of the whole "vacation experience."

For years hotels charged outrageous rates for phone calls, Disney hotels included. DVC always offered better rates, given that your DVC room was supposed to be DIFFERENT. That's how I see it with the internet sevice... If they have to charge to regain costs, fine. But I don't think they should be making a huge profit on a service that so many hotels everywhere offer for free.

 

[kdzgon]

Personally, I am not very interested in bringing my laptop to WDW. My vacation is an attempt to get away from it all, not bring it with me. I want to immerse myself in the Disney experience. Having a laptop implies that I will spend some time actually using it and not engaging in my vacation plans. I have enough memory on my camera to store my pictures. I do not need a laptop to download them. My friends and family can call me if they need me. My work can call as well.

We, too like to "get away from it all" but sometimes you cannot avoid all responsibilities, especially if the trip is a longer one (we just returned from a 2 wk trip). I also admit to being an advance-planning fanatic, but it works for us. I bring my laptop. It has my touring plans, lots of downloaded info (maps, etc), lists, confirmations, emergency contact info, and more. I use the internet to update my (Disney) touring plans should our plans change, or to check menus or operating hours before setting out with two four year olds, or to search for alternate area activities. I also check up on my 73 YO mother, check in with my DD to monitor her progress with her cancer treatments, and try not to miss my IM sessions with my other out-of-state grandchildren (a picture is worth a thousand words - can't exactly have a "real" phone conversation with a 2 YO). We also share pics etc with the parents of the DGC we take with us and they get to "see" their parents. DH also checks his work email, but it is not the reason we bring the laptop as he has other options to do so (he is required to be available due to the nature of his work).

IMO, $10 for 24 hrs is not a "reasonable" fee. Yes, we pay the fee as we use the service, but there is no way it can be considered "reasonable" in this day and age.

As to the OP that suggested the fee offset "other" expenses, I'd say that's fine as long as you don't mind doing the same for anything that is not a "basic" service. IMO that includes pool access, concierge service, and for that matter, buses or parking. (I fly in, why am I paying for parking lots I don't need? Conversely, if I always drive, why pay for buses? The costs are far from equivalent, so they do not offset one another.) Obviously this is not a reasonable argument - we all pay for amenities that benefit the majority of the guests, whether we use them ourselves or not.

BTW, Vero Beach also has free internet access in the lobby.

 

[jarestel]

Anyone who decides to purchase a timeshare would be wise to consider beforehand that one is expected to contribute to the upkeep not only of the basic room, amenities, and public areas but to the upkeep and improvement of all of these items as well. So it matters not at all whether a particular guest uses the tv, parking lots, transportation, pools, etc you would still be expected to pay for these items. If this is a requirement that some find unreasonable, maybe the purchase of a timeshare should be given additional thought.

When high-speed internet becomes a basic service, we will all be expected to pay for it whether we choose to use it or not. It's the nature of timeshares. And there willl be additional things added to the list of basic services over the next 40-50 years as well that will require the collective "coughing-up" of us all. I may use some and not others, but I certainly won't be surprised when the hat is passed in my direction.

 

[BCV23]

Another vote for free HS internet.

To me it is becoming a basic service rather like the phone connection. We all pay for that but I'll bet many of us don't use it much these days except for WDW related calls...front desk, dining, etc..