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In-Flight Wi-Fi Makes its Debut
mindless4210 writes "German airline Lufthansa will become the first carrier to provide Boeing's Connexion service to its passengers. The service will be unveiled on May 17 on non-stop flights from Munich to Los Angeles, with plans to outfit their entire fleet over the next year. Passengers will be able to purchase access using their credit cards and Wi-Fi enabled laptops. The cost is set at $30 for the entire flight or $10 for 30 minutes."
Nothing you say has anything to do with what I wrote. I kept my response to three words, hoping that would avoid confusion, but it didn't. It's their airplane and if they want to outlaw wi-fi setups other than theirs, they can easily make that rule. You claimed that they wouldn't refuse to let you setup your own, and I strongly disagree. They will refuse to allow this. None of your discussion of enforcability is relevant to what I said, as I didn't make any claims about how or if they would enforce this rule. I'm pretty sure that setting up your own wi-fi network on a plane would not be allowed, so I don't see why them having their own network would change this.
I'd rather be lucky than good.
Today, they don't let you use electronics during takeoff and landing. What possible reason do they have not to let me use my gameboy or my discman? None. But they don't want to deal with certifying every possible piece of electronics that might or might not be safe because it's not worth the trouble and the risk of being wrong is so high. Similarly, anything involving broadcasting over radio frequencies is going to make them uncomfortable, unless it's the specific application they've set up.
My objection was to the original claim was that they "can't refuse to let you do this", as if this were some innate right that they were incapable of denying you. Which is why I said needed to point out that they of course can deny it if they want.
As for "What possible reason would they have to do this other then pure greed?" Isn't "pure greed" enough? They are providing you a way to have wireless that they have set up and verified is safe. You are trying to get around paying for it in a way that they are not confident is safe. They aren't going to like that.
I'd rather be lucky than good.