Looking for a new free wifi hotspot in the city? Well, look no further, because Barnes and Noble is about to hook. you. up. Not content to just allow their patrons to chill out on the floor while devouring the entire series of Fables (which I did), now they’re gonna let you surf the web for free too.
In an attempt to beef up publicity about their upcoming eBookstore (and eReader!), B&N has partnered up with AT&T to provide free access to the internet to their patrons.
From Macworld:
Since its debut in 2005, AT&T access has been a subscription-based affair, but on Tuesday the two companies announced that AT&T Wi-Fi has gone complementary. Users with laptops, Wi-Fi equipped smartphones and other wireless devices can now surf the Web in stores without having to set up an account or pay.
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Barnes & Noble recently fired a shot across the bow of Amazon.com and its Kindle e-book reader, announcing its “eBookstore” and plans to release a dedicated e-book reader of its own, in development by Plastic Logic. While the eBookstore is only passively mentioned in Barnes & Noble’s press release, the move to make Wi-Fi available for free in all Barnes & Noble stores seems partly geared to build customer awareness of the new eBookstore, along with promotional content like bestseller lists, new releases, celebrity book signings and more.
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I actually discovered this last week. I dropped by the Barnes and Nobles at 3rd Ave and 53St (love bookstores) to check out what’s changed since I last visited (store layout has changed quite a bit) and saw the sign for FREE WIFI!
I haven’t been there to take in all of the free, glorious rays of wifi yet, but I’m really looking forward to it.
YES!
Now if only they would let you sit in the Cafe section without buying a drink! Everytime I go there I have to buy a tea, drink it, and then sit with an empty cup next to me for the next four hours so no one asks me whether I have purchased an item at the cafe.