More than 90% of BP station owners are expected to participate, Ruckus spokesman David Callisch told USA Today.
BP's goal: To entice drivers to stay longer and check out the other goods-besides gas-that many stations offer. Many [image-nocss] BP stations have on-site restaurants, video arcades and well-stocked convenience stores.
John Strickland, Jr., president of Wayne Oil in Goldsboro, N.C., told the newspaper he plans to make free Wi-Fi available in all 15 of his stations, which are scattered throughout the state.
Strickland said he decided to install Wi-Fi because it's "become an expectation in life" among the traveling public.
"If you travel, nothing makes you more angry than to have to pay $6, $9 or $12 for an Internet connection that you only need for an hour," he said.
While the idea of sitting in a gas station-for hours-to surf the Internet might seem far-fetched, consider the experience of Starbucks. After the chain added free Wi-Fi, its stores turned into all-day hang-out spots, according to USA Today. The Wi-Fi effect can be seen anywhere Starbucks is located, including Barnes & Noble.
Strickland thinks Wi-Fi can do the same thing for BP. "We want people to feel comfortable sitting in our BP stations just like they do in Barnes & Noble and Starbucks," he said.
As for the potential of drawing deadbeats who sit around surfing all day but don't buy anything-another byproduct of Starbucks' free Wi-Fi gambit-Strickland says he isn't worried.
"We think it's a good opportunity to attract people to our facilities," he said.
Owing to the engineering of BP's network, which is being installed on a station-by-station basis, BP owners can insert local ads for, say, on-site restaurants and specials on DVDs, sodas and the like.
Strickland said the ads, while a nice touch, are a sideline to a larger cause: Forcing travelers to re-think the gas-station experience.
"Our industry is morphing," he said. "They're not the old stores of 20 years ago."
Ruckus Wireless is a leading provider of Wi-Fi gear based in Sunnyvale, Calif.
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