Ah yes, the moment of truth has arrived - Southwest Airlines wants to know how much money passengers are willing to pay to use Row 44's in-flight high-speed Internet system. Like Alaska Airlines before it, Southwest on 24 June will begin testing a variety of price points for the service, which is currently offered for free on four specially-equipped Southwest Boeing 737s.
Key quote from Southwest's blog:
The connection cost will range from $2 to $12 and will be determined by the distance customers are traveling and the device they are using to connect. The cost to get online will be displayed when a customer launches his or her Internet browser and will be applicable to employees as well as customers.
Wow - a $2 connection for my iPhone on a short-haul flight? That's peanuts. Happy to pay that! Strategically, Southwest's top price point for the Row 44 service - $12 - is slightly less than the $12.95 charged by the carrier's Gogo-equipped rivals for Internet via laptop.
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