'We don't want to be an office:' Café owners are pulling the plug on WiFi
When HotBlack Coffee opened in downtown Toronto a year ago, it took a risk few businesses would dare take in today's online-driven world: it turned off the WiFi.
"Every day people come in and ask for it," says Jimson Bienenstock, the café's co-owner.
Still, he hasn't wavered.
"In the short term, it hurt us," Mr. Bienenstock says. "It took us longer to become established, but once we reached critical mass, it has become a self-fulfilling virtuous circle."
While most cafés offer free WiFi, including large chains such as Starbucks, McDonald's and Tim Hortons, HotBlack is among a small but growing number of independent coffee shops choosing to ditch or limit Internet use. By not offering WiFi, they're hoping to create more of a community atmosphere where people talk to each other instead of silently typing on their computers.
If coffeeshops come to discourage people working, perhaps that activity can shift to libraries.
(Score: 2) by driverless on Wednesday May 03 2017, @12:18AM
Exactly. From the OP:
If coffeeshops come to discourage people working, perhaps that activity can shift to libraries.
How about if they work in the place that's specifically created to have people working in it? "Offices", I believe they're called. You can find them all over the place. In fact, people will even pay you good money to work in them, often with healthcare benefits, paid holidays, and other extras. How's that for a win/win situation?