I was reading an interesting article recently that got me thinking about HOW people actually use public hotspots. Many people are familiar with how to use and connect to a public WiFi network and it is a resources that most find very useful. While it's easy to assume that the connection is safe, how often do we really consider where that signal is coming from and who is really providing it and why?

The havoc wrought by Hurricane Sandy was nothing that could have been prepared for by the telecom industries. Cell towers were knocked out which made reaching family and friends via phone calls, texts or internet more than difficult. Lack of electricity made DSL and Cable modems inoperable. But for those places that did have electricity WiFi became a lifeline and was finally recognized as the commodity that it has become.

As many iPad and iPhone users have discovered, there are a number of WiFi issues with IOS 6. Sadly, even more are being reported while the ones discovered early on have not yet been fixed. Frustrated users should be aware that due to these issues their carrier bills my go up significantly and sessions at public WiFi Hotspots may be less than satisfying.

Many companies use traditional media to reach their audience. TV, Radio, print and even direct mail marketing. A big portion of their marketing budget is dedicated to these mediums, and then afterwards, they use social media. We've seen a disconnect in the fact that sometimes they have what appears to be two separate marketing campaigns. They have one campaign for traditional media and then one for Social media. This type of duality is inconsistent especially since there will always be crossovers in the audience. A better strategy may be to communicate Super Bowl style.

Every now and then I am asked by friends and potential clients about the impact of 3G smartphones and mobile broadband cards on WiFi Hotspots. There is the perception that with the persistent growth of people accessing the internet over mobile broadband that WiFi Hotspots will be used less and less. That perception could not be more wrong. In fact AT&Ts latest usage statistics show explosive growth in Hotspot usage.