Zonga Aims To Make Travel Internet Access Cheap And Easy With Mobile Wi-Fi
Zonga is a new Finnish startup committed to make the Internet experience easier, better, and cheaper for all the globetrotters around the world by providing a mobile Wi-Fi rental service. The company was founded by Internet enthusiasts feeling the frustration of getting and staying online while traveling. While mobile services and Wi-Fi hotspots are getting more and more common, every business traveler knows what pain it is to try to get connected while on the go. Many mobile phones can create a Wi-Fi hotspot over 3G, but while traveling abroad mobile data roaming is usually outrageously expensive and thus not feasible. And Wi-Fi never seem to be conveniently located nor priced.
It seemed to the founders of Zonga that nobody is really well catering the big customer segment of international business travellers who are driven by busy schedules, mobility, cost awareness, and search for the peace of mind. Thus they wanted to offer 'All You Can Internet' with straightforward grab-and-go experience, enjoying Internet anywhere and anytime, with no worries about excessive charges.
Zonga's Mobile Wi-Fi rental service has now launched in Finland, available for foreign travelers at the Helsinki airport and selected downtown hotels. The service is based on a physical gadget, which acts as a 3G Wi-Fi hotspot. It requires no installation, and the device has its own battery, so no need for wires either. The package includes all you can eat data plan and simple daily pricing of 9 EUR (/11 USD), with no hidden costs. What is more, the device accepts up to five connections, so you can use the same connection with your mobile phone, laptop, iPad, and whatnot - something which typically isn't possible with public paid hotspots. Before boarding the return flight, the traveler just needs to drop the device off at any of the various locations at the airport (service point, bars, cafes) - or already at the hotel.
Zonga's target is to expand to main international business travel airports within the year 2011. The company mentions it is currently negotiating with multiple international airports and business partners, and we can expect new expansions to be announced shortly. Zonga is also working closely with their initial hotel partner International Restel Hotels, to extend the offering to various hotels of the target cities as well. Zonga was founded in October 2009, and it is currently fully owned by the operative management.
Considering how frustrating and time consuming it often is to try to hunt an internet connection when traveling abroad on business, Zonga's approach is definitely welcome, and I will happily grab a device once I will see one available at a foreign airport. Of course, a downside of Zonga's technology is the use of mobile network, due to which the connection speed will vary a lot depending on the location. However, at least in urban areas 3G's 1 megabit/sec is likely just fine for the majority of typical use cases. Zonga's success will depend primarily on the effectiveness of the business execution, getting the distribution set up quickly and the marketing message through to travelers.
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Good idea.
Some feedback:
1) the 9e / day price tag seems rather high to me. Maybe they did a market research and saw that people are willing to pay for this though.
2) the offering might compete with hotels that sell wifi access (quite a few of them still do). Does zonga do revenue sharing?
Thanks Ramine. Actually, 9e/24h is a steal, considering you'll have access everywhere. Of course the price will be different in different countries, but based on my travel experience it's rather affordable. Hotels typically charge over 10e per 24h, and you can only connect 1 device. And once you leave the hotel you're out of luck. I continue to work in cabs and trains, and sometimes in a new city with a couple of hours between meetings, finding a hotspot can be a real pain. And at the airports you pay a few euros just for 30min access. So I very much feel the problem they're trying to solve :)
Regarding rev share, I do believe they give the hotels something back to make it worthwhile to them.
Very interesting concept! I just traveled quite a few thousand miles during the last spring and finding a working/affordable internet connection was a constant problem. In addition, WiFi only works in small area and you never know about the security. I agree with Miikka that Zonga's pricing seems reasonable. In some countries it's vice to buy a local mobile internet if you stay more than just few days but of course it isn't the case with most business travelers.
I would recommend Zonga to move fast because this idea is solid and quite simple. Thus, it's also easy to copy and competition may appear soon.
I'd recommend to extend the offering to Australia: lots of travelers (leisure/business) but WiFi-hotspots are very expensive. McCafé probably was the most reliable service provider.. :)
I actually came across Zonga's business idea a while ago and I must say I think Zonga has one of those ideas that can really hit it big. Pricing aside, the potential of offering unlimited mobile WiFi rental across the globe is phenomenal. Clearly a concept that provides value not only to the consumers using the Zonga service but also to mobile operators as Zonga's partners.
As you mentioned Miikka, service marketing is going to make or break Zonga. That and the obvious service functionality.
Very good idea indeed.
Two questions:
1) in order to do that, you need to become something like an MVNO. Therefore, do you have a revenue share model with the MNO who is offering the Network access?
2) What happens if a traveller does not drop-off the hardware before his departure and he keeps it for himself? How do you ensure that he will definitely return it back? Do you have a licking mechanism?
Thanks.
Idea is good and there might be space for this service.
Skype has tried to do something similar with "Skype Access" service, which allows you to connect thousands of WiFi hotspots (Boingo etc) automatically. You only pay per minute directly from Skype credit.
I have used the Skype Access in London and few other places, works well, but the price is pretty high, probably about 10 EUR/per hour. It's good for e-mail sync and quick calls, but not suitable for daily usage.
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