Bitbuzz appears to be adding customers at a very steady pace.
I've always been pretty harsh about wi-fi access prices in Ireland. And I still believe that €5 per hour is a prohibitive sum to encourage widespread wi-fi, and pushes thousands of prospective customers into the arms of 3G broadband vendors (which is far, far cheaper for a frequent user-about-town). However, fair play to Bitbuzz for keeping up the business and for growing it.
A big 'fair play' to them, too, for going public on (some of) their accounts and their registration numbers. For a small company, it is all too tempting to remain schtum on one's accounts, for a variety of reasons. (This can vary from colourful tax arrangements to perceived embarrassment over 'small' figures.) The company doesn't reveal its profitability -- which it should do -- but opening up about its revenues and registration figures is a great start.
From Bitbuzz's press release:
Bitbuzz had a total of 173,747 registered users by the end of this period [first half of 2009], indicating an increase of 22% since the end of 2008. Revenues for the six months to end June amounted to €501,350 compared with €433,950 for the corresponding period in 2008, representing an increase of 13.4% per cent. Full year revenues for 2008 amounted to €926,560.
Deals announced in the period included contracts with the Fitzwilliam Hotel Group; the Templeton Hotel; Mooney Hotel Group; Ibis Dublin West Hotel; StayGroup Apartments; BB’s Coffee and Muffins and The Streat Café Franchise -- all of which have contributed significantly to growth. The total number of Bitbuzz Wi-Fi hotspots across the country at the end of June ’09 was 194, up from 178 at the end of 2008.
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