Restaurants Go Wireless

George Babb is installing free wireless Internet in all five of his Village Inn Restaurants.

“I just saw the need for it because of the people, the demographics of my clientele,” said Babb, who lives in Springdale.

Hotels were among the first businesses in Northwest Arkansas to provide free wireless Internet service a couple of years ago. Coffee shops, such as Arsaga’s in Fayetteville and Starbucks in Bentonville, were next. Now, more restaurants are recognizing the need.

The Fayetteville Village Inn went online in late October. The Bentonville Village Inn got wireless in mid-November. Babb said he will soon install Wi-Fi (wireless fidelity technology) in his restaurants in Fort Smith, Conway and Quincy, Ill.

At $59 a month for each location, or thereabouts, it’s a relatively cheap investment. Cox Communications will serve as the Internet provider for Babb’s restaurants in Fayetteville and Bentonville.

“Obviously, we have a lot of Wal-Mart people and Wal-Mart vendors in Bentonville,” Babb said. “[In the Fayetteville restaurant], we have Tyson Foods, but the lion’s share of people who use it may not be affiliated with those companies.”

Babb said he received a letter three months ago from a customer asking for wireless in the Fayetteville store.

“I have some of the top presidents of businesses do business deals in here,” Babb said of the Fayetteville location.