Metricom's new Ricochet 128-Kbps service will be in 12 major metropolitan areas by next summer and in 40 by the summer of 2001, the company said. Pricing for the faster service has not been set. There are several factors driving the need for such mobile connectivity. The first is the increased mobility of the average worker. Just look at the airplane the next time you travel, said Wernke.
Every seat is taken with people on business trips.
Second is the use of more robust business applications. In the past, many travelers found it sufficient to check e-mail at the end of the day from a hotel room. It probably took you 15 minutes to check mail a few years ago, said Raymond Lopez, a consultant at Rosewall and Associates, a consulting firm that designs remote-access systems. Lopez noted that now, mail is used for more than messaging. Companies run their businesses by exchanging spreadsheets, presentations and documents as e-mail attachments, he said.