...But it's free at the motel.

Why is it that fancier hotels charge for in-room Internet access, but cheaper hotels don't?

I have stayed in 17 different hotels (I think--I may need a recount) since I've gotten my laptop computer. Of those, I believe all but four had free, in-room, high-speed Internet access. (At least in theory--some of them had Wi-Fi that didn't work, and there were a couple where I stayed for one night on the road and never even took the computer out of its bag.) Most of those were chain motels--Sleep Inns, Comfort Inns, a Best Western. Of the four that lacked in-room high-speed 'net access, one had no Internet access of their own--a stand-alone, non-chain motel in NJ--and they had free local phone calls, so I could call my dial-up ISP for free without problem.

Of the four "luxury" hotels I've stayed in since I've had my notebook, one--a boutique hotel in Great Neck, NY, had free Ethernet-based service. The other three--a Marriott in New Orleans, a Disney Resort, and the Sheraton in Birmingham--are the only ones that charge for the service. And, the least expensive of those three, the Sheraton, at least offered free Wi-Fi in the lobby (I'm writing my blog from there now). Perhaps worse, those same three hotels were among the minority in charging for local phone calls--meaning that my dial-up approach wasn't a free option, either.

I'd just love to hear an explanation--other than "they figure you can afford it"--of why the expensive hotels charge for what the cheap ones give away.