China / Society

Student profits from selling wifi on train

(CRIENGLISH.com) Updated: 2014-09-09 10:16

A college student started his own entrepreneurship on his way to Beijing on Sunday by providing wifi services on a train, according to a Xinhua report.

Geng Chao, a college student from Wenzhou, East China's Zhejiang province, was on his way to Beijing for enrollment when he started providing and charging for wifi on the train. Geng connected a wireless network drive to his laptop, and made it a hotspot with the "sharing" feature.

Geng charged 10 yuan for one hour, 15 yuan for 2 hours and 20 yuan for four hours. He said he fixed the price hoping that people would buy the longest service possible because it was a better bargain.

Geng said people were skeptical at first, until two passengers successfully accessed the internet through his wifi. He made more than 600 yuan on a single train ride.

Individuals are not allowed to conduct business on trains, according to railroad regulations. Geng said the idea occurred to him a week ago and he was just trying to prove that his idea could actually work.

A member of staff from China's Academy of Railway Sciences says wifi will not be available on trains in the short term.

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