Would a public computer lab be a good business to get into these days in the U.S.?

Question

Basically, people come in and pay to use computers, with internet access. Not an internet cafe because it's not going to be a coffee shop, which is why I chose to call it a public computer lab.

I was thinking about just having a soda/snack machine and maybe free coffee. I'd allow customers to play games, watch videos, and of course homework/email/shop...etc. Questions is, would it be a wasted investment with more wireless hotspots, libraries, and broadband being widely available these days? Or do people still commonly go to places like this to spend a day playing World of Warcraft or typing reports or simply to have a quiet enviornment...etc and in time, possibly just a place to hangout.

I don't expect to get rich but possibly get me by from doing something I enjoy. Any advice?

Answer 1

Sorry but your computer lab idea is in the past.  Most people who use wifi hubs are usually business people trying to get a bite to eat while working on projects, hence the internet cafe.  With affordable highspeed internet people don't really need to go to a computer lab anymore to get on the internet.  And you also are competing against free wifi places and public libraries with internet access.  Heck, even McDonalds has free Wifi now.

If you want to work with computers, might I suggest an IT consulting business?  Or if you like computer games, why not build custom gaming pc's with the latest highend parts and sell them.  There was a company started in my area a few years back that does that and they are doing quite well.

On the other hand, there was a gaming zone to connect to lans and the internet and play computer games.  They thrived about 5 years ago, but went out of business about 3 years ago.