As we've reported before, some airports in the United States including the Minneapolis / St. Paul Airport are installing power charging units from companies like Smarte Carte so they can charge travelers to power up their mobile devices. I find this ridiculous since ports should be in the business of promoting business, and enabling easy communications via easily accessible mobile power is one way to do this.

So imagine my surprise when I found a completely different mobile charging business model at the Zagreb airport in Croatia: ad supported by a carrier.

Below is a T-Mobile Powerstation attached to the wall of the international departures lounge. When not drinking one last cup of cappuccino or smoking one last cigarette, travelers can top off the batteries in their mobile devices. And it's free! Free? Yes, free. And it works for most major cell phones - T-Mobile or not - from Nokia, Sony Ericsson, and Samsung.



T-Mobile seems to own the Croatian market based on my time walking the streets of Zagreb and Dubrovnik. Dominating the advertising in the airport is a smart move since it gives newly arriving guests the impression, like I have, that's it's T-Mobile territory, putting all competitors - in this case, companies including Vodaphone and Orange - in a position of first removing my market dominance impressions T-Mobile has established upon arrival.


I'd love to see this type of thing catch on in the United States. American wireless carriers should jump on this relatively cheap form of service based advertising. And airports should welcome the installation of power stations like this, while perhaps charging an access fee in excess of what Smarte Carte shares with airports from their SmarteCharge Rapid Charger stations.