Business Blog: Hoover’s Business Insight Zone

I ranted about this the other day. But that’s fine by me, since the issue of airlines’ moronic treatment of passengers is worth ranting about.

Now Jeff Jarvis has ranted about this, too, at length and with much more eloquence. A choice tidbit:

Airlines: Imprisonment as a business model

Oh, yes, this shifts some of the logistical burden of air travel from taxi and air traffic control to the terminals — fine. It also shifts the pain in this relationship from the powerless customer to the people who are in a position to fix the situation. If the airlines want to imprison us, they still have the tool of the nonrefundable ticket, though the market will in the long-run dictate whether we choose to pay for this discount with the risk of captivity.

Give it a read. As I keep saying, someday somebody who runs an airline is going to crack this nut and make a lot of money while their competitors continue to operate the same ol’ stupid way.