Avis To Provide Wi-Fi On Wheels

Avis Rent A Car System this week is expected to announce an agreement to provide portable wireless Internet service in its vehicles by March.

The service would come through San Francisco-based Autonet Mobile, which will debut the system that can turn vehicles into wireless hotspots at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas next week. There has been no official announcement with Avis, but the New York Times today reported that Avis would offer the service for $10.95 per day by March, and Autonet Mobile today confirmed that it has an agreement with a "world leading car rental company" to offer the service by the end of the first quarter.

Wireless service would be generated by a portable device that can plug into a cigarette lighter or a wall plug and is designed to work on nearly all U.S. roads, according to Autonet Mobile.