Knowzy.com, the website that’s been tracking which Jack in the Box stores were offering free Wi-Fi, reports that the restaurant chain has pulled the plug. The Wi-Fi offer came with the installation of HDTVs that displayed ads in the dining area, but those are gone too: “In mid-2009, the TVs and the Wi-Fi began disappearing. By the time McDonald’s made their free Wi-Fi announcement in December, Jack had completely dismantled his Wi-Fi network.”

Knowzy says it spoke with a Jack in the Box employee who said the chain really was after the HDTVs, and the Wi-Fi was just an added benefit to the deal they struck with a company called RippleTV. That deal has apparently ended and RippleTV was acquired by another company last fall.

Knowzy says that even though the official program has gone away, there are at least six franchised locations (all in California) that are still offering free Wi-Fi unofficially, perhaps in a local effort to remain competitive with Wi-Fi-blasting McDonald’s locations. They’re listed on the Knowzy page.

“Free Wi-Fi at Jack in the Box is Gone!” [Knowzy.com]

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