A friend mentioned last night that a friend of theirs was trying to find out about some sort of North American air pass - they believed with Star Alliance.
Are there air passes like this - that offer either unlimited or multiple hops for reduced prices? Not just with Star Alliance, but anyone? And if so, what are the basic terms?
Each of the 3 major global airline alliances have some form of "North American Air Pass" :
These passes all have extensive conditions - generally they can only be purchased by a non-North American resident, and must be purchased in conjunction with an international airfare into North America.
The specific conditions vary a little between the different alliances - the links above give the information on each.
I found this page that lists most of the different options for North American Air Travel Passes, including One World, Star Alliance, Sky Team, All American, Horizon and Alaska Air, US Air, and more.
Conveniently it also has links for around the world tickets, as well as passes in other parts of the world.