m-Travel.com and Travel Distribution News

Archive Category: Hotspots

Asia-Pacific leads the way for hotspot growth

LEDBURY, UK -- The Asia-Pacific region had the most dramatic spread of wireless LAN hotspots of anywhere in the world during 2003, seeing a more than ten-fold increase in hotspot numbers. According to figures from the BWCS Wireless LAN Continuum service, there were more than 21,300 hotspots in the Asia-Pacific region by end-2003, up from around 2,000 one year ago.

Continue reading "Asia-Pacific leads the way for hotspot growth"

Boingo, Intel promote wireless for business travel

SANTA MONICA, California -- Boingo Wireless has signed an agreement with Intel to initiate a joint marketing campaign promoting wireless Internet access services to business travelers. The marketing campaign is in conjunction with the recent introduction of Intel Centrino mobile technology for notebook PCs that features integrated wireless LAN capability.

Continue reading "Boingo, Intel promote wireless for business travel"

Wi-Fi offered at key business travel locations

WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif. -- Nomadix and Swisscom Eurospot have announced several key business locations at airports, major rail stations, hotels and conference centers in the United Kingdom and Germany that have been enabled for public access Wi-Fi.

Continue reading "Wi-Fi offered at key business travel locations"

Wi-Fi access for guests now at smaller hotels

With the rapid growth of wireless Internet access installations in hotels in the past year, it won't be long before guests regard this new technology as a standard and routine service. Only a few months ago, new Wi-Fi hotspot networks were trumpeted by luxury hotels. But today, wireless services are available at lower-priced, smaller hotels.

Continue reading "Wi-Fi access for guests now at smaller hotels"

Verizon to launch high-speed wireless network

NEW ORLEANS -- Verizon Wireless and Lucent Technologies have announced plans to launch this summer a super-fast Wi-Fi mobile data network in Washington, D.C. that will provide businesses and consumers with data services at speeds of up to 2.4 Megabits per second (Mbps), fast as the fastest wire connections. Plans call for wireless broadband to be installed in hundreds of hotels and 10 airports this year.

Continue reading "Verizon to launch high-speed wireless network"

900 hotels in France will be Wi-Fi hotspots

PARIS -- At least 300 Accor hotels will be equipped as Wi-Fi hotspots by the end of the year. France Telecom and Orange France have announced a strategic alliance with Accor to deploy their network of Wi-Fi hotspots in 900 Sofitel, Mercure, Libertel, Suitehotel, Ibis, Etap Hotel and Formule 1 economy, midscale and upscale hotels in metropolitan France. 

Continue reading "900 hotels in France will be Wi-Fi hotspots"

McDonald's offers wireless high-speed Net access

OAK BROOK, Illinois -- Selected McDonald's restaurants in New York City now offer high-speed wireless for customers who are looking for a place to eat with one hand and access the Internet with the other hand. The pilot program currently includes 10 McDonald's restaurants in Manhattan and is scheduled to expand to several hundred restaurants in three major U.S. markets by year's end.

Continue reading "McDonald's offers wireless high-speed Net access"

San Francisco Airport launches wireless

San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and T-Mobile USA have announced the availability of high-speed wireless Internet access for passengers traveling through SFO with T-Mobile HotSpot service. As part of a multi year lease agreement for T-Mobile to offer Wi-Fi (802.11b) wireless broadband (WLAN) service throughout the airport, SFO becomes the latest airport to offer travelers the convenience of using their notebook computer or PDA to check e-mail or surf the Web with a super fast, reliable wireless connection.

Continue reading "San Francisco Airport launches wireless"

Wireless LANs picking up speed in Asia/Pacific

SINGAPORE -- Public wireless LAN (WLAN) services are finally picking up speed in Asia/Pacific after two years of struggling to get off the ground, according to a new report by Dataquest, a unit of Gartner Inc. In at least six major markets, Australia, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan, there is a wider choice of operators, service coverage is improving rapidly, and pricing has come down to realistic levels. The service is currently led by incumbent carriers, even though most of them are not first movers in this sector.

Continue reading "Wireless LANs picking up speed in Asia/Pacific"

inCode converts pay phones into Wi-Fi hot spots

SAN DIEGO -- With the rapid growth in mobile phones, the number of public pay phones in the United States has dropped from 2.6 million in 1998 to maybe less than two million today. Just last month, for example, at Eppley Airfield in Omaha, Nebraska, 25 pay phones were removed amid comments that the remaining 80 pay phones were still too many.

Continue reading "inCode converts pay phones into Wi-Fi hot spots"

New business model seen for WLAN hotspots

LONDON -- The United Kingdom will see in 2003 an acceleration in the development of software platforms for local wireless networks, predicts Ann-Louise Palm, CEO of Appear Networks. Further, there will be a growing influence of the "workspot" model.

Continue reading "New business model seen for WLAN hotspots"

City of Long Beach offers free wireless internet

LONG BEACH, California -- As part of a marketing campaign to attract tourists and new businesses, the city of Long Beach is offering free wireless internet access in a four-block area of its downtown business district. The city's next project is to deploy a wireless hot spot at Long Beach airport.

Continue reading "City of Long Beach offers free wireless internet"

Wireless hotspots growing fast at airports, hotels

SCOTTSDALE, Arizona -- With the worldwide footprint growing from under 2,000 locations to over 12,000 locations, 2002 was an extraordinary year for the hotspot market, according to In-Stat/MDR. The high-tech market research firm projects that, in most regions, hotspot deployment growth will continue to be steady in the coming year, however, in later years growth rates will decline, as the market becomes more mature.

Continue reading "Wireless hotspots growing fast at airports, hotels"

Wireless network providers form association

LUXEMBOURG -- Five WLAN public access service providers and five WLAN vendors announced the establishment of the Pass-One, an association formed to boost the WLAN (wireless local area network) hot spot business and to promote one global service mark. A key success factor of the public WLAN hotspot industry will be to offer a network, substantially large enough to be attractive to the end-user, the founders said.

Continue reading "Wireless network providers form association"

Nokia and IBM push public wireless LANs

Nokia and IBM are joining forces to expedite public wireless local area networks (LANs). Announced today, IBM Global Services will act as a system integrator of Nokia's wireless LAN infrastructure products in order to provide public wireless LAN solutions worldwide. At the same time, Nokia will continue sales of its Operator Wireless LAN solution through its existing sales channels. 

Continue reading "Nokia and IBM push public wireless LANs"