News Topic: WiFi
According to foreign media reports, as operators develop new Wi-Fi access strategies, they have reached divergent opinions on whether the service should be free and open to everyone. In this context, Telefonica's UK company (O2) and Eircom of Ireland represent two different viewpoints regarding free Wi-Fi access service.
Gavin Franks, General Manager of O2's Wi-Fi department in the UK, explained that O2 has recently built its own Wi-Fi network in the UK, covering 1,000 locations with 7,000 access points. By the end of June this year, the operator plans to expand its network to 3,000 locations.
O2's hotspot access is open and free, not only for its own users but also for users of other UK mobile operators.
Franks said: 'We see no reason to build a billing system for it.' He explained that O2's venue partners hope the Wi-Fi service can be used by everyone, while O2 hopes to further promote its brand by attracting all users of the service. If the user experience is positive, it may attract new paying service users.
However, Eircom has adopted the opposite strategy. The operator has also recently relaunched its self-owned Wi-Fi hotspot network, named "WiFiHub," but it only provides free access to its existing fixed broadband and mobile users. Users of other mobile operators can only enjoy 10 minutes of free access, after which the service will be charged.
'The question is whether it's free or not,' said John Bermingham, Senior Product Manager at Eircom. 'We are not completely free yet.' He added that potential retail and venue partners are struggling with the concept of 'offering free service to some, but not all, users.'
For Eircom, the business scenario of its new Wi-Fi service depends on user retention, user growth, and revenue. After six months of launching this service, Bermingham said: revenue 'has not grown much,' but it has had a significant impact on user retention.
Finally, Bermingham stated that the company's goal is to smoothly switch between mobile 3G networks and Wi-Fi networks, so that 'users don't even need to know they are using it. We don't want to tell them anything... they will benefit from the service.'
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