AT&T Wireless on Thursday launched Wi-Fi service at the Philadelphia International Airport. The operator has three service plans: unlimited wireless Internet access from a single location for 24 hours for $9.99; up to five 24-hour sessions from a single location for $29.99; and up to ten, 24-hour sessions from a single location for $49.99. AT&T Wireless has also offers Wi-Fi in the Denver, Dallas/Fort Worth, Seattle-Tacoma, San Jose, and Austin-Bergstrom airports, and plans to add North Carolina’s Raleigh-Durham International Airport to its network. — October 24, 2003
Wireless network aggregator GRIC Communications has partnered with three major Wi-Fi service providers to add more than 2,200 hotspots to its TierOne network. The providers — the United Kingdom’s The Cloud, Switzerland’s Monzoon Networks and the Netherlands’ PicoPoint — currently offer service in five European countries and South Africa, and plan to add as many as 6,000 locations in the next year. Research firm Frost & Sullivan predicts that the number of European hotspots will reach 35,000 by 2006, with total subscription revenues exceeding 1 billion euros. — October 24, 2003
Passengers on France’s high-speed TGV trains will be able to enjoy high-speed Internet access beginning next month. The train operator is testing a new Wi-Fi-based entertainment service called Clic TGV that will include news clips, films, games tourist information and, of course, high-speed Internet access. The service will be free throughout the six-month trial. Passengers can use their own laptops or rent them on the train for 8 euros (around $9). — October 21, 2003
Austrian hotspot operator metronet has signed roaming agreements with four new partners, expanding its service to four new countries. The roaming deals give metronet a total of 1,200 hotspots in 12 countries. The WISP said it plans to add 2,000 more hotspots through roaming agreements by the end of the year. Its current roaming partners are TeliaHomerun (Sweden and seven other countries); SoneraHomerun (Finland); megabeam (Italy); Kubiwirless (Spain); and VEX (Argentina). Metronet’s service is only available outside Austria to customers with a contract. Charges range from 70 cents to 1 Euro (around $.80 to $1.15) per megabyte. — October 21, 2003
