Advertisement
Advertisement

A Wi-fi world first on the MTR

MTR passengers are to be the first in the world to enjoy wireless access to the internet on underground trains through a high-speed Wi-fi network.

No date has been set for the launch of the service, but PCCW has already carried out a successful trial.

The service will first be introduced in station concourses and on platforms this summer. Wu Liang-tai, the company's executive vice-president for emerging technology, said putting it in trains for access on the go was the next step.

A third-generation (3G) mobile-phone network allows users to connect to the internet on the move at speeds of 3.6 megabits per second.

Wi-fi (wireless fidelity) gives users online access at 54 megabits per second, fast enough to watch videos on the internet. It costs HK$20 a day for unlimited access.

On trains, it would work with receivers at each end of the train picking up a 3.5G signal from transmitters in the tunnel.

The Wi-fi network will give users access to the internet through Wi-fi-compatible devices such as laptop computers and mobile phones.

'Wi-fi is much cheaper than 3G for internet access, so we can deliver our content to users when they are on MTR trains,' Dr Wu said on the sidelines of a telecoms conference in Beijing.

Mobile operators charge about HK$100 per month for 10 megabytes of 3G use.

One question mark over the launch of Wi-fi on trains is whether the MTR Corporation will put the service out for tender, according to an industry source.

Dr Wu said the MTR could also use the network for remote monitoring of train systems and to operate multimedia screens in trains.

The government is backing the development of Wi-fi services and is spending more than HK$200 million to provide it free in public buildings.

PCCW is aggressively pushing Wi-fi services in Hong Kong by adding more internet access points in convenience stores, restaurants, shopping arcades and coffee shops.

It anticipates the Wi-fi network will be upgraded to a high-speed WiMax network once the government issues licences for the related spectrum. WiMax is a new telecommunications standard for providing wireless data over long distances.

'Intel, the chipmaker, will launch the first commercial WiMax chip in 2008. That will push the development of WiMax,' Dr Wu said.

Post