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SCMP Reporter

Operator to install more than 3,000 hotspots city-wide to boost wireless use

PCCW's decision to install more than 3,000 Wi-fi hotspots around Hong Kong, from about 400 now, will allow internet surfers almost  city-wide wireless access from laptops, PDAs and mobile telephones by the end of next month.

The additional Wi-fi hotspots should help increase the use of wireless internet outdoors, market watchers said, but it might also hinder growth of mobile internet on 3G networks that was priced higher than Wi-fi.

This would encourage telecommunications operators to consider converging fixed and wireless broadband services, or so-called 4G technology, they said.

PCCW, the city's largest telecommunications firm, announced last week it had built a territory-wide wireless network, allowing  Wi-fi internet access at  more than 3,000 hotspots.

The coverage means convenience stores such as 7-Eleven and Circle K, coffee shop chains including Pacific Coffee and Starbucks, and shopping centres such as Cityplaza One, Taikoo Shing, Festival Walk and  Langham Place will provide wireless access to broadband internet.

PCCW will also install hotspots in all Island Line MTR stations and some of the busier Kowloon stations in the first phase of implementation. PCCW and MTR are studying the possibility of offering Wi-fi on trains.

Existing PCCW residential broadband users will be charged HK$3 for every 10 minutes, or a monthly tariff of HK$98 for unlimited access.

Non-PCCW users will be charged  HK$158 per month, or HK$6 for every 10 minutes.

The service will use the  IEEE 802.11b/g/x wireless standard  for internet connection, with  download speeds ranging from  11 to 54 megabits per second. With full internet connectivity, users can access all internet resources and corporate networks when away from their desktops.

PCCW said that boosting the coverage of  Wi-fi hotspots in Hong Kong  would stimulate the outdoor use of wireless internet.

'We anticipate growth of several times the present number of Wi-fi users after the number of hotspots reaches 3,000,' said Tom Chan, the managing director of PCCW's consumer group.

PCCW last year partnered with the Airport Authority to offer free Wi-fi internet connection services within Hong Kong International Airport, previously a paid service offered by the authority.

'We saw a sharp increase in the Wi-fi usage once we introduced the free service in December. Usage rose 15 times that month when compared with November 2006,' Mr Chan said.

Several electronic devices  such as Sony Corp's PlayStation Portable handheld game,  smartphones and personal digital assistants  are all Wi-fi compatible and PCCW is exploring business opportunities involving these.

'According to marketing research firm ABI Research, the total output of Wi-fi compatible devices will grow six times in 2011 to 250 million units, up from 40 million units in 2005. This would create a strong demand for such wireless internet service,' Mr Chan said.

A company source said: 'Wi-fi is no longer used as a communication tool only. It can be for entertainment,  such as PSP players for online games. This made us become more aggressive on Wi-fi coverage.'

PCCW's expansion of Wi-fi coverage should not affect  the company's 3G mobile business, PCCW Mobile, despite both technologies offering outdoor wireless internet connectivity, the source said.

'It will be a cheaper choice for Wi-fi users who want  internet connectivity away from  their desktop computers,' the source said.

Telephone operators' mobile broadband services, which offer internet connectivity through 3G or 3.5G networks, are more expensive than Wi-fi.

SmarToneVodafone's mobile broadband service charges HK$100 for the first 50 megabits of  data traffic. The operator also offers an unlimited usage plan at HK$488 per month.

Hutchison Whampoa sets an entry level monthly tariff of HK$28 for a two megabits connection.  CSL offers HK$588 for unlimited access each month.

The 3.5G  network provides users a download speed of 3.6 megabits per second, soon to be upgraded to more than seven megabits per second.

'The two services are in a different market position,' Mr Chan said.

'3G has a wider coverage and users can be online from one place to another.  This will be an expensive service for niche users,' he said.

'Wi-fi, which only allows users to get connected to the internet at a fixed point with coverage of 10 metres, is more affordable for the general public.'

3G and Wi-fi would complement each other, Mr Chan said.

The company also expressed interest in bidding for a WiMax licence once the government announces the terms later this year. WiMax is similar to Wi-fi while offering a much wider coverage for any given hotspot.

'We are studying how to converge the 3G and Wi-fi networks to build up a whole wireless broadband network,' said a company source.

The study will explore whether Wi-fi users might automatically connect to a 3G or faster mobile network once they walked outside a Wi-fi hotspot, or vice versa. This would allow users to switch to the cheaper Wi-fi service once 3G devices discovered  a Wi-fi hotspot.



PCCW gives Web surfers more Wi-fi coverage