DC08 – 173 May 19, 2008
Wireless comes to Waltham Forest as BT launches borough network
BT and Intel spearhead two-day wireless showcase in London borough
Waltham Forest has emerged as one of the leaders of the UK’s ‘wireless revolution’.
Later this week it will be named as the second London borough to be included in BT’s ‘Wireless City’ programme. It follows hard on the heels of the success of the wireless network in Westminster.
Residents, businesses and visitors of Waltham Forest will benefit from a high speed wireless broadband (wi-fi) network covering many parts of the borough.
Councillors Clyde Loakes and John Macklin will kick off a series of events, activities and competitions to celebrate the launch this weekend. Residents are invited to attend the two-day “Liberate Waltham Forest” event in the Town Square on Friday and Saturday, organised by BT in association with Intel.
The launch of extensive wi-fi coverage from the north to the south of the borough follows Waltham Forest Council’s agreement with BT to provide a municipal wi-fi network.
Wi-fi coverage is now found along many of the principal thoroughfares, commercial centres and at numerous new hotspot locations never previously covered. Coverage areas include Leytonstone High Road, Leyton High Road, Lea Bridge Road, the famous Walthamstow Market, Hoe Street, Blackhorse Road, Forest Road, the Chingford Mount and wi-fi around most of the station sites. It builds on BT’s existing Openzone network and will transform the way people work, talk and play while out and about in Waltham Forest.
The network means business people will be able to work more productively with their wi-fi enabled devices, such as laptops based on Intel®Centrino® processor technology, mobile phones and Nokia N810 internet tablets.
Residents will be able to enjoy all the leisure benefits of the internet they normally have at home, such as online shopping; and tourists will be able to go online while ‘on the move’ to read up on local attractions, and find maps or restaurants. Fans can even watch videos on YouTube or BBC iPlayer on their Nokia N810 internet tablet.
The free showcase, which runs on Friday and Saturday this week, will be split into four Liberation ‘experiences’:
• At Home – A specially mocked-up ‘home’ will enable people to see how wireless broadband can help them talk and play at home and on the move;
• At Work – An office environment equipped with products and services to offer businesses truly converged mobility and communications service;
• On the Move – Visitors will be able to try out BT Openzone and see how its partners’ products and services work across the city’s wireless broadband network;
• In the City – for the Council, the wireless network will help to transform service delivery provided by field staff such as social services (adult and children), highways, building control and parking services.
Throughout the two days, there will be chances to win prizes, from BT Openzone vouchers, Intel®Centrino® Duo enabled laptops, Nokia N800 internet tablets, wi-fi baby monitors, video phones and internet wi-fi radios.
Waltham Forest Cabinet Member for Service Modernisation, Cllr John Macklin, said: “Many people living in or passing through Waltham Forest will benefit from the new Wireless City network. Our desire to be a Wireless City is about reaching out to people in new ways and improving the quality of people’s lives and the services we deliver through opportunities afforded by new technology. This project will revolutionise the way people live, work and play and provide a huge boost for residents, council staff, businesses and tourists.”
Andrew Campling, London General Manager for BT added: “The Wireless Cities programme is a really exciting step forward for everyone in Waltham Forest and will open up a raft of new opportunities for local businesses, citizens and visitors, ensuring they are connected, anytime, anyplace, anywhere. In addition to businesses having the potential to be more productive and residents being better connected, the Wireless Cities programme looks at social inclusion, increased safety, maximising council efficiency and citizen access.”
Graham Palmer, Intel UK country manager, said: “Intel has been spearheading the adoption of mobile working with the Intel®Centrino® Mobile Technology platform within the business environment for several years and we are really excited about working with BT to help drive the benefits of the use of wireless to consumers and a much wider business audience.”
Waltham Forest joins Birmingham, Bristol, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Leeds, Liverpool, Newcastle, Nottingham, Portsmouth, Sheffield and Westminster as part of the Wireless Cities programme. For more information about the Liberation Campaign, visit www.btwireless.bt.com.
ENDS
NOTE TO EDITORS - Launch Photocall:
Councillor Clyde Loakes, Leader of the Council, and Councillor John Macklin, Cabinet Member for Service Modernisation, from Waltham Forest Council, will join BT’s London General Manager, Andrew Campling, for the official launch on Friday 23 May at 11.30am at the interactive wireless showcase in the Town Square, Walthamstow.
The Wireless Showcase:
Opening Times
Friday 23 May 7.30am to 6.30pm and Saturday 24 May 9.30am to 6pm
Detail on the Showcase Experiences:
At home:
• BT Home Hub: allows customers to create their own wireless network, and sets up a single access point for all BT’s latest broadband products, now and in the future.
• BT Total Broadband: customers can benefit from download speeds of up to 8Mb, inclusive internet voice and video calls, Digital vault, and a suite of security software. Customers also have the freedom to access wireless broadband on the move with inclusive BT Fon minutes which can be used at BT Openzone (UK and Ireland only), BT FON and FON hotspots around the world.
• BT Vision: the service, available to BT Total Broadband customers, lets you watch and record Freeview TV and order on-demand content, including films and Premiership football.
At work:
• BT Office Anywhere: allows customers to do business on the go - you can talk, access your office e-mail, calendar and contacts, and view documents – all while on the move.
• BT Business One Plan: provides a single service for mobile, landline and broadband, enabling businesses to reduce costs and improve the efficiency of staff
• A new initiative from BT will also allow BT Business Total Broadband customers to offer public wi-fi access to their own customers by turning their BT Business Hub into a BT Openzone hotspot, providing secure, publicly accessible high speed wireless broadband.
On the move:
• Wireless broadband via BT Openzone allows you to work, talk and play more freely. BT Openzone vouchers and subscriptions can be used at more than 3,000 premier BT Openzone hotspots, 13 UK wireless city centres, hotspots provided by the BT FON wi-fi community, now with more than 70,000 members, at any of the new BT Business Total Broadband enabled hotspots coming later this quarter, and at more than 35,000 international hotspots through roaming partners.
