News: Dublin gets free wifi
I know we're a car website, but hey, we love our technology too and with the 3G signal around the nation being as flakey as a box of Cadbury's, here's some welcome news for those of us trying to access our emails when out and about.
The Lord Mayor of Dublin, Naoise Ó Muirí today launched Dublin Free WiFi at Barnardo’s Square, Dublin 2 (beside City Hall Dame Street). This new service will offer both Dubliners and visitors to the city access to free WiFi, 24/7, at key locations around the city. The rollout of free public WiFi contributes to the Digital infrastructure in the city.
Uniquely the WiFi hotspots will be identified by wall mosaics which will feature “digidub” characters, modern and historical. Fourteen different characters will be rolled out , with a Viking (above), a street cleaner, a tourist, a rockabilly girl and pyjama girl being visible on 31st January. Dubliners will be invited to suggest additional characters (come on; surely the cast of The Snapper are shoe-ins?)
“Our future economic success, our ability to attract talent and investment and our competitive branding internationally means we have to use and apply digital technologies now. I am delighted to be here today to launch Dublin Free WiFi. This project is one of the milestones that will deliver on our Digital Dublin Initiative. By June of this year Dublin will have a Digital Masterplan. The aim of the plan is to develop Dublin as a world centre of digital excellence” said the Lord Mayor of Dublin.
In launching Dublin Free WiFi the Lord Mayor has thrown down a challenge. “I am asking Dubliners to identify and suggest different uses which can be made of the availability of free wifi in terms of developing services, encouraging people connecting, and making the city more attractive.”
To mark the launch the public is invited to take part in Dublin Free WiFi Day from 11am to 5pm, at Barnardo’s Square.
Free WiFi is an initiative of Dublin City Council. It is provided, at no cost to the Council , by GOWEX, a Spanish company that has provided similar services globally. The service is free and provides a download speed of 512Kbps and an upload speed of 128Kbps. Users also have the option to purchase a higher download speed of up to 6 Mbps if required. Once registered the user will have access to all Dublin city hotspots and other GOWEX networks in cities like Madrid, Barcelona, Seville, Malaga, Paris, and Buenos Aires. To celebrate the launch of this initiative, Dublin Free WiFi will be upgraded from 512Kbps to 1Mbps for 2 months from today.
“We are very proud to be working in Dublin alongside the City Council to offer free WiFi to all Dubliners and to all visitors. We think that Dublin is the European technological capital and having free WiFi in its streets will be a new attractive aspect for the City” said Jenaro García, CEO at GOWEX. Thanks to this WiFi service, Dublin City Council is laying the foundations for the deployment of a Wireless Smart City, providing infrastructure for the future delivery of smart municipal services.
From Thursday the service will be available at the Civic Offices Amphitheatre, Wood Quay, St Patrick’s Park and Barnardo’s Square. The service will be rolled out over the coming weeks to other key city centre locations including Smithfield Square, Grafton Street, Henry Street, O’Connell Street and Temple Bar Square.
You can view the full set of “digidub” characters and find out where you can go digital at www.dublingowexfreewifi.ie
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