2degrees to launch mobile WiFi trial in the Capital

2degrees is about to begin a WiFi trial in central Wellington, which will give a select group of 2degrees customers unlimited WiFi data for free.

2degrees has partnered with CityLink and will invite around 20,000 Wellington¿based 2degrees customers to take part in the three-month trial from today, Thursday June 5th.

2degrees CEO Stewart Sherriff says the partnership is quite different to other existing mobile WiFi offerings in New Zealand.

"This trial gives customers commercial-free WiFi access across a concentrated geographical area of the Wellington CBD rather than just random "hotspots" that people need to be in very close proximity to," says Mr Sherriff.

"Working with an established provider like CityLink who already has a WiFi presence across the Wellington CBD makes a potential commercial offering a lot easier to establish. If the trial is successful, it has the potential to be used as a blueprint for 2degrees' WiFi offerings in other parts of the country.

City Link CEO Nick Willis says, "Wi-Fi has matured into a piece of core infrastructure for businesses, transport and event centres, universities, telecommunication companies and cities. CityLink is delighted to be able to provide this scale of Wi-Fi services to 2degrees for their trial."

"CityLink has the most used Public Wi-Fi in the country on cbdfree Wellington with 75000 unique monthly users, and is best positioned to provide plug and play solutions for high quality Wi-Fi Zones anywhere in New Zealand," says Mr Willis.

Stewart Sherriff says the trial is a chance to explore the potential benefits WiFi can provide to not only its customers, but also its network.

"With exponential data growth on our network every year, WiFi is becoming a logical option for mobile networks to explore further," he says.

"Conceptually, we already understand the benefits WiFi can provide, but this trial will give us valuable insight into how it can augment our network, influence data traffic patterns and, most importantly, how it can provide additional value to our customers." he says.

2degrees customers involved in the trial will be given a password specific to their device which is valid for three months.

2degrees says it expects to make a decision on the viability of WiFi as a commercial service later in the year.

The 2degrees and CityLink WiFi perimeter includes: The Wellington Golden Mile and beyond extending from Courtenay Place, Manners Street, Willis Street, Lambton Quay, Waterloo Quay, Customhouse Quay, Jervois Quay, Cable Street and important landmarks like Westpac Stadium, Wellington Railway Station, Wellington Cable Car Terminals, Wellington Zoo, ASB Sports Centre, TSB Arena.