Wall Street Journal to offer free WiFi hotspots in NYC and San Francisco during September

Wall Street Journal to offer free WiFi hotspots in NYC and San Francisco during September

Oh New Yorkers and their marvelous, no-cost WiFi access points. Only a few days after Google Offers and Boingo happily announced they'd brought gratis wireless connectivity to additional underground locations within the city, The Wall Street Journal is now let it be known it too will be kind enough to gift the NYC crowd with some WiFi hotspots of its own. The nice gesture will bring around 1,300 network units to areas such as SoHo, Greenwich Village, Union Square, Chelsea and, naturally, the renowned Times Square during the month of September -- all in hopes of giving "people the opportunity to sample The Wall Street Journal." Meanwhile, folks in San Francisco can also grab the internet-friendly freebies in a couple of different places, including Nob Hill and Fisherman's Wharf. And don't worry, there won't be any donkeys involved here.

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Wall Street Journal to offer free WiFi hotspots in NYC and San Francisco during September originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 24 Aug 2012 15:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Spectrum Interactive brings WiFi hotspots to London’s phone boxes

Spectrum Interactive brings WiFi hotspots to London's phone boxes

London's red telephone boxes are iconic, sure, but just how relevant can they be in this century? Spectrum Interactive has a solution that both ensures their preservation and provides customers in search of internet a free ticket online. The company has converted some 1,800 pay phones throughout London into WiFi hotspots, offering passersby a free connection so long as they provide their mobile numbers and download an e-coupon for a nearby store. Spectrum initially began testing the program with the help of Nokia late last year, and while it's amassed an impressive number of WiFi access points, it's lost the support of its Finnish partner, and is still assessing how willing local businesses are to pay for getting coupons in the service. On top of that, there's the whole issue of how many people will think to scope out phone booths rather than, say, an internet cafe. Here's hoping Spectrum has some very flashy signs on the windows.

[Image credit: Elliott Brown, Flickr]

Spectrum Interactive brings WiFi hotspots to London's phone boxes originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 May 2012 19:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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