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Since we found ourselves at London Bridge unable to connect above ground (link), we went underground to take a closer look at TfL’s WiFi offering. TfL currently approach WiFi slightly differently, using EAP SIM authentication based on passengers’ mobile phone service providers. This means that there is no additional data collection (since you mobile provider […]

So, we’re back and looking at the rather topical experience of WiFi at Network Rail operated London Bridge station. Network Rail also provides WiFi at Euston Station which we covered last year, with a similar experience. So alighting a train from Waterloo, between platforms 6 & 7 a FREE_WIFI_SSID was available and we took a […]

Working with a variety of private and public sector partners, we have found that many wireless connectivity projects get under way with positive intentions while most outcomes are often mediocre and rarely match the initial aspirations. This guide has been put together to help non-technical decision makers understand that connectivity underpins all digital strategies and […]

WiFi is a powerful and effective way of initiating conversations with customers based on time and location. It shouldn’t require email or necessarily any data collection but it should create value and compliment the wide range of online activities that your organisation already undertakes.  

So, I have been meaning to do this for a while.  Today we are onboard with Great Western Railway (formerly First Great Western) to take a look at the WiFi user experience on offer to passengers.  The service is free, fortunately!  Most on board (train) WiFi is delivered via mobile connections on the roof of […]

Shopping centres often provide public WiFi to visitors and the experience is often significantly different from their tenants.   We will post about this tension in more detail, but for now.  This is the WiFi provided by the Festival Place shopping centre in Basingstoke.   Benefitting from a catchment of 1.3 million people, Festival Place […]

A [very] brief look at the in-store WiFi offered by Apple in the Festival Place shopping centre in Basingstoke.     The Apple WiFi experience is the gold standard in public WiFi deployments.  They collect no data (top GDPR compliance) and they provide a very fast connection.   When the store is busy, the connection […]

A brief look at the user experience of public WIFi on offer at London’s Heathrow Airport (T5).   Provided by Heathrow Airport Holdings Limited via  Virginwifi the service is currently sponsored by Visa.   They collect the following data: Name (first & last) Email address (nothing received) Flight number (not validated) The connectivity options were: Paid […]

This time we take a closer look at in flight WiFi.  Much has been made of the airline industry’s efforts to bring connectivity to their planes.  Passengers want it so the carriers are responding. In principle this seems like a welcome step forward, but we had access to one of IAG’s first aircraft to be […]

I used to work in the public sector [Network Rail] on free public WiFi. Since then I have spent a lot of time building the business case for free public access to the Internet. Public WiFi started in coffee shops.  They realised that providing customers with access to the Internet would lead to longer dwell […]