Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Payphones Get A New Lease on Life

From: Marcel <[email-masked]>
Date: Tue, 14 Jan 2003 14:57:10 -0500

Payphones Get A New Lease on Life
BY SUE MAREK
JANUARY 14, 2003

Bell Canada and San Diego, Calif.-based technology consulting firm inCode
Telecom have come up with an innovative new use for payphones. The two
companies have developed a strategy and technology that turns existing
payphones into Wi-Fi hotspots.

Bell Canada is the first wireline operator to implement this strategy, which uses
the existing wireline infrastructure to transform an area of up to 300 feet around
the payphone into a Wi-Fi hotspot, allowing business travelers to access the
Internet to download data.

In addition, Bell Canada is using AccessZone, a Wi-Fi hotspot pilot service that
enables mobile users to connect 802.11b-enabled devices like laptops and PDAs
to payphone access points in high-traffic areas.

According to InCode, Bell Canada is the first wireline operator to revamp some of
its payphones into Wi-Fi hotspots, however the company expects other wireline
operators to follow suit. 'We expect U.S. carriers to follow in Bell Canada's
footsteps very soon,' says inCode Telecom CEO John Donovan.

And while turning payphones into Wi-Fi hotspots could equate to added revenue
opportunities for wireline operators, it also signals more competition for wireless
carriers. inCode envisions enterprise workers using these hotspots to access their
corporate data and paying wireline carriers for that privilege, which is exactly the
same audience that many wireless operators are hoping to attract with their 2.5G
and 3G data services.

http://www.wirelessweek.com/index.asp?layout=newsat2direct&starting=6&pubdate=01/14/03

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