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Canadian Telcos Agree on WiFi Hotspot Standard

Posted by michael on from the yay-canada dept.

Jucius Maximus writes "As reported by Globetechnology, Canada's cellphone providers have agreed to create a common standard for their subscribers to connect to the Internet via public "hot-spots." The agreement became necessary because Canada's cellphone providers offer four different and incompatible connection technologies. The carriers will continue to vigorously compete with each other, both for customers and Wi-Fi hotspot locations, the CWTA said in a statement."

5 of 84 comments (clear)

  1. Somewhat Slasdotted... Ob. Repost by Michael's+a+Jerk! · · Score: 1, Informative

    Canadian cellphone carriers rally around Wi-Fi
    By JACK KAPICA
    Globe and Mail Update
    Canada's cellphone providers have agreed to create a common standard for their subscribers to connect to the Internet via public "hot-spots."

    The 12-million people who own cellphones, personal digital assistants or any wireless device and subscribe to Bell Mobility (with Aliant Mobility), Microcell Solutions (Fido), Rogers AT&T Wireless or Telus Mobility will be able to use all Wi-Fi hot-spots operated by any one of those companies.

    The plan is to create "a common identity" in which Wi-Fi subscribers would be recognized by the other companies' hot spots and would have to pay for on-line time only to their own carriers.

    "It will work just like Interac," said a spokesman for the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association, referring to debit and credit cards working at any automated teller machine regardless of where the customer has an account.

    The agreement became necessary because Canada's cellphone providers offer four different and incompatible connection technologies.

    The carriers will continue to vigorously compete with each other, both for customers and Wi-Fi hotspot locations, the CWTA said in a statement.

    "Wi-Fi is a natural extension to the ubiquitous wireless voice and data services offered by the licensed public wireless carriers across Canada," CWTA president and CEO Peter Barnes said. "By developing standards of service and interconnection, the carriers will ensure Canadians have secure and convenient access to Wi-Fi hotspots without requiring new network identities or billing arrangements."

    Common standards introduced by the national Canadian cellphone carriers would help to eliminate the development of redundant authentication and billing methods and will lead to consistent, simplified access, the group said.

    The announcement is a step toward the development of standards and cross-carrier roaming capabilities for Canadian Wi-Fi users and wankers like michael. It is also expected to pave the way for future interoperability between the carriers' wireless data networks and their Wi-Fi hotspots.

    The carriers said they expect to have standards and agreements in place by the end

    of the year, and have them operational in 2004.

    "Much like the Canadian inter-carrier messaging agreement provided a tremendous boost to adoption of text messaging in Canada, today's announcement is expected to significantly increase the adoption rates of Wi-Fi in Canada," Mr. Barnes said.

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    I'm not Seth.

  2. Re:What an apt name! by Eric+Ass+Raymond · · Score: 4, Informative
    Ever taken a look at the frequency the cell phones use? The energy these photons carry is nowhere near the limits required to disrupt the molecular bonds in DNA (which is the cause of the "radiation sickness" including the radiation induced cancer).

    It doesn't matter how intense the radiation is if the energy carried by the photons does not cross the threshold of actually doing something.

    --
    BOO! TERRO
  3. Nothing new by JohanV · · Score: 3, Informative

    European NRENs are already doing this on an international scale. With credentials from participating local university students and employees can already log on to the WiFi hotspots of other participating universities and research institutions in both their own and other countries.
    The authentication mechanism is based on IEEE 802.1x and uses a RADIUS backend to enable cross domain authentication. Currently this is in operation (machine translation) between the Netherlands, Portugal and England, and Croatia is next.

    SURFnet is also working (machine translation) with local hotspot operators in the Netherlands to make sure Dutch students can roam their networks as well. Initially this will offered as a free service fro students.

  4. Text messaging already interoperates by Hamster+Lover · · Score: 2, Informative

    Nearly two years ago the Canadian cell companies got together and created a text message centre to allow interoperation of their text messaging services. Now, I can message a Telus, Fido or Rogers customer from anyone of the competing services.

    The Wi-Fi move is just another logical step. We have three competing national companies in a market that really only seems able to support two profitably. This is a reality of a country with a small population covering a large geographic area.

  5. Canada is second in the World I'll have you know by Hal+The+Computer · · Score: 2, Informative

    Actually, we're second in the world for broadband per capita. Even though we're also the second largest country in the world.

    Betcha didn't know that, eh? ;-)

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    int main(void){int x=01232;while(malloc(x));return x;}