People love to post photos on Instagram and add check-ins to Facebook while travelling but often connectivity is a challenge. Free public Wi-Fi hotspots offer some relief but not only are they hard to find but also pose security challenges. Along with that, these hotspots generally require the user to sign up using phone numbers. WiFire is a mobile app that aims to address these challenges and allow travellers to easily use free pubic Wi-Fi hotspots.

The team behind WiFire app

WiFire allows its users to discover and connect to free Wi-Fi networks around them. It can automatically notify about the availability of shared networks in the range and can connect without the user having to enter a password. In case of open public Wi-Fi networks, the app automatically inputs the details, collects the OTP and autofills the login page to use the network.

The network of public Wi-Fi hotspots has got a large number of challenges and the WiFire team came up with the app to address them. According to them, finding a reliable Wi-Fi is never as straightforward as it should be and even after finding a network, there are lot more questions about the network. Currently their database has got over 2,500 verified networks spread across airports, restaurants, cafes and other Wi-Fi zones. Users can also submit information about such hotspots to further expand the database and in turn, they earn badges and rewards as incentive.

The app has already seen over 5,000 downloads and is experiencing constant growth as people continue to use the app and share it in their network. The app is gaining traction among both locals and travellers alike. Students and young professionals use it to find Wi-Fi hotspots in their own city while business travellers and tourists use the app on the go. You can easily login to the app using your Google Plus account and the excellent interface makes using it a breeze.

There are other apps that allow users to discover Wi-Fi hotspots in a region but WiFire highly emphasis on the quality of shared hotspots. The verified networks present in their database must have valid password and Google Place ID associated with them so that it can be ensured that they are actual Wi-Fi hotspots at public establishments and not any false hotspots. They also keep cleaning their database to keep any such hotspots should they find their way in somehow.

Another differentiator is the auto-fill OTP feature. Most other apps only allow discovery of networks but WiFire enables the user to skip the log-in process by automating it. It also supports the recently introduced RailWire Wi-Fi networks at multiple railway stations across India.

The WiFire team is working relentlessly on expanding the database to cover even the smallest of cities in India and then they will look at expansion in other markets starting with other Asian countries. They are constantly adding interesting features to their android app and will soon be launching an app for iOS devices as well.

You can download the app for your Android device or find more details on their website.

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Jet Airways, the second largest airline in India, has announced the introduction of WiFi-based in-flight entertainment streaming service on the Boeing 737 Next Generation aircraft. This exclusive service will be starting from the second quarter of 2016, thereby allowing passengers to watch TV programmes and movies on their smartphones, tablets and laptops.

The airline has initiated this Wi-Fi service in collaboration with Global Eagle Entertainment Inc – a leading worldwide provider of in-flight entertainment, media content, technology and connectivity solutions. Consequently, Jet Airways plans to upgrade from a streaming service to a full broadband satellite connectivity which allows flyers to use the internet, check e-mails, browse through social media, send instant messages and obtain real-time travel services and destination deals when they are mid-air. These wireless services will be introduced in phases. It will enhance the travellers experience as high-quality entertainment content will be available to them.

Commenting on the development, Gaurang Shetty, Senior Vice-President – Commercial, Jet Airways, quoted:

“Jet Airways has constantly innovated to adopt new age technologies to enhance the guest experience. This best-in-class, customer-focused initiative will provide superior entertainment and communication options to guests and we are confident it will set new benchmarks by delivering high quality, global entertainment content to guests’ personal devices.”

Wale Adepoju, Chief Commercial Officer of GEE, said:

“GEE is honoured to expand our long-term partnership with Jet Airways, an innovative airline keenly focused on elevating the guest experience and a true leader across the exciting Asian region. By deploying GEE’s AIRTIME IFE streaming solution across its growing fleet, Jet Airways can deliver a broad range of entertainment content to passenger’s personal devices with an eye on full blown satellite connectivity aboard future flights.”

At the global level, many commercial airlines provide Wi-Fi service to their travellers like Lufthansa Airlines, US Airways, Turkish Airlines and Singapore Airlines. The cost of using the Wi-Fi service is higher in most of them.

As Jet Airways starts rolling out the service in phases, we might see other carriers join them. This is already quite popular in Europe and international carriers in India are also offering the service.

Also Read: Jet Airways launches a new app exclusively for Apple Watch

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While cities in India are struggling to provide seamless WiFi in public areas, Hong Kong has already taken leaps in this technological advancement. Hong Kong’s government and many other private and public organisations of the city have worked together to offer the best WiFi services to its residents and travellers. Currently, the city has 17,000 hotspots that are available under the Wi-Fi.HK brand, including the WiFi hotspots provided by the Hong Kong Government.

Map of Hong Kong with Technology Icons

Hong Kong’s WiFi service in public areas:

The Hong Kong government’s free WiFi service, GovWiFi, is widely available in the city. It is available at all major tourist spots like museums, public libraries, public parks, sports venues and cultural centres. A few tourist locations with hotspots include: Peak Road Garden, The Peak, Kowloon Park and Repulse Bay Beach. This facility is not available for private and commercial buildings. The Hong Kong’s government scheme was launched in 2008. In the initial days, their WiFi service operated at only 35 locations. Today, there are 3000 Free-WiFi hotspots available at 570 locations for the international travellers coming to the city. This WiFi service provides better signal coverage, enables faster data transfer and reduces signal interference and support for the latest Internet communication protocol (IPv6) for accessing websites and Internet services delivered through IPv6. There is 120-minute connection time limit and 15-minute idle time limit. Users can reconnect to continue the service after reaching these limits. The secretary for Commerce & Economic Development, Gregory So, recently said that the Government has increased the average connection speed for each GovWiFi user up to 3Mbps for general Internet use in the past three years.

GovWiFi Locator managed by the Government of Hong Kong

Hong Kong International Airport has free wireless Internet at most of the seating and public areas in the passenger terminals. No registration is required to access the internet in these locations. The metro stations in Hong Kong run ‘MTR Free WiFi Hotspot’ network for free connectivity of up to 15 minutes per session, with a maximum of five sessions for each device per day. Focusing on tourist spots, shopping malls and restaurants, WiFi services like Hong Kong Broadband Network and Y5ZONE networks are easily accessible.

To make it easier for residents and travellers to stay connected through the internet, an initiative under ‘2014 Digital 21 Strategy’ was undertaken to promote the common popular WiFi brand, “Wi-Fi.HK”, where services by several public and private sectors are offered free of cost for a certain time period. The residents and travellers can use the Wi-Fi.HK mobile app and the positioning function of their mobile phones to detect free public WiFi hotspots in their vicinity. For a broader search, they can use the app to find out hotspots by districts, venue-type or keywords.

With the wide availability of WiFi services, Hong Kong is a truly connected destination for the international travellers. The travellers can stay in touch with family and friends and share their travel experiences through texts, photos and videos without any hindrance.

Also Read: Hello Startups! STARTMEUPHK Festival is happening in Hong Kong in January 2016

Harsh reality of Government’s WiFi Projects and what India can learn from Hong Kong

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Announcing a major business tie-up with Bharti Airtel, OYO Rooms – the leading hotel brand of India – will be providing Wi-Fi and DTH services in all its branded hotels covering 3000 rooms within the next three months. OYO Rooms already offers Wi-Fi and cable TV across all its properties but at this point the services are availed from different providers depending on the individual property. With this association, they will be able to have seamless connectivity and services through a single channel. Not only that but it will also help them cut down on their expenditure on these services as they will get tailor made plans from Airtel.

Abhinav Sinha – the Chief Operating Officer of OYO Rooms quoted:

“Oyo being the largest branded network of hotels in India, is very keen to have Airtel on board to provide DTH and seamless Wi-Fi experience for our guests across more than 3,500 properties we have on our platform.”

Focusing on the capital expenditure, the hotel brand pointed out that it already has Wi-Fi premise equipment for providing the services. Deploying new equipment might not be necessary. Elaborating on the same topic, the Chief Operating Officer of OYO Rooms stated:

“If they need to be enhanced our estimate is 10-15% of the hotels that Oyo is working closely with them to get it done. The hotel owners are more than happy to invest to improve customer experience. For the DTH connections, just like several other plans Airtel already has prepared a custom plan for us.”

Ashish Arora, the CEO for Corporate Business of Bharti Airtel, said:

“We are looking at rolling out services within a quarter across 3,000 rooms as the first phase and once the model is settled it will look at connecting all the properties under the Oyo Rooms umbrella.”

OYO Rooms has tied-up with Bharti Airtel because it believes that this multinational telecommunications network is one of the best in the industry. It has 230 million subscribers in India as of June this year. It is the third largest in the world with 303 million subscriber base.

With the goal to change the way people stay away from home, OYO Rooms will continue enhancing customer experience for the travellers in their hotel premises. It has already associated itself with popular brands such as Thomas Cook, MobiKwik, Venuepick, Lookup and Ola to increase its reach and improve its services in different markets.

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Domestic Tourism is growing exponentially in India. The young Indian travellers are wanting to explore every corner of the diverse country with family, friends or solo. Of course, their experiences are varied, but they have a few common demands to improve the conditions of travelling in India.

Taking this into account, HolidayIQ.com conducted a survey which included 20,000 participants from 30 Indian cities and towns. HolidayIQ.com, founded by Hari Nair, is the of the largest travel information portal in India allowing people to plan holiday and share their experiences.

Here are some of the key elements from HolidayIQ’s report:

(Image Credits: Image by Smeet Chowdhary/ CC BY 2.0)

• The trains need to be cleaner

HolidayIQ.com, through its survey, found out that 83% of the Indian travellers requested for cleaner trains. Train connectivity is excellent in India but trains are not maintained properly. They are unhygienic and the new ones get damaged quickly. Better maintenance is essential by the railways authorities. Needless to say, on our part, we need to take the correct measures to keep our environment spick and span.

• WiFi for remote area visits

It also brought to light that many Indian travellers want WiFi hubs for the remote area visits. WiFi access is considerably relevant as its connectivity helps you obtain information about the tourist destinations, the navigation feature will give you a sense of direction while exploring the landscapes and social media will assist you in updating your friends about your latest adventures. For your safety, through Google Maps, you can let your friends know about your current location and the places you are planning to visit in the upcoming days. For business purposes, emails can be exchanged between you and the receiver. Also, while travelling in the train you can know your distance from the destination by using Google Maps. Rail Yatri, an independent railway site for mobile users, is already including this feature on its website. WiFi empowers you and almost gives you a new lease of life. Unfortunately, WiFi connectivity is not that easily accessible in many regions of the country. There have been plans and initiatives since 2006 but they have not been quite successful. To read more about such initiatives, read here.

• Cab fares to be standardized:

Moving around in towns and cities can be unexpectedly expensive. Trusted cab services like Ola, Meru Cabs and Uber do not run everywhere. This allows local cab drivers of such places to over-charge the visitors of the town. HolidayIQ.com survey concluded that 62% of the Indian travellers wanted cab rates to be standardized. Obviously, standardizing it will not be a simple process. Why do we say that? For the simple reason that states in India work autonomously and so does the central governing body. The states will not be ready to fall under the Central governing body. This being the case one possible solution is that the states can implement a standard per kilometre rate the hired cabs run. For a better control, states can be divided into zones and then the per unit rates can be fixed. If this gets implemented, the new visitors of a city won’t have to bother about being tricked as they’ll be aware of the price rates.

• Solo Travel

Though not that widely practiced in India yet, solo travel is highly demanded by Indian travellers. The survey concluded that 56% of the travel junkies would love to travel alone. Of course, travelling alone can be extremely refreshing, but the biggest concern going solo in India is safety. Crime rate of India is high which makes the travelers vulnerable to it.

For more details regarding the survey conducted by HolidayIQ, you can visit this website.

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