Businesses to get free Wi-Fi hotspots from BT

The latest announcement made by BT to offer business customers the facility to offer visitors Wi-Fi access free of charge will mean the possible creation of a huge number of new Wi-Fi hotspots throughout the country.

Business customers who use the BT Business Total Broadband Hub have been advised by Telecoms giant BT that with a simple update to their service, which should take just a couple of minutes, they will be able to provide their visitors with completely free broadband Wi-Fi access.

In a similar way to shared space business will be given the option to either offer their visitor’s vouchers as a value added service or can charge for access to the wireless broadband hotspot. BT has advised that so far 20 000 of its existing customers have been notified of the new firmware update and it believes that by the end of this quarter another 200 000 customers may choose to update their BT Hub.

By accessing the Hub manager user web browser console users will be able to disable the new hotspot capability of the updated hub, which assumes that the hotspot facility will be on by default once the firmware is updated. Over 120 000 commercial locations throughout the UK and Ireland will provide customers with access to the service said BT.

Internet access for owners of the hotspot would be accessed using a secure, separate internet channel, added BT, with priority always give to their traffic, which is a great idea although if too many users are connected to the hub simultaneously there would be a risk of significantly reduced broadband speeds.

Commenting on the new service the BT Business managing director Bill Murphy said “Offering Wi-Fi adds value and is good customer service. It can also allow businesses to make incremental revenue. The service is helping our customers stay online and keep productive during these times.”