At least 13 areas in this chartered city are now considered Wi-Fi hotspots after the local government in cooperation with Converge ICT Solutions (Converge) launched on Monday a free public Wi-Fi service in several key areas in the city.
The free Wi-Fi is dubbed “Angeles City ConnectED” which is a pun on the nickname of Mayor Edgardo Pamintuan. Converge CEO Dennis Anthony Uy said there are initially 13 Wi-Fi hotspots in the city which include the 300-meter radius of the following:
Jenra Mall and Heritage Area/Museo ning Angeles in Barangay Sto. Rosario; ComClark Office, El Potro, Didis Pizza, Casino Filipino and Newstreet along Mon Tang Ave. in Barangay Balibago; Saver’s Mall; Marquee Mall terminal; and at the taxpayer’s lounge, lobby, mayor’s office at the City Hall and its grounds.
In his speech, Mayor Pamintuan said: “Accelerating a city’s communication capabilities is key to boosting its economy – and with our free Wi-Fi service, we will be able to attract more investors and businesses in the city.”
Uy said the free Wi-Fi is initially offered unlimited to allow netizens toenjoy the internet.
Uy said eventually, other areas in the city will be “connectED” including schools, specifically near Holy AngelUniversity and Angeles University Foundation,which will allow students and other members of the academe to get connectED.
Pamintuan and Uy both also promised to install a Wi-Fi hotspot at the Department of Education District Office in Barangay Pulungbulu.
“This project comes in with no cost to the city government,” said the mayor, adding that the establishment of hotspots is actually part of Converge’s corporate social responsibility.
Uy said “Wi-Fi has become a necessity in our world today — and since I am from Angeles City, we decided to do this here first. A world class mayor needs world class Wi-Fi service.”
For the initial offering, Uy said Converge has invested around P10 million for the hardware, bandwidth and support infrastructure.
Uy also explained that each hotspot has a 300-meter coverage, with a shared bandwidth of 100 megabytes per second (mbps) and able to accommodate 450 simultaneous users.
To avail of the free Wi-Fi service, users can simply connect their gadgets or devices to the network “Agyu Tamu Wi- Fi” or “Converge.” Once connected, a registration window will appear where the user can register by logging in their mobile number, email or Facebook account to get started.
Uy added that the data from the registration would be used to determine which hotspots are the busiest, so that they could improve the coverage in that particular area.
