Free WiFi for city centre

FREE WiFi is being rolled out in Coventry city centre.

Shoppers and businesses will be able to browse online while shopping – without using their phone data. A new mobile app will also be available to download to find restaurants, attractions and new activities in and around Coventry. The service, provided by IntechnologyWiFi, will be rolled out in 2018.

City councillor Jim O’Boyle said: “Having access to a high speed internet connection is now seen by many as the fourth utility so it’s only right that it is available, reliable and free in our city centre. Free public WiFi is good for local people and businesses and I am sure it will be well used.”

The service is an attempt to increase the number of Coventrians using the web regularly. An estimated 8 per cent of adults in Coventry have not been online within the last three months. Nearly a quarter of adults in Coventry lack basic digital skills. Natalie Duffield, chief executive of IntechnologyWiFi, said: “Our free-to-use network will provide universal connectivity to everyone in Coventry. Free public WiFi can increase access to the digital economy, improve digital skills, support business growth, help to create a cleaner, greener and healthier city and raise the profile of Coventry as a dynamic and successful place.”

Coventry City Council has granted IntechnologyWiFi permission to deploy, monitor and maintain wireless equipment on street furniture and buildings owned by the local authority and partners in the city centre.