Featured Story
A Nokia sale of mobile, especially to the US, would be nuts
Nokia's hiring of Intel's Justin Hotard to be its new CEO has set tongues wagging again about a mobile exit, but it would look counterintuitive and inadvisable.
KPN acquires remaining 49% of WiFi provider HubHop
January 16, 2004
THE HAGUE -- With the takeover of the remaining 49% of the shares KPN has become the sole owner of Wi-Fi provider HubHop.
In May last year KPN had already acquired a majority share (51%) in the company which is market leader in the exploitation of hotspots in the Netherlands. Hotspots offer a fast wireless Internet connection in a public environment.
KPN will market the HubHop hotspots under the name "KPN HotSpots". At the close of 2003 there were more than one hundred hotspots operational in the hotels and restaurants of the Van de Valk group, public libraries, in various bars and in a number of widely visited plazas. KPN intends to expand the number of hotspots to 650 locations this year.
New hotspot location at the Jaarbeurs in Utrecht The first expansion will be in the exhibition and congress centre in Utrecht, the Jaarbeurs. A contract has been signed this week. The Jaarbeurs complex, which pulls about 4.5 million visitors per year, will be fitted out with about 70 Access Points providing full wireless Internet coverage in all halls and in the entire Jaarbeurs conference centre from 1 April 2004. All visitors with their own laptop or PDA can then access the Internet using the high speed connection. Also eight Internet terminals will be placed.
KPN expects that the various telecommunications techniques such as ADSL, GPRS, UMTS and Wi-Fi will increasingly be used in combinations. The takeover of the remaining HubHop shares fits in with KPN's mission to always provide the best connection for its customers, wherever they are. KPN will also sell access to its hotspots in conjunction with existing products. KPN's subsidiary Planet Internet offers access to hotspots in combination with an ADSL subscription. A trial is also underway in which the mobile product Internet Everywhere (GPRS) is being offered in a package in together with hotspot access.
KPN Telecom NV
HubHop
You May Also Like