Wi-Fi漫游起步
作者： 西岸
责任编辑： 阚智
来源： 《电脑商情报》
时间： 2003-12-17 23:56
IPass Inc. (Nasdaq:IPAS - news), a provider of remote connections for corporate customers, on Tuesday said its customers would soon be able to use wireless Internet at thousands of T-Mobile USA locations, such as coffee shops and airports, in a deal aimed at boosting business use of the technology.
IPass shares closed up more than 11 percent on Tuesday after it revealed the deal with Deutsche Telekom AG's (DTEGn.DE) T-Mobile USA. The pact greatly increases the number U.S. venues where IPass customers can use the short-range wireless (news - web sites) connections dubbed Wi-Fi, or wireless fidelity.
Early next year its customers will be able to securely connect to the Internet or corporate networks in T-Mobile's so-called wireless hotspots at T-Mobile's $9.99 a day rate.
The partnership is the first of its kind for T-Mobile USA, the biggest U.S. provider of Wi-Fi hotspots.
T-Mobile USA, the No. 6 U.S. wireless company, has more than 3,900 short-range wireless networks in venues such as Starbucks (Nasdaq:SBUX - news) coffee shops, Borders Books and Music stores, Kinko's copy shops and airports.
Joe Sims, T-Mobile USA general manager for hotspots, said the deal was the first phase of a relationship with IPass which T-Mobile expects to expand in the future.
For example, T-Mobile customers could potentially use IPass hotspots, or the companies could sell each other's services, IPass Chief Executive Ken Denman said. Neither executive was ready to confirm this would happen.
T-Mobile USA also expects to create partnerships with other companies in the coming weeks or months, Sims said.
"We will be announcing significant relationships in the future for inbound and outbound roaming," he said. Roaming is when clients of one service provider can use, or roam onto, another company's network.
Wi-Fi recently has received a lot of attention as the next big hope for the communications industry, but it is still uncertain whether service providers such as T-Mobile will be able to make money from the technology.
"We're very comfortable about where the subscriptions are," said Sims, referring to a monthly all-you-can-use option T-Mobile sells. About 67 percent of its hotspot users have subscriptions while the remainder pay one-off daily fees.
T-Mobile USA has not revealed its subscriber numbers.
IPass, based in Redwood Shores, California, has more than 415,000 corporate customers using its software and service to log onto the Web or to company networks via wireless or traditional wired connections.
Its customers can already remotely connect to networks using nearly 3,000 hotspots in 16 countries and at over 1,200 wireline venues around the world. Tuesday's agreement will boost its presence in the United States.
IPass Chief Executive Ken Denman said that while a minority of its customers use Wi-Fi connections today, it is the fastest-growing part of the business.
"We're at the very early days of adoption in the space," Denman said. "But the opportunity is huge."
Shares of Redwood Shores, California-based IPass closed up $1.76, or 11.5 percent, at $17.01 on the Nasdaq where it was one of the top percentage gainers.
IPass shares closed up more than 11 percent on Tuesday after it revealed the deal with Deutsche Telekom AG's (DTEGn.DE) T-Mobile USA. The pact greatly increases the number U.S. venues where IPass customers can use the short-range wireless (news - web sites) connections dubbed Wi-Fi, or wireless fidelity.
Early next year its customers will be able to securely connect to the Internet or corporate networks in T-Mobile's so-called wireless hotspots at T-Mobile's $9.99 a day rate.
The partnership is the first of its kind for T-Mobile USA, the biggest U.S. provider of Wi-Fi hotspots.
T-Mobile USA, the No. 6 U.S. wireless company, has more than 3,900 short-range wireless networks in venues such as Starbucks (Nasdaq:SBUX - news) coffee shops, Borders Books and Music stores, Kinko's copy shops and airports.
Joe Sims, T-Mobile USA general manager for hotspots, said the deal was the first phase of a relationship with IPass which T-Mobile expects to expand in the future.
For example, T-Mobile customers could potentially use IPass hotspots, or the companies could sell each other's services, IPass Chief Executive Ken Denman said. Neither executive was ready to confirm this would happen.
T-Mobile USA also expects to create partnerships with other companies in the coming weeks or months, Sims said.
"We will be announcing significant relationships in the future for inbound and outbound roaming," he said. Roaming is when clients of one service provider can use, or roam onto, another company's network.
Wi-Fi recently has received a lot of attention as the next big hope for the communications industry, but it is still uncertain whether service providers such as T-Mobile will be able to make money from the technology.
"We're very comfortable about where the subscriptions are," said Sims, referring to a monthly all-you-can-use option T-Mobile sells. About 67 percent of its hotspot users have subscriptions while the remainder pay one-off daily fees.
T-Mobile USA has not revealed its subscriber numbers.
IPass, based in Redwood Shores, California, has more than 415,000 corporate customers using its software and service to log onto the Web or to company networks via wireless or traditional wired connections.
Its customers can already remotely connect to networks using nearly 3,000 hotspots in 16 countries and at over 1,200 wireline venues around the world. Tuesday's agreement will boost its presence in the United States.
IPass Chief Executive Ken Denman said that while a minority of its customers use Wi-Fi connections today, it is the fastest-growing part of the business.
"We're at the very early days of adoption in the space," Denman said. "But the opportunity is huge."
Shares of Redwood Shores, California-based IPass closed up $1.76, or 11.5 percent, at $17.01 on the Nasdaq where it was one of the top percentage gainers.
