New York City plans to transform payphones into WiFi Hotspots

In a bold move that will change the way urban centres use existing technological infrastructure, New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has issued a call for proposals to convert the city’s approximately 7,300 pay phone kiosks (many of which are damaged or completely inoperable) into free public WiFi stations.

According to de Blasio, the winning proposal will “enhance public availability of increasingly-vital broadband access, invite new and innovative digital services, and increase revenue to the city” for millions of residents and visitors of all five of the city’s boroughs.

The notion of implementing free public broadband is not new. In Los Angeles, city council is seeking a provider to install a city-wide fibre optic broadband network up to 100 times faster than the average North American household connection. In Kansas City, MO, Provo, UT, and Austin, TX, Google began a pilot project known as “Google Fiber” that promises similar advancements, which is expanding to other cities nation-wide.

In New York, the payphone-to-broadband program is still a pilot project, and reviews of the service have been mostly positive, benchmarking the service at approximately 6mbps for downloads and about 1mbps for uploads. This is comparable to the most inexpensive residential internet connection offered by Rogers.

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Over 10 million Wi-Fi hotspots worldwide by 2018

The number of WiFi hotspots around the globe, which stood at 4.2 million in 2013, is expected to skyrocket to 10.5 million by 2018, according to ABI Research.



Currently, Asia is home to the vast majority of these hotspots (68.9 percent), far ahead of Latin America (12.3 percent), Europe (9 percent) and North America (8.7 percent). China alone has some 620,000 WiFi hotspots. By the end of 2013, Brazil already had nearly 500,000, many of which were put in place in anticipation of the massive arrival of foreign visitors for the FIFA World Cup this summer.

Furthermore, ABI Research estimates that the volume of mobile data exchanged worldwide will increase from 23,000 petabits (10 to the power of 15 bits) in 2013 to 190,000 petabits in 2018.

A hotspot is defined as any access point that enables network access over the WiFi protocol, for free or for payment, from a PC, smartphone or tablet.

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Did You Know? A UH Innovation Made WiFi Possible

Every time you use Wi-Fi, or send a text message, or share data over an Ethernet network, you can thank scientists at the University of Hawaii.

In the late 1960s, a group of UH engineers, led by IT pioneer Norm Abramson, set out to create a low-cost data network that would let people around the state share time on the mainframe computer at the Manoa campus. The resulting technology, says Jonathan Roberts, senior licensing associate at the UH Office of Technology Transfer, is a communications protocol called ALOHAnet, which became the foundation for the ubiquitous wireless communications we have today.

Traditional data networks, like the telephone, relied on a single, completed circuit between the sender and the receiver that allowed information to flow in a steady stream. Abramson’s innovation was to break that flow into tiny packets of data that could be sent over any available circuit and reassembled into the original message at their destination.

The technology was simple. The data packets were sent wirelessly, using cheap UHF radio frequencies. When the mainframe received the packet, it would use another UHF frequency to send a confirmation to the sender’s computer. If a busy circuit blocked any packets, the sender’s computer would resend them. Even though the reliance on UHF made it slow, Abramson’s system opened the door for simple, cost-effective wireless communications.

In fact, most wireless systems are still based on the packet technology of ALOHAnet and its heirs, but neither UH nor Abramson made a fortune off it. Abramson points out it took another IT pioneer, Bob Metcalf, the co-inventor of Ethernet, to commercialize the technology. Ironically, Metcalf’s Ethernet networks originally ran on coaxial cables rather than wirelessly. Today, though, except where speed or security issues are important, hardwired local area networks are giving way again to UHF-based systems, like Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, that still rely on technology with its roots in ALOHAnet. Your 4G smartphone also works on packet-switching technology.

WiFiNovation's insight:

Four decades after its creation, a University of Hawaii innovation remains the basis for Wi-Fi and mobile-phone transmissions.

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Emerson Enters Connected-Home Marketplace with Sensi™ Wi-Fi Thermostat

Emerson (NYSE: EMR), a leader in the thermostat and HVAC controls industry, today announced the release of its first universal Wi-Fi thermostat. The Sensi™ thermostat and intuitive app give homeowners remote access from smart phones, tablets or PC’s, and marks Emerson’s entry into a product category expected to grow to $600 million globally by 2018, according to ABI Research.

“With the remarkable popularity of smartphones as controllers, and the growing availability of Wi-Fi in homes, Emerson saw an important opportunity to make this technology widely available and affordable for consumers,” said Ed Purvis, executive vice president at Emerson. “Our industry-leading position in HVAC components and controls, along with our expertise in power management and system connectivity, has enabled us to develop a superior product.”

While several remote-access thermostats exist in the market, the Sensi thermostat brings key benefits which solve some basic issues faced by consumers today. Emerson believes the resolution of these issues will open up the market for even faster adoption of this technology for consumers that previously would have settled for a standard, mid-price thermostat.

First, Emerson’s knowledge of power management in HVAC controls resulted in the first Wi-Fi thermostat that can operate on two standard replaceable AA batteries. This means a consumer, in most cases, can use existing wiring in the home and not have to rely on continuous common wire power from the HVAC system to operate.

Second, while focusing the user experience on the Sensi app, Emerson was able to keep product hardware cost in line with more traditional thermostats. The app walks consumers through easy installation and provisioning steps on their phone. Once connected, a homeowner can either set up an energy saving schedule, or control the system with a simple override command, avoiding wasteful energy usage.

“We are really excited about this product today, but maybe more so about the potential it brings our business in the future,” continued Purvis. “We are already working with partners to develop an Application Programming Interface (API) for energy management solutions, and see this as just a piece of a larger connected home platform for Emerson Climate Technologies.”

Sensi is the first Wi-Fi thermostat to meet the new Energy Aware standards requiring +/- one degree accurate temperature control. It is currently available through Emerson’s professional HVAC wholesale and contractor network, as well as select retail and online stores.

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Is your Wi-Fi Access Point secure by a TPM chip ?

What if the AP in your high school gym went missing? Or someone tampered with the AP in the back of your clothing store? Or a hacker paid a visit to his grandmother in her long term care facility and was able to access the building's Wi-Fi network? Wi-Fi security is always a major concern to any organization deploying a wireless network. This concern is increasing given the fact that access points (APs) are being placed in increasingly diverse locations - retail stores, taxi cabs, patient rooms, and anywhere else mobile devices can be found. So while many wireless LAN vendors talk about the importance of assuring security while connected to a wireless LAN, when choosing a wireless solution it's important to remember physical security concerns. Ask yourself: Is your data safe even if a hacker gets physical access to an enterprise access point? In the past, many enterprise wireless LAN solution providers relied on their “thin AP” architectures as a way to assure secure storage of secret information like RADIUS keys, pre-shared keys, certificates, and other network credentials. The assumption was that because thin APs did not store anything locally and relied on the central controller to encrypt secure data, the APs could not be hacked to retrieve any sensitive information. As the wireless LAN industry has evolved, and vendors have added features like local data forwarding, meshing, mutual authentication with controllers, and branch operation, these vendors have been forced to store keys and configuration information on the access points. Architecture no longer dictates whether a vendor designed an access point to secure sensitive data. The belief that thin APs are architecturally more secure because keys are not stored locally is a dated one, and worse can give a false sense of security. The ability to secure configuration, key, and credential information on an AP for any architecture is critical, and it is important to choose a wireless LAN vendor that makes device security and storage security a priority. This usually means that the access point must have some form of secure key storage in hardware, such as a TPM (Trust Platform Module). A TPM chip is a microcontroller that stores keys, passwords, and digital certificates. The TPM chip resides on the motherboard of a device and provides random seed keys to encrypt stored data that can only be decrypted with the presentation of administrator credentials. On Aerohive devices, the TPM chip securely encrypts network credentials and keys to protect the security of your network even if the access point is stolen or compromised. If a malicious user gains physical access to the Aerohive device and can interrupt the bootloader in an attempt to acquire the stored data, the entire configuration, network keys, user authentication information, and certificate data is securely encrypted and unusable without administrator credentials. Aerohive's ability to offer secure wireless infrastructure is based on an end-to-end approach that has been built from the beginning rather than as an afterthought. Not only has Aerohive implemented a comprehensive set of features, both hardware and software, but Aerohive’s architecture also has been designed to take advantage of other security systems in place within an enterprise to ensure consistent security policy for users whether they are wired or connected wirelessly. Through an end-to-end approach, Aerohive has delivered a comprehensive and market leading security solution to deliver a wireless network that is not only capable of securing wireless access but, is itself secure. - See more at: http://blogs.aerohive.com/blog/the-wireless-lan-architecture-blog-2/is-your-wi-fi-access-point-secure#sthash.c1fKuJYo.dpuf

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Infonetics: Hotspot 2.0 Predicted to Take Off

WiFi as a separate overlay network currently leads the list of technologies and architectures for offloading data traffic; meanwhile, more sophisticated carrier WiFi architectures gain gradual traction as respondents look to bring WiFi into the mobile RAN via SIM-based service models or by deploying dual-mode WiFi/small cells, according to a new survey from Infonetics.

“Carrier WiFi deployments are evolving to deliver the same quality of experience as mobile and fixed-line broadband service environments, and this is driving WiFi networks to become more closely integrated. Hotspot 2.0, a key tool developed by the industry to aid this drive, shows rapid adoption by carriers participating in our latest carrier WiFi survey,” notes Richard Webb, directing analyst for mobile backhaul and small cells at Infonetics Research.



Webb adds: “Operators are betting pretty big on carrier WiFi, but they’re also keen to develop ways of monetizing services so that WiFi starts to pay for itself over the coming years. WiFi roaming and location-based services are examples of customer plans that are growing fast.”



Some additional highlights:

• Respondents have an average of around 32,000 access points currently, growing to just over 44,000 by 2015, representing 33% growth over the next year


• 40% of Infonetics’ operator respondents expect to integrate Hotspot 2.0 into more than half their access points by the end of 2015


• Among those surveyed, the top 3 monetization models for WiFi services are pre-pay, bundled with mobile broadband subscription, and tiered hotspots


• Respondents perceive Cisco and Ruckus Wireless as the top carrier WiFi manufacturers for second consecutive year.

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Qualitynet Tests Hotspot 2.0 Network in Kuwait

Kuwait based ISP Qualitynet says that it has completed trials of its new Hotspot 2.0 platform with 350 locations covered across the country.

Qualitynet has accomplished this in alliance with Aruba Networks.

The Wireless Broadband Alliance's NGH program promises to deliver a public Wi-Fi experience that is as easy and secure as that experienced on cellular networks. With protocols like Hotspot 2.0 IEEE802.11u, user roaming becomes seamless between different national and international Wi-Fi providers.

Mr. Mustafa Al-Najjar, GM Network Services - Qualitynet, stated "Hotspot 2.0 is a solution that aims to help 3G/GSM service providers offer a greater experience to their customers, who in turn can enjoy uninterrupted Internet coverage across enabled locations".

Hotspot 2.0 enables mobile devices to automatically discover and securely connect to a Wi-Fi Hotspot. Similar to how cellular networks identify and switch to local networks when getting off an airplane just about anywhere in the world, Qfi - Qualitynet's Wi-Fi network will help users experience seamless transition between indoor and outdoor coverage in public areas that are powered by this technology.

"Our Hotspot 2.0 powered Qfi network helps us partner with any Mobile Network Operator, whereby their users switch to our network automatically within coverage areas. Offloading their Internet traffic onto our Qfi Network will ease the traffic off their 3G/LTE infrastructure, which in turn will ultimately benefit the user" said Mustafa Al-Najjar.

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