Consumers and business executives will soon be able to connect to the internet at very high speeds using a new wireless hotspot service at Dublin Airport, writes Jamie Smyth.
Aer Rianta is seeking bids from firms capable of installing and managing the hotspot technology, which is already in use in some Dublin hotels and in the Chester Beatty library.
Wireless hotspots or wireless LANs are networks that beam high-speed internet services to computing devices. The technology protocol that the equipment is based on enables download speeds of up to one megabyte per second, many times faster than typical mobile phone networks.
An Aer Rianta spokesman said the service should be available early next year, although no pricing structure had been decided. Aer Rianta will either own and manage the infrastructure or contract a technology firm to do this for it and charge a concession fee to this company.
Esat BT and O2 Ireland already offer services to consumers at several Irish locations at a cost of several euros per hour.
Dublin Airport will be the first of Aer Rianta's airports to offer a wireless hotspot service. Airports are considered lucrative locations for hotspots due to the volume of business travellers who need to connect to the Web.
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