London on Wednesday rolled out Europe's largest free WiFi zone in preparation for the 2012 Summer Olympic Games. Wireless carrier O2 announced the roll out on Wednesday, detailing that the hotspots will be open to tourists, visitors, and Londoners alike. The network plans to cover high traffic areas such as London's Leicester Square, Piccadilly Circus and Exhibition Road.
"With millions of extra people coming to town for the Games, we want to ensure we showcase the capital as the best city in the world to work and visit, and the addition of free Wifi to some of our most popular landmarks is crucial in helping to maintaining that reputation," London Mayor Boris Johnson said today.
All told, a total of seven squares will benefit from the deal inlvolving Westminster City Council, the Royal Borough of Kensington & Chelsea and communications provider O2. According to O2, the WiFi areas are running at no cost to the council or the taxpayer and are free for everyone, regardless of whether they're an O2 customer or not. O2 says people will be automatically connected each time they enter a coverage area as long as they have registered.
The network says its WiFi network will span Exhibition Road, High Street Kensington, Parliament Square, Trafalgar Square, Oxford Street/Regent Street, Leicester Square and Piccadilly by the end of July.