Ofcom UK Propose to Help Wifinity Build 20Mbps Home Wireless Service

The UK telecoms regulator, Ofcom, has proposed to grant Code Powers to Wifinity Limited that would allow the operator to carry out street works as part of their wider effort to roll-out a new symmetric 4Mbps, 10Mbps and 20Mbps (Megabits per second) capable wireless broadband service for domestic users.

According to the regulator, Wifinity intends to launch its new ‘Wireless to Home‘ product in “densely populated areas throughout the UK” (e.g. blocks of flats, student housing, military barracks and bases) and it should go live before the end of this year.

Ofcoms Statement

The Applicant plans to deploy a number of wireless internet ‘hotspots’ which consists of fibre optic cable which is located at a central point. An external antenna is fixed to a building which then communicates using the same kind of technology located at other sites.

The external antennae is then connected to data cabinets via Ethernet cabling positioned inside the building. The Ethernet cable will then terminate to wall-mounted wireless access points. The access point will then act as both a transmitter and receiver to provide a consistent and reliable wireless internet connection to users in the vicinity.

The Applicant plans to deploy and increase their wireless internet ‘hotspots’ network across different areas of the UK in the next 12 months. This will allow the applicant to provide ‘pay as you go’ wireless internet services such as: internet browsing, television, online gaming and voice over internet protocol (VOIP).

Wifinity, which is based in Surrey (England, UK), already operates similar wifi hotspots (usually for holiday parks, retailers and the Ministry of Defence) but intends to increase their number across the UK “over the coming months“.

The consultation closes on 8th April 2013 and Ofcom will make its decision within the next 6 months, although we suspect that there will not be any opposition to the proposal. Sadly precisely details of the roll-out plan are not yet known.