UPDATE MasterCard Holders to Get FREE WiFi in London

Do you ever use a MasterCard to make payments? If the answer is “Yes” then you might be pleased to know that this will now also entitle you to get free WiFi access at any of The Cloud’s (BSkyB) 22,000 hotspots in the United Kingdom, although for the moment this only appears to benefit those who travel in and around London.

The promotion appears to form part of MasterCard’s Priceless Cities initiative, which includes all kinds of special offers and benefits for those travelling around major cities like London, Paris, New York, Madrid and Rome; it’s anticipated that this will eventually include a total of 36 cities in various global destinations.

According to The Cloud, both UK and international MasterCard owners will be able to benefit from WiFi access by downloading the MasterCard Priceless London WiFi app in their home country (before they travel) and then registering their device for the WiFi service. After a bit of digging we found the sign-up page for this here.

Roger Matthews, Commercial Director of The Cloud, said:

“Connectivity is core to an increasing number of Mobile users for both data and voice. This doesn’t change when we cross borders. The inclusion of WiFi in MasterCard’s Priceless Cities programme in the UK not only keeps cardholders connected, but also provides valuable location based offers in key cities.

By incorporating WiFi in to Priceless Cities, MasterCard are expanding services offered and are providing a new valued service to cardholders, increasing their daily touch points whilst abroad. Ultimately, this further drives customer value and brand engagement.”

However the official press release offers a somewhat conflicting vision, indicating on one hand that the promotion should work around the UK and on the other that it’s London-specific. So for now we’d recommend that travellers assume the offer is only for London, just to be safe, although it would be brilliant if this approach could be expanded outside of the UK.

NOTE: The press release isn’t clear about whether people who already reside in the UK can benefit from this, although it doesn’t say they can’t.

UPDATE 27th October 2014

We got in touch with MasterCard to try and clarify a few of the points that have been raised about their wifi deal. Apparently visitors will be able to access The Cloud WiFi via any of its hotspots up and down the UK, via the app. The separate / general Priceless Cities offers, however, are still London-focussed for the time being.

MasterCard also said that they’re currently focussing on the success of the product for international customers roaming in the UK, although some readers have confirmed that you can get the free wifi to work simply by signing up to the USA based App Store(s).