O2 readies free London WiFi network

BBC reports.

The service will be rolled out across the boroughs of Westminster, Kensington and Chelsea in 2012.

"Our £500 million annual network investment programme is focused on integrating new layers of technology into the existing network to enable a seamless and sustained customer experience," ZDNet quotes Derek McManus, COO at O2, as saying.

"Our longer term aim is to expand our footprint of O2 WiFi, which is open to everyone, and also intelligently enhance our services at street level, where people need the network the most," McManus added.

According to PC Advisor, the intended capacity of the network has not been made clear beyond the company saying that "it will initially be rolled out in a limited number of areas and then throughout the boroughs over the longer term", and will involve installing "premium" (as opposed to domestic) access points.

O2 launched its WiFi services almost a year ago with the intention of doubling the number of hotspots currently offered across the UK by rivals BT Openzone and The Cloud by 2013.