Philippines soon to get Free Wi-FI in public places !

The Philippines to get Free Wi-FI in public places (this July 2015) via the Department of Science and Technology’s Information and Communications Technology (DOST-ICT) Office project.

The Philippines’ more than 7,000 islands will soon be connected with access to free Wi-Fi as the DOST-ICT Office Free Wi-Fi Internet Access in Public Places project was at first intended to bring Internet connectivity to 748 class 4, 5, and 6 municipalities in the country with a 339 million peso budget, but was expanded to a nationwide coverage after the funding was jacked up by the Senate to nearly one and a half billion pesos.

According to Undersecretary Louis Casambre of the DOST-ICT Office, with the new project Terms of Reference, free Wi-Fi will be made available to public parks, public schools and libraries, government hospitals and rural health units, transport terminals, national and local government offices. 

“Any increase in Internet connectivity through Free Wi-Fi Internet Access in Public Places will jump start economic development by giving access to e-Commerce, e-Learning, and e-Government tools to beneficiaries…” Casambre said.

These can increase their incomes and pushing their economic status upwards across the nation, especially those belonging in the countryside.

The DOST-ICT Office release also cited the World Bank study that indicated every 10 percent increase in broadband connectivity results in a 1.38 percent increase in Gross Domestic Product.

DOST-ICT Office reveals that Internet connectivity and Wi-Fi hotspots will be sourced from the country’s Internet Service Providers.

For remote areas that do not have broadband connectivity/infrastructure, the DOST ICT Office will use TV White Space vacant frequencies located between television channels.

The public Wi-Fi project will serve 105,000 concurrent users with 256 kbps each, which is the lowest prevailing speed requirement for broadband service in the country.

Users will be classified into 3 levels which varying assurances of internet speed and access based on their user ID. The first Wi-Fi spots will be set up by July 2015.