BT Openzone has entered into an agreement with Hilton
Worldwide to provide a fully-managed suite of Wi-Fi and Internet services
across hotels in the U.K. and Ireland.
The new technology will provide a tenfold increase in
bandwidth and an even more consistent, high-quality online experience for
guests at nearly 100 Hilton Worldwide properties beginning in Autumn 2011.
This agreement provides guests with BT Openzone Wi-Fi access, high-speed broadband, conference and event services in more than 17,000
bedrooms, public areas and meeting and conference spaces, including 24-hour
customer support.
The new Wi-Fi service will be available free of charge to
all Gold and Diamond Hilton Honors members and over five million BT
Total broadband customers. BT Openzone users and customers from iPass, AT&T
and other BT Openzone roaming partners can also use the super-fast broadband
when visiting the hotels.
“We are committed to providing our guests with
access to the very latest technology, complementing our world class
hospitality, and are delighted to collaborate with BT Openzone to deliver an
outstanding service in the U.K. and Ireland,” said Robert Webb, chief
information officer, Hilton Worldwide.
“This deal builds on last year’s agreement with
AT&T in the United States and Canada as we look to partner with the very
best technology providers around the world,” Robert added.
“The growing number of travellers with mobile
devices such as tablet computers and smartphones, means guests increasingly
expect to be able to log on wherever they are and with a fast and reliable
connection. BT currently has 2.8 million Wi-Fi hotspots across the U.K. and
Ireland. By expanding our coverage at Hilton Worldwide’s portfolio of hotels,
we are demonstrating our commitment in providing leading edge technology
services to partners in a very demanding service environment,” said Chris
Bruce, CEO, BTOpenzone.
BT Openzone will use an ‘above property’, centralised
cloud computing architecture, and will oversee network operations, guest
Internet support, network engineering, software development and 24/7 network
monitoring for Hilton Worldwide’s business Wi-Fi and Internet services.
By Telecomlead.com Team
editor@telecomlead.com
