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Icomera AB: Over 3.5 million Wi-Fi sessions on Icomera public transport hotspotsGothenburg, Sweden, Nov 05, 2008 (M2 PRESSWIRE via COMTEX) -- Icomera AB, the world's leading provider of cellular broadband gateways, has announced that usage of its mobile Internet access systems deployed on passenger transport worldwide has exceeded three and a half million sessions. Operators of trains, buses, coaches and ferries deploy Icomera's award-winning Moovbox technology to provide Internet access to passengers, while also delivering high-speed connectivity to on-board systems such as CCTV, ticketing and GPS-based vehicle tracking. By the end of October 2008, over one million passengers had used Wi-Fi services across these fleets approximately 3.72 million times, a 272% increase in the last twelve months. Icomera customers include some of the world's largest transport operators including Arriva, First Group, National Express, Stagecoach and Go-Ahead. "The fact that our on-board Wi-Fi hotspot systems have been used almost four million times clearly demonstrates that Wi-Fi availability is an important consideration for both business and leisure travelers," said Ola SjAlin, Chief Executive Officer at Icomera. "Transport operators are looking at ways to differentiate their services from the competition, while also seeking to improve the passenger experience. Combined with the operational efficiencies that real-time Internet access brings to a fleet, the outlook for Icomera's market-leading technology is extremely positive." Figures released by Icomera show that on rail deployments the average Wi-Fi session lasts 83 minutes, while the average session on road-based installations such as commuter bus and coach routes is over 30 minutes. Wi-Fi usage across all Icomera Moovbox installations is now running at over 50,000 sessions per week. One of the most popular on-board Wi-Fi services is the National Express East Coast (NXEC) intercity rail route from London King's Cross to the Scottish Highlands via Edinburgh. NXEC has equipped 43 trains with free Wi-Fi hotspot service to all passengers, and has seen over 1.3 million sessions since December 2007, with an average online time of 70 minutes. The overall uptake of Wi-Fi across NXEC passengers is around 9%, with an estimated 85% of laptop-carrying passengers opting to use the free service at some point during their journey. "Since we switched from a pay-per-use service to free Wi-Fi we've seen a significant though not unexpected jump in usage," said Rachel Dawson, sales and marketing director at National Express East Coast. "A major advantage of choosing the train over alternatives such as driving or flying is the ability to stay connected to the Internet throughout the journey. Icomera's technological approach to delivering an always-on connection has been fundamental to the success of the initiative, and has proved extremely important to our business passengers who rely on Internet access to make the most of their journey time." Icomera offers the Moovbox range of high-reliability, backhaul-agnostic communications gateways supporting concurrent satellite, cellular and road- or track-side networks in a single in-vehicle system that - using patented technology - automatically switches to use the best wide area network without session interruption. Icomera also provides fixed and nomadic gateways for municipal wireless, public safety and enterprise applications. About Icomera AB Established in 1999, Icomera is the world's leading provider of cellular broadband gateways delivering Internet connectivity for passenger transport, public safety and enterprise applications. Icomera technology bridges wide-area cellular networks such as 3G/HSPA and WiMAX with local Wi-Fi and Ethernet access. Icomera's award-winning Moovbox devices are deployed on rail, road and sea serving millions of Wi-Fi connections, and providing real-time high-speed access for fleet tracking and mission critical on-board systems. Icomera is headquartered in Sweden with offices in the United Kingdom, and channel partners worldwide. Copyright 2008 Icomera AB. All Rights Reserved CONTACT: Icomera AB WWW: http://www.icomera.com M2 Communications Ltd disclaims all liability for information provided within M2 PressWIRE. Data supplied by named party/parties. Further information on M2 PressWIRE can be obtained at http://www.presswire.net on the world wide web. Inquiries to [email protected]. |