Mobile giant O2 has announced it will be rolling out free Wi-Fi at Costa Coffee branches across the country.
The rollout has already started at stores in London and will be expanded over the next few months and is expected to be completed by the end of 2012, the companies confirmed.
O2 Wifi is not limited to O2 customers and anyone with a Wi-Fi enabled device will be able to use the service. The company also provides free Wi-Fi to McDonald’s, Café Rouge and Mitchells and Butlers, which includes O’Neill’s, All Bar One and Harvester.
However the service at Costa Coffee will be limited to 30 minutes free, after which users will have to enter their Costa Coffee Club details. Wi-Fi access will be free of charge for members of Costa’s Coffee Club reward scheme, with no time limit.
There has been an uptick in free Wi-Fi services launched across London over recent months but England’s capital still lags behind other major cities such as New York when it comes to widespread free internet access.
It was recently announced that London Underground will get a limited free Wi-Fi service in time for this summer’s Olympics. The service will be "at station" only, meaning access on Tube trains is not being introduced. Transport for London (TfL) bosses confirmed that 120 underground stations would be getting Wi-Fi access.
London Overground will also be getting free Wi-Fi access, initially at 12 stations: Dalston, Forest Hill, Hackney Central, Kensington Olympia, New Cross Gate, Norwood Junction, Shepherd’s Bush, Surrey Quays, Wapping, West Croydon, West Hampstead and Willesden Junction. That service will be operated by The Cloud, owned by BSkyB.
In November 2011, Nokia announced it would be offering a free Wi-Fi zone in Central London. The service is not limited to Nokia customers and is operated via hotspots located in phone boxes dotted around London.
