Zain Kuwait customers can now get a reduced-cost data roaming solution for their iOS or Android smartphones and tablets while traveling abroad. They also get access to our over 1 million premium Wi-Fi hotspots. More Zain Group properties will follow in the future.
“Consumers are increasingly relying on their smartphone and tablet devices to perform essential functions, and require uninterrupted access to connectivity both while at home and while travelling,” said Hisham Akbar, Zain Group Deputy CEO and Chief Operating Officer. “Zain Pass is a major accomplishment in breaking down the barriers of affordable global connectivity and access to Complimentary Data Services, allowing customers to make use of their Apple iOS and Android mobile devices as frequently as they do at home no matter where they may be in the world.”
Zain Kuwait CEO Omar Al Omar welcomed the new service and said: “In our continued efforts to provide innovative services to our valued corporate customers we offer this new service to provide them with the flexibility and freedom to stay connected at discounted rates while traveling, allowing them to conduct business as usual at discounted rates and helping to control their bills.”
China Telecom recently opened their WiFi international roaming service in time for the London Olympics.
The WiFi roaming service will be extended to 33 countries and regions, including Britain, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, totaling more than 280,000 WiFi hotspots.
In addition, China Telecom customers who are roaming to UK during the Olympic Games can choose a new roaming service plan launched by China Telecom in the UK. This is the first time for China Telecom to introduce individuals roaming service plans outside of China, and China Telecom is the first Chinese Mobile Network Operator to provide oversea virtual network access.
For more information, you can go to: http://tech.sina.com.cn/t/2012-07-26/16557432500.shtml
iPass has surpassed the one million mark in premium Wi-Fi hotspots worldwide, a huge feat considering not all hotspots are created equal. Our network strives to serve our customers in the places that matter most to them. While devices are cheap, networks are expensive and there are two global trends affecting our communications; as employees, as companies and as network providers.
Connectivity, enabled by the cloud and by the proliferation of mobile devices, has changed the way we work and how we communicate in our daily lives forever. Data and history have moved to the cloud. As mobile devices, apps and Wi-Fi proliferate, our access to that data becomes easier and more predictable. Even telecom providers are looking for global roaming for their subscribers, keeping them connected across fragmented networks.
Consumerization, or the Bring-your-Own-Device (BYOD) trend, has been led by mobile workers wanting to use the devices best for their productivity. As more devices explode into the market, employees are now choosing different devices for different tasks, often leveraging the same Wi-Fi hotspot, rather than paying for multiple connection plans. With this desire for picking their devices, employees are working longer hours, staying more connected than ever.
BYOD is not just a security issue though, it’s a network cost issue. As our consumption rises, data diets increase and there only so much people are willing to pay per MB. Increasingly, people can bring their own networks with the proliferation of Wi-Fi. Bring Your Own Network (BYON) is a trend that is catering to rising network costs as enterprises and consumers look to Wi-Fi networks to mitigate the cost of cellular data roaming by connecting to Wi-Fi whenever and wherever possible.
Mobile employees can be more productive in more places, and for lower cost. Wi-Fi is now available not only at cafes, hotels but also via planes, trains, buses and city-wide mesh networks. Because iPass offers access to premium hotspots, these travelers get fast, secure and reliable connectivity. With Wi-Fi complementing cellular networks, mobile employees can enjoy extended data roaming. They won’t need to rely on cellular data roaming when traveling, as millions do; nor worry about connecting the extra tablets and smartphones that they carry.
iPass has surpassed the one million mark in commercial Wi-Fi hotspots worldwide that can benefit both enterprise customers and telecom operator subscribers. Roam where you want to.
With over 1 billion mobile subscribers (just slightly ahead of India), China has over THREE TIMES the number of mobile users as the U.S. Breaking down this number a bit further (according to mobiThinking), over 400 million users are mobile internet users (beyond voice and text), and over 150 million are connecting on 3G networks. Any way you slice it, China represents the largest smartphone and mobile internet market in the world.
So if the population of mobile users is huge in China, why is only 15% of the traffic over 3G (or even faster 4G/LTE networks for that matter)? Perhaps this is due to the high cost of 3G in China (Chinese mobile users may be more price sensitive than users in other parts of the world). Perhaps it is an issue of 3G infrastructure build out not keeping pace – China is expanding faster than the underlying infrastructure can keep up, so this wouldn’t be a surprise (ex. the recent floods in Beijing). Perhaps it is a combination of BOTH cost and infrastructure build-out. If this is the case, the opportunity for low-cost, high-performance Wi-Fi in China makes a great deal of sense.
China’s wireless data needs are the big (1 billion subscribers) and wide (given its geographical spread). The call for Wi-Fi to supplement and fill the gap of scarce OR even non-existent 3G/4G networks seems the ideal solution.
Today, iPass has relationships with China Telecom and China Mobile. We’re actively helping these carriers to create the world’s largest global Wi-Fi-exchange, by enabling China’s growing population of mobile subscribers to take advantage of the iPass global Wi-Fi footprint of over 780,000 hotspots – thus providing international Wi-Fi roaming wherever they go.
China’s mobile users continue to grow. The proliferation of mobile devices continue to grow. iPass is there to make that growth (and increasing demand for mobile data) painless.
Leveraging the iPass Open Mobile Exchange (OMX), dtac is offering its customers (over 23 million subscribers) a seamless global Wi-Fi service on Android smartphones and tablets along with the iPhone and iPad. Enjoy the benefits of “wifi roaming”!
Zain Kuwait customers can now get a reduced-cost data roaming solution for their iOS or Android smartphones and tablets while traveling abroad. They also get access to our over 1 million premium Wi-Fi hotspots. More Zain Group properties will follow in the future.
