2014_02_05 City Chambers 1

 

The Edinburgh Reporter explained earlier in the week that the company that the council had engaged to provide the city centre wifi here in Edinburgh had gone bust.

The council have now explained that they envisaged a 10 year concession contract with GOWEX in a deal meaning that the broadband provider would build and run a free high-speed Wi-Fi network in the city. Council buildings, lampposts and CCTV columns were agreed to be exchanged for a guaranteed rental income and revenue share, and the first phase of this Wi-Fi was due to go roll out later this month. A full report on the project (see Item 7.2) was submitted to the March Finance and Resources Committee Meeting.

In response to the news about GOWEX, Councillor Frank Ross, Economy Convener has commented:-“While the GOWEX collapse is disappointing for the Council and for the many businesses and residents who have been looking forward to the network going live, the Council’s intentions remain the same and we are determined to roll out free outdoor Wi-Fi in Edinburgh. We are working hard to identify the full impact this development will have on the project and what the Council’s next steps will be.

“The Council’s Connected Capital Programme, which aims to make Edinburgh one of the best connected cities in Britain, remains a priority and other projects in progress include free Wi-Fi on trams, Lothian Buses and in key public buildings. A voucher scheme providing capital funding of up to £3,000 – enabling small businesses and charities to upgrade their broadband connection speeds – is already available and Edinburgh is one of 22 cities across the UK benefiting from Government’s Super Connected Cities £150m Programme, which is being delivered through Broadband Delivery UK.”

Website | + posts

Founding Editor of The Edinburgh Reporter.
Edinburgh-born multimedia journalist and iPhoneographer.