Wi-Fi Alliance Plans Global Hotspot Roaming

The Wi-Fi Alliance wants to make it as seamless to log onto a hotspot as a cellular base station - a long term goal, but this time one that cellcos, obsessed with data offload, will support. The Alliance is joining forces with Cisco and some carriers - initially Orange - to launch a program called Wi-Fi Certified, which aims to extend current roaming initiatives to a global system. The aim is to simplify Wi-Fi log-on and roaming, as well as movement between hotspots and mobile broadband connections. There will also be basic security and authentication mechanisms supported on a standardized basis. The primary target is smartphones, hence the operators' support as they look to encourage users to take their data-hungry applications off the 3G networks. Many cellcos are investing in hotspots and roaming agreements among themselves, and Korea Telecom recently said the best option for mobile carriers would be a global network of free public WLans. Laptops and netbooks will not necessarily benefit, unless they have dongles or embedded 3G, as the system will rely on SIM cards for authentication.

Focal Points:

• Along with Cisco, which is promising to create access points and carrier Wi-Fi equipment that support the new standard, Orange is the first operator to go public. The Alliance aims to start certifying products in the third quarter of next year and expects widespread deployment in 2013.
• The Wi-Fi Alliance has set out four main elements of the Certified program - automatic discovery of Wi-Fi networks, and choice on the basis of user preference or operator policy; automatic access using SIM-based authentication; immediate establishment of a user account; and WPA2 security.
• Operators will be able to deploy the software on many existing networks as well as new ones, said the Alliance's marketing director Kelly Davis-Felner. The only requirement for backward compatibility is WPA2 encryption support. Of course, WLan operators will still have to sign commercial roaming deals, with increased offload the main incentive.

Editor’s Note: This note is follow-up to the research note on 802.11u standard addendum that enables mobile ease of connectivity. It appears that Cisco is not the only key player involved in this effort.