Express Wi-Fi

Last updated

Express Wi-Fi by Facebook
Express Wi-Fi by Facebook.png
Area servedGhana, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Nepal, Nigeria, Philippines, South Africa, and Tanzania
OwnerFacebook Connectivity
LaunchedAugust 2016;8 years ago (2016-08)
Current statusLaunched

Express Wi-Fi was a division within Facebook Connectivity, which is a group of global internet connectivity initiatives by Meta. It is one of several programs under the Facebook Connectivity umbrella. It partners with mobile network operators and internet service providers to provide internet access via public Wi-Fi hotspots.

Contents

In February 2022, Meta announced that Express Wi-Fi will be shut down, globally. [1]

Operating locations and local partnerships

Ghana

Service was offered in partnership with Vodafone Ghana in various regions of Ghana. [2]

India

Service was offered in partnership with internet service providers AirJaldi, LMES, NetVision, Tikona and Shaildhar. [3] in Rajasthan, Uttrakhand, Gujarat, Mizoram and Meghalaya.

Indonesia

Service was offered in partnership with D~Net, an internet service provider, enabling Facebook and D~NET to establish a presence in city of Surabaya and Sugro, a village in Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park. [4] [5]

Kenya

Service was offered in partnership with SURF, and BRCK since 2019, an internet service provider. Express Wi-Fi was launched in Kenya on March 29, 2017, providing 1000 Wi-Fi hotspots throughout the greater Nairobi area. [6]

Nepal

Services were offered in Nepal through partnerships with Worldlink [7] [8] and Microsoft Nepal. [ citation needed ]

Worldlink used the Express Wi-Fi platform to support 7,500 of their 10,000 hotspot locations across the country and plans to expand their coverage to more rural areas using this partnership. [8]

The collaboration with Microsoft Nepal provides service to Lalitpur, Bhaktapur, and Bharatpur. [ citation needed ]

Nigeria

Service was offered in partnership with local internet service providers Tizeti. [9] [10]

Philippines

Service was offered in partnership with Globe Telecom, a major provider of telecommunications services in the Philippines.

South Africa

Service was offered in partnership with CellC, a telecommunication company in South Africa

Tanzania

Service was offered in partnership with Habari, an internet service provider.

Brazil & LaTAM

Server was offered in partnership with Hughes, a satellite service provider.

Technology partners

In August 2018, Express Wi-Fi by Facebook announced a technology partnership program. The program allows access point manufacturers to produce and supply Wi-Fi hardware that is compatible with Express Wi-Fi. Program participants include Ruckus Networks, an ARRIS Company, Cisco Systems, Inc. (to be certified Oct 2019), Arista Networks, Cambium Networks, Edge-core Networks by Accton Technology Corporation, [11] [12] [13] In February 2019, Nokia announced that Nokia AirScale Wi-Fi platform would also participate in the technology partner program. [14]

In 2020, the Italian software company Tanaza has joined Facebook Connectivity's Express Wi-Fi Technology Partner Program. [15]

In 2021, Abloomy, a US-based cloud Wi-Fi management software company, has joined Facebook's Express Wi-Fi Technology Partner Program.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wireless community network</span>

Wireless community networks or wireless community projects or simply community networks, are non-centralized, self-managed and collaborative networks organized in a grassroots fashion by communities, non-governmental organizations and cooperatives in order to provide a viable alternative to municipal wireless networks for consumers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wi-Fi hotspot</span> Wi-Fi access point

A hotspot is a physical location where people can obtain Internet access, typically using Wi-Fi technology, via a wireless local-area network (WLAN) using a router connected to an Internet service provider.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">WiBro</span> Wireless broadband Internet technology

WiBro is a wireless broadband Internet technology developed by the South Korean telecoms industry. WiBro is the South Korean service name for IEEE 802.16e international standard. By the end of 2012, the Korean Communications Commission intends to increase WiBro broadband connection speeds to 10 Mbit/s, around ten times the 2009 speed, which will complement their 1 Gbit/s fibre-optic network. The WiBro networks were shut down at the end of 2018.

Nepal Saar Doorsanchar Company Ltd., popularly known as Nepal Telecom or NTC, is a state-owned telecommunications service provider in Nepal. The company was a monopoly until 2003, when the first private sector operator, United Telecom Limited (UTL), started providing basic telephone services. The central office of Nepal Telecom is located at Bhadrakali Plaza, Kathmandu. It has branches, exchanges, and other offices in 184 locations within the country.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fon Wireless</span> UK Wi-Fi service company

Fon Wireless Ltd. is a for-profit company incorporated and registered in the United Kingdom that provides wireless services. Fon was founded in Madrid, Spain, in 2006, by Martín Varsavsky. Today, the company is headquartered in Bilbao.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Viasat (American company)</span> American communications company

Viasat, Inc. is an American communications company based in Carlsbad, California, with additional operations across the United States and worldwide. Viasat is a provider of high-speed satellite broadband services and secure networking systems covering military and commercial markets.

WorldLink Communications is an Internet service provider in Nepal. The nation's largest ISP, it has 900,000 active consumer accounts and 2,000 business accounts, along with approximately 25,000 subscribers to its NET TV IPTV service, and covers 73 of the nation's 77 districts. As of 2023, it has around 700,000 fiber to the home customers and 31% market share in Nepal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Travel Wifi</span>

DHI Telecom, LLC is a US commercial Internet service provider (ISP) that operates on U.S. and NATO bases in the Middle East including Iraq, Kuwait, and Afghanistan. DHI provides wired, fiber-optic cable, mobile Wi-Fi, and wireless commercial Internet access to US, coalition armed forces, direct-hire DoD, Department of the Army and State Department civilians, authorized civilian contractors, and international businesses participating in Operation New Dawn and Operation Enduring Freedom. DHI has additional operations in the UAE, Jordan, The Congo, Poland and Romania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">MiFi</span> Brand name for a wireless router that acts as mobile Wi-Fi hotspot

MiFi is a brand of wireless router that acts as a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot device.

TruConnect, formally known as TruConnect Mobile, is an American mobile virtual network operator (MVNO) that sells mobile hotspots and smartphones, 3G/4G LTE mobile data plans and prepaid cell phone talk & text plans on both T-Mobile and Verizon networks. TruConnect was the first prepaid broadband provider in the U.S. to offer a pay-as-you-go, portable Wi-Fi service plans. The only Lifeline provider (ETC) headquartered in Los Angeles, CA. TruConnect uses either Verizon's and/or T-Mobile's network depending on location.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Monaco Telecom</span> Telecommunications provider in the Principality of Monaco

Monaco Telecom is the primary telecommunications provider in the Principality of Monaco. Established in 1997, the company was formed following the government of Monaco's decision to privatize the previously state-owned Office Monégasque des Téléphones. Monaco Telecom provides various services including internet access and mobile phone services. It is a key entity in facilitating communication within Monaco and connecting the principality to global telecommunications networks. Additionally, the company operates a retail store which functions as a point of service and customer interaction.

The Cloud is a provider of public access Wi-Fi hotspots in the United Kingdom and is a member of the Wireless Broadband Alliance. It has over 22,000 Wi-Fi hotspots network access points in the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bharat Broadband Network</span> Indian central public sector undertaking

BharatNet, also known as Bharat Broadband Network Limited (BBNL), is a central public sector undertaking, set up by the Department of Telecommunications, a department under the Ministry of Communications of the Government of India for the establishment, management, and operation of the National Optical Fibre Network to provide a minimum of 100 Mbit/s broadband connectivity to all 250,000-gram panchayats in the country, covering nearly 625,000 villages, by improving the middle layer of nation-wide broadband internet in India to achieve the goal of Digital India.

Internet.org is a partnership between social networking services company Meta Platforms and six companies that plans to bring affordable access to selected Internet services to less developed countries by increasing efficiency, and facilitating the development of new business models around the provision of Internet access. The app delivering these services was renamed Free Basics in September 2015. As of April 2018, 100 million people were using internet.org.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Airtel India</span> Indian telecommunications company

Airtel India is the second largest provider of mobile telephony and third largest provider of fixed telephony in India, and is also a provider of broadband and subscription television services. The brand is operated by several subsidiaries of Bharti Airtel, with Bharti Hexacom and Bharti Telemedia providing broadband fixed line services and Bharti Infratel providing telecom passive infrastructure service such as telecom equipment and telecom towers. Currently, Airtel provides 5G, 4G and 4G+ services all over India. Currently offered services include fixed-line broadband, and voice services depending upon the country of operation. Airtel had also rolled out its VoLTE technology across all Indian telecom circles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nomad Digital</span> Internet provider

Nomad Digital is an Internet Protocol (IP) Connectivity provider to the transport sector. It deploys wireless broadband connections for trains, metros, trams and buses, including passenger Wi-Fi services and remote condition monitoring for on-board rail components. Headquartered in Newcastle upon Tyne in England, it operates globally.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jio</span> Indian multinational telecommunications company

Reliance Jio Infocomm Limited is an Indian telecommunications company and a subsidiary of Jio Platforms, headquartered in Navi Mumbai. It operates a national LTE network with coverage across all 22 telecom circles. Jio offers 5G, 4G and 4G+ services all over India. Its 6G service is in the works.

Google Station was a Google service that allowed partners to roll out Wi-Fi hotspots in public places by providing software and advice on hardware to turn fiber connections into Wi-Fi. It was only implemented in India and Indonesia but in March 2018, the service was launched in Mexico. In February 2020, Google announced the service would be discontinued. The service went offline on September 30, 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dutakom Wibawa Putra</span> Indonesian internet service provider company

PT Dutakom Wibawa Putra or commonly known as D~NET is an Indonesian internet service provider company based in Surabaya, Indonesia. The company focuses on technology as a provider of internet services and information technology of business solutions for corporations. The company was founded by Caroline Gondokusumo in 1997. Currently D-NET has 3 branch offices located in Malang, Denpasar and Mataram.

Tizeti is a fixed wireless broadband Internet service provider operated by Tizeti Inc, using Wireless to provide unlimited internet to residential and small business customers in Africa. It is also used to connect its base stations to customer buildings. Tizeti currently operates within Lagos, Ogun, Port Harcourt, Benin, Oyo, and Accra.

References

  1. "Meta is shutting down its Express Wi-Fi service". techradar. 1 February 2022.
  2. "Facebook brings Express Wi-Fi to Ghana". VentureBeat. 1 February 2019.
  3. "Express Wi-Fi by Facebook Launched Commercially in India; Airtel to Launch 20,000 Hotspots". NDTV Gadgets360.com. 4 May 2017. Retrieved 4 January 2019.
  4. "Facebook launches Express Wi-Fi app for its local-operated hotspots". TechCrunch.
  5. "Express Wi-Fi". Facebook. Retrieved 28 February 2019.
  6. "Facebook launches low-cost internet service, Express Wifi, in Kenya". Citizentv.co.ke. Retrieved 9 January 2018.
  7. "Wi-Fi Express: Free WorldLink Wi-Fi - WorldLink Communications Ltd". worldlink.com.np. 31 March 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  8. 1 2 Times, Nepali (15 October 2020). "WorldLink & Facebook Connectivity Express Wi-Fi". nepalitimes.com. Retrieved 15 December 2023.
  9. "Tizeti partners with Facebook to expand Express Wi-Fi in Nigeria" . Retrieved 9 January 2018.
  10. "Express Wi-Fi By Facebook Partners With Tizeti to Expand Coverage in Nigeria" . Retrieved 9 January 2018.
  11. "Edgecore Networks Joins Facebook Connectivity's Express Wi-Fi Channel Partner Program". Bloomberg.com. 16 December 2020.
  12. "Enabling better global connectivity through new partnerships and technologies". 25 February 2019.
  13. "Express Wi-Fi Technology Partner program: Getting more people online with fast and affordable Wi-Fi". code.fb.com. 28 August 2018.
  14. "Nokia joins Facebook's Express Wi-Fi Technology Partner program to build better Wi-Fi networks". Globe Newswire. 25 February 2019.
  15. "Tanaza joins Facebook Connectivity's Express Wi-Fi Technology Partner Program". Total Telecom. 26 February 2020.