Edinburgh WiFi gets big boost for Christmas, New Year

Revellers enjoying everything Edinburgh has to offer this Christmas and New Year will be able to do it with free wireless internet after a deal was struck between the city council and IntechnologyWiFi.

The public WiFi provider will beam extra connectivity to the city centre between now and 1 January 2018 to allow hundreds of thousands of partygoers unlimited free internet access.

When big crowds gather in small city spaces there’s extra strain on mobile networks, 4G and data speeds.

But Edinburgh WiFi won’t struggle this year.

By adding extra access points throughout the city streets IntechnologyWiFi assure that people can share festive messages, pictures and videos with friends and family across the world without disruption.

Nearly 500,000 people have registered for the free WiFi service since it launched in Edinburgh in 2016.

Edinburgh council agree that overcoming the poor quality mobile coverage usually associated with large hoards of shoppers is central to plans for growing the city economy.

Better connectivity encourages residents and visitors to stay longer and dramatically increases spending per head. Local businesses too will get extra visibility from a joint platform to reach people using the Intechnology WiFi points.

Charlie Wood and Ed Bartlama are directors of the Underbelly venue in Edinburgh, which produces the Christmas and New Year celebrations for the council.

They said: “Edinburgh is one of the world’s top winter destinations, and the enthusiasm of residents and visitors to share that with friends and family is fantastic. Having extra WiFi support in place will show the world that this is the place to be.”

Edinburgh’s Hogmanay is one of the UK’s most celebrated New Year celebrations and this year features performances from gravelly-voiced chart-topper Rag ‘n Bone Man, The Human League, and Huey Morgan of Fun Lovin’ Criminals.