M-Web signs deal with Mugg & Bean

Business people will soon be able to log onto their office networks to retrieve e-mails, download documents or even give a prospective client a live demo during a working meal at the following Mugg & Bean pilot sites: Eastgate and Sandton (Johannesburg), Canal Walk (Cape Town) and Musgrave Centre (Durban)

M-Web and Airports Company South Africa recently piloted similar WiFi hotspots in domestic and international terminals in Johannesburg, Cape Town and Durban. "We want to make the Internet accessible to users everywhere. With the success of the WiFi hotspots at the airport, M-Web immediately moved to provide a similar service in the best-known chain of coffee themed restaurants. That is why we chose Mugg & Bean – they are just that," says Russell Dreisenstock, General Manager: WiFi at M-Web.

"WiFi (short for Wireless Fidelity) radio waves around a hotspot allows anyone in the proximity with a wireless network card in their laptop to get online. WiFi is relatively easy to set up and offers a fast and reliable connection to users who are now able to access their e-mail and surf the Internet at times and in places that have been difficult in the past," adds Dreisenstock.

"We initially envisaged that business people, who are on the road a lot, would benefit from hotspots in coffee shops, but the market demographics might turn out very different. Students looking for a change of scene or younger people with a strong Internet culture might turn out to enjoy the coffee shop access more - especially when we launch the M-Web pay-as-you-go product."

M-Web is investigating opportunities in other markets, and M-Web WiFi hotspots will soon be available in numerous other locations.