REDWOOD SHORES, Calif., June 13, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- iPass Inc. (NASDAQ:IPAS), a leading provider of global mobile connectivity, today announced a partnership with Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited (“BSNL”), a leading telecoms service provider in India. The agreement will provide iPass customers with access to 23,000 Wi-Fi hotspots in strategic locations across India, including tourist and heritage sites, public places and in more rural areas.
BSNL’s public Wi-Fi services were launched in February 2015. Initially rolling out two Wi-Fi hotspot zones in areas within the city of Varanasi, BSNL has since established further Wi-Fi hotspot zones in Hyderabad, around the Hussain Sagar Lake, and in more than 80 key tourist locations, including the Taj Mahal. BSNL is also growing its footprints in more rural areas, where more than 4,000 Wi-Fi hotspots have already been set up. Its total network is expected to grow to more than 50,000 hotspots over the next 6 months.
“India is a burgeoning location for Wi-Fi access and an increasingly important market for our customers,” said Patricia Hume, chief operations officer at iPass. “Whether travelling for work or vacation, iPass SmartConnectTM users will now be able to connect to carrier-grade Wi-Fi at a range of strategic locations across the country.”
“We are delighted to partner with iPass to bring high-quality connectivity to its users at sites across India,” said Anupam Shrivastava, Chairman & Managing Director at BSNL. “Our public Wi-Fi connectivity service is an important part of our wider broadband offering that provides citizens access to Affordable, Anywhere & Anytime, high-speed broadband services while on the move. We’re proud to see our growing footprint become accessible as part of the iPass network.”
About iPass Inc.
iPass (NASDAQ:IPAS) is a leading provider of global mobile connectivity, offering simple, secure, always-on Wi-Fi access on any mobile device. Built on a software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform, the iPass cloud-based service keeps its customers connected by providing unlimited Wi-Fi connectivity on unlimited devices. iPass is the world’s largest Wi-Fi network, with more than 64 million hotspots around the globe, at airports, hotels, train stations, convention centers, outdoor venues, inflight, and more. Using patented technology, the iPass SmartConnect™ platform takes the guesswork out of Wi-Fi, automatically connecting customers to the best hotspot for their needs. Customers simply download the iPass SmartConnect app to experience unlimited, everywhere, and invisible Wi-Fi.
iPass® is a registered trademark of iPass Inc. Wi-Fi® is a registered trademark of the Wi-Fi Alliance. All other trademarks are owned by their respective owners.
About BSNL
BSNL is one of the largest public sector units providing a comprehensive range of telecoms services in India. BSNL has installed a Quality Telecom Network in the country and is now focusing on improving it, expanding the network, and introducing new telecom services with ICT applications. Today, it has about 36.42 million line basic telephone capacity, 7.13 million WLL capacity, 95.96 million GSM capacity, 34,727 fixed exchanges, 117,090 GSM BTSs, 9,594 CDMA Towers, 102 Satellite Stations, 23,000 Wi-Fi hotspots, 773,976 RKm. of OFC, 4,751 RKm. of microwave network connecting 646 districts, 4,519 cities and towns and 6.25 lakhs villages.
BSNL is the only service provider making a focused effort and planned initiative to bridge the rural-urban digital divide in the ICT sector. In fact, no other telecom operator in the country can beat its reach; its wide network provides services in every corner of the country. BSNL operates in regions across India, except in New Delhi and Mumbai.
Media Contacts:
For iPass
Alex Crawshaw
Spark Communications
+44 (0) 20 7436 0420
ipass@sparkcomms.co.uk
For BSNL
Sushma Mishra
Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited
+91 (0) 1123 734057
sushma.mishra@bsnl.co.in