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  • Grow Wellington seeds ICT skills development academy

    Grow Wellington has provided seed funding to help kickstart Enspiral Dev Academy, an initiative to help Wellington’s ICT workers hit the ground running in existing roles after completing a nine week intensive web developer programme.

  • Free Wellington wi-fi officially launched

    Somewhat ironically, Wellington City Council's free wi-fi service for the capital's CBD is to be officially launched today, the same day as the Copyright (Infringing File Sharing) Amendment Act comes into force.
    Much has been made of whether internet providers, rather than individuals that use internet facilities provided by providers, are liable under the new Act, commonly known as the "three strikes" law.
    Wellington City Council senior strategy adviser Philippa Bowron told www.stuff.co.nz that legal advice had been taken surrounding the new law against downloading copyrighted material and the council was happy the new service would comply.
    A media release from the Council announcing the launch reads: "Free wifi is now available in outdoor areas from the Stadium to the Embassy Cinema, encompassing the waterfront, the Golden Mile and Cuba Street.
    "Wellington Mayor Celia Wade-Brown, along with representatives from Kiwibank and CityLink, will be in Midland Park at 12.30pm today, armed with laptops, iPhones and other portable digital devices and will log on to help launch and publicise the new wifi network.
    "Mayor Wade-Brown invites digitally-savvy Wellingtonians to come down to the park and join in."
    The free wi-fi initiative is supported by KiwiBank and CityLink.
    MAP: Free wifi areas in Wellington CBD

  • Wellington to have wi-fi choice

    Wellingtonians and visitors to the capital could soon have a good choice of wide-ranging free wi-fi services, but potential conflicts may have to be carefully managed. A Wellington city council plan for wireless access in the central city, mooted for a few years, has reached the request-for-proposal stage — only two weeks after TradeMe announced it would set up a wi-fi service covering the Wellington waterfront.

  • Free wireless access for Wellington's waterfront

    Wellington will have free access to high-speed wireless internet on the waterfront from December.
    And the city council hopes to make free wi-fi a permanent fixture in the central business district in time for next year's Rugby World Cup.
    From December, anyone with an internet-capable smart phone, iPad or laptop computer will be able to connect free of charge between Queens Wharf and Te Papa within range of a waterfront server in the NZX building.
    The initiative is the brainchild of Trade Me and is being paid for by the online auction company, in association with the council.
    Trade Me head of operations Mike O'Donnell said the move was a New Zealand first.
    Between 500 and 1000 waterfront-goers are expected to log on daily, although actual numbers would depend on the weather and waterfront events.
    Users would be logged out automatically after two hours to prevent commercial users pirating the free network, but individuals could then log on again manually.
    Although ordinary data files could be downloaded, "peer-to-peer" file-sharing of larger data files would not be allowed.
    The network was expected to be especially popular during summer and the World Cup.
    Trade Me chief executive Jon Macdonald said the idea was to give back to the city that had given rise to the company's success. "We firmly believe Wellington is the internet capital of New Zealand, and helping people connect to the web in and around the waterfront is a good fit for us."
    The free network's future would be reviewed after a year, depending on its success and uptake.
    Wellington Mayor Kerry Prendergast said moves were already under way to expand the free wi-fi initiative to the city centre — subject to costs associated with the project. If successful, Wellington would be among the world's first cities to offer residents and visitors free downtown wi-fi access.
    The council was calling for expressions of interest to provide the service permanently around the Golden Mile.
    A council graphic shows the proposed coverage stretches from Westpac Stadium to the Embassy end of Courtenay Place.
    Positively Wellington Tourism chief executive David Perks said the initiative would make it easier for visitors to make the most of the city and tell others about it.
    "Being able to access free wi-fi on the waterfront will mean our visitors can not only freely access information about where to go and what to do in the city, they can post photos of the picturesque harbour, public art and other attractions to their friends, families and digital networks throughout the world."

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