MCI Expands Wi-Fi Coverage in U.S., Europe and Asia-Pacific

Ashburn, VA -- MCI today announced it is nearly doubling its wireless Internet access footprint by expanding its hotspot coverage in the U.S., Europe and Asia-Pacific. The company is also adding new hotspot venues, including coffee shops, major bookstores and retail shipping, postal and business service centers, to give customers more options in remotely and securely accessing corporate networks and the Internet. MCI's expanded coverage complements its existing 6,200 global hotspots, including hotels, major airports, restaurants and convention centers in 23 countries.

MCI's expanded Wi-Fi network is the result of enhanced coverage agreement through Boingo Wireless. MCI's new hotspots will primarily be located in the U.S., U.K. Switzerland, France, Belgium, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Greece, Singapore, and the Philippines. Businesses will have immediate access to more than 1,300 European and Asia-Pacific hotspots with an additional 3,400 U.S. Wi-Fi hotspots coming online in May.

"Network access is a key component for any company to effectively conduct business whether its employees are located in an office or working on the road," said Nancy Gofus, MCI senior vice president of Product Management. "Our far-reaching access capabilities will address growing business demand for simple and ubiquitous Internet connectivity."

MCI's expanded Wi-Fi coverage is an important element of its overall global remote access footprint, comprised of thousands of Wi-Fi, dial-up and DSL access points that facilitate quick connections to MCI customer networks and the Internet. With MCI Access Manager residing on an end-user's personal computer (PC), Wi-Fi customers can easily identify and select available local hotspot connections with the simple click of a mouse. MCI wireless users can stay connected to their corporate networks without worrying about incurring long-distance or international calling fees or finding a place to connect a PC. MCI's Wi-Fi solution supports encrypted authentication to safeguard customer credentials and secure confidential business information.

With MCI's Remote Access Services, employees can easily switch between various access methods. Companies also benefit from having one provider for technical service and support and a consolidated bill for all access charges. Giving customers more flexibility, MCI now offers bundled Wi-Fi/dial packages for a flat fee per month.

For businesses that require highly secure end-to-end wireless connections, MCI offers additional layers of security through its IP VPN Remote Access product suite and two-factor authentication services to deliver the one of the strongest defenses against security threats available today.

Source: MCI