Wi-Fi industry aims for seamless & secure hotspot to cellular roaming

Stuart Corner
Wednesday, 23 March 2011 10:15

Business IT - Networking

Service provider and device manufacturer members of the Wi-Fi Alliance have taken the first steps towards enabling users of public Wi-Fi networks to roam seamlessly and securely between the networks of different operators around the world and between cellular and Wi-Fi networks.

The marketing director of the Wi-Fi Alliance, Kelly Davis-Felner, said: "We envision an automated, cellular-like experience for Wi-Fi users around the world in security-protected service provider hotspots."

Andrew Bocking, VP handheld software product management for Research In Motion, added: "The program will provide users with a simpler and more standardised way to discover, subscribe and securely connect to hotspots around the world than is possible today."

According to the Wi-Fi Alliance, its hotspot program "will also facilitate the seamless handoff of cellular traffic from data-hungry smartphones, tablets and other portable electronics to Wi-Fi, helping service providers manage demands on constrained licensed spectrum."

It notes that the volume of data over cellular networks is forecast to nearly double from 2011 to 2012, reaching 4.56 million terabytes per year and says that, in an effort to address this trend, many service providers have recently announced expanded Wi-Fi hotspot deployment plans. "As a result, the number of hotspots worldwide is expected to more than double by 2014, from the current estimate of 750,000."

To achieve the interoperability goals, the service providers and device manufacturer members of the Wi-Fi Alliance have "formalised a set of industry market requirements that will lay the foundation for a new Wi-Fi Certified testing program that addresses authentication and provision of service for public Wi-Fi networks." It is scheduled to launch in the first half of 2012.

The Alliance lists the key features of the program as being:
- Network discovery and selection: devices discover and automatically choose networks based upon user preferences, operator policies and network optimisation;
- Streamlined network access: devices will be automatically granted access to a network on the basis of credential mechanisms such as SIM cards;
- Immediate account provisioning: The process of establishing a new user account at the point of access will be streamlined, eliminating user steps and driving a common provisioning methodology across vendors;
- WPA2 Security: Over-the-air transmissions will be encrypted using the latest-generation security technology.