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Manchester unveils plans for city-wide wireless broadband internet coverage

Europe's largest wireless network envisaged as council issues request for information and comment to plans for network to give free Internet access to 2.2million people.

Manchester City Council will today issue a Request for Information and Comment as the first step in plans to launch a broadband wireless network over Manchester that the Council hopes will eventually cover an area of up to 400 square miles and 2.2 million people.

The network, covering 90% of the Greater Manchester area, would be the largest single city broadband wireless area in Europe and would be as large as all other city based wireless networks in the UK put together. The wireless catchment area would encompass not only central Manchester but also surrounding boroughs including Salford and Tameside.

The initiative is being launched prior to Manchester preparing its bid in the Government's Digital Challenge Initiative, a national competition that aims to select an area to qualify for up to three million pounds of central Government funding. The money will be awarded to the city or region that shows best potential to showcase itself as a national exemplar in digital advancement. The future of Manchester's proposed wireless network is not dependent on winning the competition but the council believes that the initiative will seriously strengthen the city's bid for the prize.

"We have been inspired in our plans by the success of wireless and broadband networks in other leading cities around the World, such as San Francisco and Amsterdam", commented Sir Richard Leese, Leader of Manchester City Council, "We are initially hoping to establish a 100sq mile area covered by the network, with this increasing to up to 400sq miles in the future."

"Digital Challenge has spurred us into action on this and really made us think what an incredible effect on both the business and domestic lives of Mancunians such a network would have. It would help small businesses with Internet access and our citizens with improved access to public services. There is nothing on this scale in the UK and I believe it's important that Manchester seizes the initiative and leads the country in developing a truly connected, digital, modern environment from which we would all benefit", he added.

The Council is hosting an Open Day at the city's Town Hall on the 15th December where interested businesses can go and add their comments either openly or in confidence. The deadline for replies is the 8th January. The Government's Digital Challenge initiative closes for entries on the 19th January. The initiative is being spearheaded by the Manchester Digital Development Agency (MDDA), part of Manchester City Council, which is responsible for coordinating digital projects across the city-region.