Taipei City Government

Taipei City Government announced the formation of “Taipei Wireless Network Alliance” with 11 businesses from the private sector on March 20.
During the press conference, Mayor Ko Wen-je pointed out that trying to build the Taipei-Free network on its own is extremely costly for the city government. The intention of forming the Taipei Wireless Network Alliance is to create a single portal and platform for integrating wireless internet resources spanning MRT, buses, convenience store chains, and other businesses.
The mayor expressed his gratitude to the participating businesses. Not only would the initiative help the government reduce its burden, it will also help improve the connection quality of the wireless broadband service. In the future, the city hopes to create an internet environment that requires lower-than-average fees and provides better connection quality.
Department of Information Technology Commissioner Lee Wei-bin pointed out that currently the members of the Taipei Wireless Network Alliance aim at providing free services with either a minimal data transmission rate of 2Mbps or 30 minutes of internet connection. He believes this is adequate for those at outdoor areas with a sudden need to search the internet for information or to check email. Anything requiring data transfer beyond 2Mbps should not be covered by a service paid for by tax payers’ money.
In the future, the City will seek to integrate its wireless broadband service with the central government’s iTaiwan, using iTaiwan as the portal website. Lee stressed that the city government is to offer services not provided by the private sector, and the free citywide wireless connection is in no way a replacement for those provided by businesses.