Smart and UP partner up for wireless hotspots in campuses
News November 4, 2014 Jason Dayrit 0
In a bid to help boost connectivity and collaboration, Smart has inked a Memorandum of Agreement with the University of the Philippines to provide free WiFi hotspots inside its campuses nationwide.
The telco giant will install 120 hotspots in various UP campuses and will put up eight base stations to complement the existing six in UP’s system. The totally free WiFi access extends to all sites whitelisted by Smart and UP only. For sites not included in the whitelist, access is free for 30 minutes before regular data charges are incurred.
This move is in support of the integrated computerization of the University under the eUP project, a key initiative under UP’s Strategic Plan which aims to make the country’s one and only national university more competitive in the region and in the world. Part of the plan, dubbed eUP, would be to provide an integrated, interconnected, harmonized, and interoperable ICT network within and across all the constituent universities of UP with the help of wireless connectivity.
“This is more than just a simple triumph of technology. The hotspots will be a catalyst in unifying the seven constituent universities and one constituent college of the UP System and will signal the start of greater collaboration between UP and Smart in bringing Philippine education into the 21st century,” said UP president Alfredo E. Pascual, who represented the University of the Philippines during the formal signing event.
“We have to start somewhere, right now—as they say in UP—kung hindi tayo, sino; kung di ngayon, kailan? This MOA signing is a good way to help make the eUP project a reality. We’re in this together,” said Smart’s chief wireless advisor Orlando B. Vea, who is a UP alumnus.
Jason Dayrit
Jason is a gadget junkie, a gear head, and an aspiring Internet Supervillain. He is also the EIC of twenty8two.com.
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