A Cork company, Butler Buses, is giving passengers free access to the internet on their mobile phones while in transit. The service is courtesy of Irish Bluetooth solutions provider, BlueZone Media, and lets passengers send and receive e-mail, check their Facebook and read news online on a range of routes.
The service is initially limited to chartered coaches and sight-seeing tours.
Butlers Buses MD Ian Butler said: “We expect there to be a significant uptake of the service.”
BlueZone director Kevin O’Connor added: “Customers depend on the internet for so much of their information needs that they expect easy and ready access to it no matter where they are. Not everyone has the internet access of an iPhone or carries a laptop, but most would have a Bluetooth-equipped mobile handset.”
At the heart of the service is BlueZone Onboard, which broadcasts mobile broadband over a Bluetooth network created on the bus using a small router. Bluetooth-enabled mobiles, when turned on, are prompted to download a custom web browser. This gives users free access to a selection of sites in a condensed form.
The service also provides WiFi connectivity for the benefit of travellers with laptops. It can be expanded to provide ticketing services via mobile phone as well as delivering special offers, timetables and other information on demand direct to handsets.
Butlers Buses is a family business operating for over 40 years.
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