Media release

iiNet to build Australia's largest free WiFi network for Victoria

29 October, 2014

iiNet today announced it has been selected by the Victorian Government to build Australia's largest free public wireless network for Melbourne, Ballarat and Bendigo.

Dubbed VicGovFree, the $6.7 million network will contain more than 1000 wireless access points, providing free WiFi coverage across the central business districts of the three cities.

Today's announcement strengthens iiNet's reputation as Australia's leading provider of public access WiFi networks, which includes major wireless deployments in Canberra and Adelaide.

iiNet Chief Business Officer Greg Bader said iiNet was proud to be part of this major project. "The VicGovFree network will be the largest WiFi deployment in Australia and one of the largest in the world," he said.

"Public WiFi is now the new benchmark for modern communities, so we applaud the vision of the Victorian State Government. The Melbourne, Ballarat and Bendigo councils have been fantastic to work with, so we look forward to expanding this to other communities.

"This infrastructure will position Victoria as a world leader in connected cities. iiNet is committed to Victoria. We have more than 250 passionate staff here and it is our area of fastest growth."

As part of its deployment, iiNet will install access points throughout central Melbourne, Bendigo and Ballarat to provide extensive free wireless Internet access for anyone using public spaces, whether they're commuters, tourists or students. Each user will have a daily data quota of 250 megabytes.

In Melbourne, the coverage will include the City Loop train stations of Southern Cross, Flinders Street, Melbourne Central, Flagstaff and Parliament as well as iconic attractions such as Queen Victoria Markets and the exterior of Federation Square. The network will also cover parks including Flagstaff Gardens, Carlton Gardens, Treasury Gardens and Fitzroy Gardens.

For the convenience of commuters and visitors, the VicGovFree network will also work on Melbourne trams operating the City Circle line as well as on Bendigo's Tourist Tram.

About iiNet

iiNet is Australia's second largest DSL Internet Service Provider and the leading challenger in the telecommunications market. Publicly listed on the ASX 200, this billion-dollar company has been recognised as a global leader in customer service, winning the Large Business award at the 2013 International Service Excellence Awards. We employ more than 2500 inquisitive staff across three countries – 80 per cent of whom are employed to directly service our 900,000 customers. We maintain our own broadband network and support over 1.7 million broadband, telephony and Internet Protocol TV (IPTV) services nationwide.

We're committed to making it simple for all Australians to connect across both our own network and on the NBN. Our vision is to lead the market with services that harness the potential of the Internet and then differentiate with award-winning customer service.

A full list of current awards can be viewed at iiNet Awards: /about/awards