Aptilo and Getronics Enable Municipal Wi-Fi for the State of Fribourg, Switzerland, By Tying Together Multiple Guest Internet Access Zones
Central Administration Provides Seamless Connectivity and Customized User Experience Across Large-Scale Metro Wi-Fi Network
STOCKHOLM – Guests and employees at high schools, hospitals and government offices of the Canton (State) of Fribourg, Switzerland, now have free, secure access to a new, large-scale metro Wi-Fi network enabled by Getronics, one of the leading ICT service providers, and Aptilo Networks, the global leader in integrated management solutions for control of billing, user services and access in WiMAX™ and Wi-Fi networks. The network was deployed using the Aptilo Guest Internet Access System™, which enables and manages Wi-Fi access and provides service control.
In partnership with Getronics and Aptilo, the state of Fribourg took the approach of deploying multiple Guest Internet Access zones using the Aptilo Guest Internet Access System and the Cisco Wireless LAN Controllers (WLC) in the edge network, a joint Cisco and Aptilo solution for large- scale wireless networks that has been proven in numerous deployments globally. These zones were stationed at various public locations with high demand for connectivity to the Internet and a dynamic flow of employees and guests. More than 1,000 Cisco Aironet lightweight access points were distributed at these locations, which included hospitals, high schools and government buildings.
This “multiple Guest Internet Access approach” is prevalent in Europe, where several Guest Internet Access zones are deployed throughout a city. “The issue then becomes tying together a multitude of Guest Internet Access zones that serve different purposes (for students, hospital guests, hospital employees, city employees, paying users, etc.), under one administration platform,” said Zakaria Bennani, Account Manager, Aptilo Networks. “The Aptilo Guest Internet Access System is flexible and robust enough to handle this kind of design – with many service profiles with varied permissions — and can perform a variety of functionalities.”
The Aptilo Guest Internet Access System offers each zone a solution that seems tailor-made just for them, yet providing a seamless user experience. Additionally, Aptilo’s centralized administration solution makes it a simple process for the Canton of Fribourg to generate statistics for each zone, track usage information and even to charge internal customers separately.
“The features we are able to offer each of our internal customers using Aptilo’s Guest Internet Access system enables us to deliver a customized Guest Internet Access experience for each one. Aptilo’s solution allows us to administer, monitor and manage these multiple Guest Internet Access zones under one umbrella easily. Aptilo and Getronics pull it all together in one easy-to-use package – for us and for our customers,” said Serge Brocard, project manager and telecommunications specialist of SITEL the Canton of Fribourg’s central IT-department. “We chose Getronics and the Aptilo solution after a lengthy review process; no one else offered this level of flexibility with native support for the Cisco Wi-Fi infrastructure. Clearly we made the right choice.”
Aptilo’s solution also simplifies administration for the Fribourg IT staff. It “pushes” the daily administration of voucher creation and other important tasks out from the central network operations center to the individual local Guest Internet Access administrators, lightening the workload for the Fribourg IT department.
Security, Flexibility
The Canton’s metro Wi-Fi network also utilizes a number of security features, including traceability with account activation. This means that users must activate their accounts via SMS, which registers a mobile number with the account. This feature is critical in places where Internet access vouchers are sold and/or distributed anonymously through office reception desks, automated vending machines, hotels or coffee shops etc. Fribourg’s network can also display information in several languages, as both French and German are spoken throughout the Canton.
Beginning of a Fruitful Partnership
The success of the state of Fribourg project has further fuelled the close partnership between Getronics and Aptilo. “We are already working on addressing similar opportunities together with Getronics,” said Paul Mikkelsen, Vice President Sales, Aptilo Networks. “We see a huge potential partnering with a global, leading ICT service provider like Getronics.”
“Aptilo’s proven solution fits perfectly into our product portfolio as we are one of Cisco’s leading Global Systems Integrator partners,” said Ugo van den Berghe, Sales & Consultancy Manager, Getronics. “Aptilo’s flexibility to deliver their solution either as software license or software-as-a-service globally makes it easy for us to meet the needs of our customers with the business model they prefer.”
About Getronics
With worldwide revenue of 2.5 billion Euros and about 20,000 employees, Getronics is a leading ICT service provider in the world and the largest ICT service provider in the Benelux.
As experts in workspace management services, data center & hosting services and consultancy, Getronics enables people of large organisations to move forward by releasing the power of information. To do this, Getronics has a complete portfolio of integrated ICT services for the large enterprise market and works according to a Global Service Delivery Model ensuring that services are provided for clients throughout the world that are of consistent quality.
Since 23 October 2007, Getronics has been part of KPN, the main provider of telecommunication services in The Netherlands. In Switzerland, Getronics is represented in Wallisellen, Niederwangen and Lonay.
About Aptilo Networks
Aptilo Networks is the global leader in integrated management solutions for control of billing, user services and access in WiMAX™ and Wi-Fi networks. Selected by premier business partners such as Nortel, Cisco and HP, Aptilo has become the provider of choice for service providers, enterprises and municipalities in need of a rapidly deployable, scalable multi-service solution to easily manage data and voice services over these networks.
Aptilo’s comprehensive platform delivers exceptional flexibility for successful operations and a superior user experience. Its cost-effective solutions boast extensive pre-integrated functionality for fast and reliable time-to-market, yet are also available with unique modularity for seamless integration to external additional systems of choice. Customers can enjoy the option of a hosted delivery using Aptilo’s managed service (Software-as-a-Service) from one of our many regional data centers located worldwide, or utilize a software license model. From smaller installations to large carrier networks, Aptilo’s solutions have been deployed in more than 40 countries.
Aptilo Networks is headquartered in Stockholm, with regional offices in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia and Plano, Texas. For more information, please visit www.aptilo.com.
Media Contacts:
Hillary Call, Public Relations Manager
Aptilo Networks AB
P: +1 917 414-9262
hillary.call@aptilo.com
Ralf Hahn, Head of Marketing
Getronics (Schweiz) AG
P: +41 44 839 15 69
ralf.hahn@getronics.com