Batelco and McDonald's put WiFi on the menu

The move ensures that McDonald's customers who have laptops or PDAs will be able to access wireless high speed Internet connections while they're having lunch, meeting friends, having a study break or waiting for a business appointment in McDonald's Saar, Sakhir and Bab-El-Bahrain branches.

The high-tech wireless connection - which works like a cellphone - enables customers to send and receive data anywhere in the world using a high-speed connection to the Internet. Already indispensable to both business and leisure users in the USA and Europe, WiFi is universally heralded as a massive advance in communications technology and an important timesaving tool in an increasingly hectic world. Now, customers in the three McDonald's restaurants here in Bahrain can benefit from this convenient high-speed wireless Internet connection.

"Batelco is investing BD21 million in a three-to-five year 'Broadband Bahrain' programme with the aim of providing faster, more affordable Internet access for both individuals and businesses in the Kingdom of Bahrain," says Ian Dench, General Manager - Sales and Marketing at Bahrain's national telecommunications company.

"The Batelco/McDonald's initiative is one of the key elements in our programme to roll-out WiFi in key locations throughout Bahrain."

Batelco's aim of rolling out WiFi around the Kingdom is designed to make it easier and more convenient for surfers to connect to the web whilst out and about. Provided that users are within about 100 metres of a WiFi base station, they can connect at speeds of around 35 times faster than standard dial-up connections.

The company has plans to continue to activate WiFi hotspots in a host of additional locations throughout Bahrain, including cafes, restaurants, malls and hotels, in addition to the airport. The Saar, Sakhir and Bab-El-Bahrain branches of McDonald's - which are among the busiest in the Kingdom - are the first in a new wave of hotspots to be activated.

"McDonald's is delighted to be able to offer the WiFi connection service to our valued customers," explains Adel Fakhro, Chairman of the Fakhro Restaurants Company, which runs McDonald's here in Bahrain. "McDonald's is frequented by busy people who are on the go and - whether they are business customers, students, parents with children or teenagers - communication is a vital part of their world. Our new WiFi facility makes it easy and convenient for our customers to combine a hectic schedule with keeping in touch."

"McDonald's is continuously improving our offering and services for customers," says Mr. Ali El-Hajj, General Manager of the Fakhro Restaurants Company. "Allowing people the convenience of being able to connect with the world via WiFi while they are in our restaurants is just one of the many ways we make life more convenient for the people of Bahrain."

Batelco's quick and reliable WiFi service works via Wireless Local Area Networks (WLANs), which are installed and configured at specific sites and then connected to the Internet through high speed connections.

"The WiFi service is offered as a prepaid scheme whereby an end-user can purchase WiFi cards and simply use them as and when needed within the WiFi zones," says Ian. "Customers can log onto the Internet, collect and send emails and conduct business with no busy signals, no searching for phone points and - best of all - no waiting."