In a slightly surprising move it has been revealed that T-Mobile has joined forces with Virgin Trains and will now be placing its HotSpot mobile broadband service on an initial 52 Virgin Trains. This Wi-Fi connectivity will allow high-speed Internet connections to be acquired during Virgin Train travel and perfectly dovetails with T-Mobile broadband’s existing Heathrow express HotSpot service.
When you consider that the Virgin Group already has its own broadband service it was slightly surprising to see T-Mobile take the lead with regards to Virgin Trains. Slowly but surely we are seeing the emergence of significant broadband connectivity on a number of transport networks in the UK. Wi-Fi connections are all the rage amongst mobile broadband providers as they have the potential to interlock and bring in significant numbers of new customers.
While we are not yet on a par with many countries in the Far East, where Wi-Fi broadband connectivity is available on every street corner, every transport network and the vast majority of homes, progress is certainly been made. We can fully expect yet more tie-ups between transport companies and mobile broadband providers in the short to medium term as everybody looks to guarantee a slice of the future cake.