Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Public WLAN provider Spotnik Mobile secures $6 million financing -- TELUS backing accelerates public high-speed Wi-Fi implementation

From: Marcel <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 29 Nov 2002 18:40:55 -0500

http://library.northernlight.com/FC20021129890000060.html?cb=0&dx=1006&sc=0#doc

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Public WLAN provider Spotnik Mobile secures $6 million financing -- TELUS backing accelerates public high-speed Wi-Fi implementation

TORONTO, Nov 29, 2002 (Canada NewsWire via COMTEX) -- Spotnik Mobile, the Toronto-based public Wireless LAN (WLAN) service provider, today announced it has secured a $6 million (Cdn.) financing commitment from TELUS Ventures, a business unit of TELUS Corporation, to speed the company's creation of high-value public Wi-Fi solutions across Canada.

Source:

Canada Newswire

Date:

11/29/2002 09:09

Price:

Free

Document Size:

Very Short (less than 1 page)

Document ID:

FC20021129890000060

Subject(s):

Cnw; Business; Canada; Carrier; CEO; Conference; Ethernet; Internet; Magazine; Market; NYSE; Population; President; Productivity; Products; Radio; Technology; Telecommunications; Toronto; Venture Capital; Wireless; Wisconsin

Public WLAN provider Spotnik Mobile secures $6 million financing -- TELUS backing accelerates public high-speed Wi-Fi implementation

Story Filed: Friday, November 29, 2002 9:09 AM EST

TORONTO, Nov 29, 2002 (Canada NewsWire via COMTEX) -- Spotnik Mobile, the
Toronto-based public Wireless LAN (WLAN) service provider, today announced it
has secured a $6 million (Cdn.) financing commitment from TELUS Ventures, a
business unit of TELUS Corporation, to speed the company's creation of
high-value public Wi-Fi solutions across Canada.

Spotnik Mobile is believed to be the first and only public wireless LAN service
provider in Canada to both secure funding from and partner with a major
telecommunications carrier.

"Spotnik has developed a robust service platform and formed exclusive Wi- Fi
partnerships with several premium locations," said Mark Wolinsky, Spotnik's
co-ceo. "With TELUS' support, we are now in a strong position to roll out our
network and lead the Canadian market in providing high-speed Wi-Fi Internet
solutions."

Wi-Fi is the common term for the IEEE wireless Ethernet standard, also known as
802.11b, which utilizes unlicensed radio spectrum in the 2.4 GHz range to
provide wireless data rates of up to 11 Megabits per second (Mbs) in public and
private locations - up to 10 times faster than existing wireless networks.

"TELUS is dedicated to unleashing the power of the Internet through the
development of the best integrated communications solutions for Canadians at
home, at work or on the move," said Robert Blumenthal, TELUS Mobility's vice
president of products and services. "TELUS has the expertise required to create
and deliver smart WLAN solutions for our clients, and partnering with Spotnik
will allow us to offer public WLAN service in key locations across Canada."

Adds Murray McCaig, Spotnik co-ceo: "We believe in an open, neutral-host model
of doing business and Spotnik Mobile is aggressively pursuing reseller
partnerships with Canadian mobile carriers and ISPs. The Spotnik approach is
intended to relieve the carriers of the complexities involved in location rights
negotiation, WLAN network deployment and service management."

Spotnik plans its official network launch early in the new year, at which time
it will reveal its broad set of premium location partners and showcase a dense
network of public Wi-Fi "hotSPOTS" prepared to serve the mobile professional's
growing need for easily accessible mobile broadband service.

About TELUS

TELUS (TSX: T, TA; NYSE: TU) is the largest telecommunications company in
Western Canada and the second largest in the country. The company provides
subscribers with a full range of telecommunications products and services
including data, Internet Protocol, voice and TELUS Mobility wireless services
across Canada. TELUS is a premier founding partner of the Canadian bid to host
the 2010 Winter Games, and was rated this year as one of Canada's top 10
companies to work for by the Globe and Mail's Report on Business magazine. For
more information, please visit
www.telus.com.

TELUS Ventures manages TELUS' venture capital fund, targeting start-up
businesses and emerging technology ventures consistent with TELUS' strategy to
exploit the convergence of data, voice, IP and wireless.

About Spotnik Mobile

Spotnik Mobile is the leading provider of secure high-speed public wireless
Internet service across Canada. Through a wide network of premium location
partnerships with airports, hotels, conference centers and cafes, Spotnik
enables the rapidly growing population of wirelessly enabled mobile individuals
to achieve real gains on productivity through high-speed Internet access outside
traditional domains.

VIEW ADDITIONAL COMPANY-SPECIFIC INFORMATION:

http://www.newswire.ca/cgi-bin/inquiry.cgi?OKEY=5620

CONTACT: For further information: Kate Baillie at (416) 873-6138, or visit

www.spotnikmobile.com

News release via Canada NewsWire, Toronto 416-863-9350

Copyright (C) 2002 CNW, All rights reserved

KEYWORD: TORONTO

Copyright © 2002, Canada Newswire, all rights reserved.

You may now print or save this document.

---

From: "Todd Ellis" <[email-masked]>
Date: Fri, 29 Nov 2002 18:48:16 -0500

Gee, how long ago did I predict this kind of commercial development in my
MRT article on mobile data use??  Not to say it was all my idea, it's just
sometimes it takes a while for things to catch on.  I called the FCC's rules
writer for Part 15 a long time ago asking about height restrictions (or lack
thereof) for Part 15 WLAN hot spots...wonder what else is lurking out there
for Part 15 devices and data applications!

Todd Ellis
Operations Manager, Telecommunications Division
Booth & Associates, Inc., a Utility Services Associates company
An Employee-Owned Business
1011 Schaub Drive, Raleigh, NC 27606
Phone: (919) 851-8770, ext. 109  Fax:  (919) 859-5918
Cellular:  (919) 418-3358  Alpha Pager:  (877) 205-9320
E-mail:  [email-masked]
Two-way SMS: [email-masked]
Web:  www.booth-assoc.com
Telecommunications, Transmission & Distribution, System Planning and Special
Projects,
Mapping and Field Services, Substations & Relaying, Strategic & Financial
Services

  -----Original Message-----
  From: Marcel [mailto:[email-masked]]
  Sent: Friday, November 29, 2002 6:41 PM
  To: [email-masked]
  Subject: [NEXTEL-1] Public WLAN provider Spotnik Mobile secures $6 million
financing -- TELUS backing accelerates public high-speed Wi-Fi
implementation

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