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Wireless Broadband Alliance Announces Launch of Connected City BoardThe Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA), the industry association that champions the development of the converged wireless broadband ecosystem has announced the establishment of a Connected City Board. The Board aims to help deliver the vision of Connected Cities being pursued by a growing number of cities from around the world. It provides an exclusive platform for City Managers and CIOs to knowledge-share and create best practices with their counterparts in other cities and also determine the best way to leverage public-private partnerships. Building on the recent thought-leadership dialogue and roundtable discussions hosted by the WBA with a number of CIOs and senior officials from leading cities including Barcelona, London, New York, San Francisco, San Jose and Singapore, the Board will continue to focus on development of the Connected City plans and blue prints, creation of public-private ecosystems and collaboration mechanisms for resource contributions. The inaugural meeting of the WBA Connected City Board will coincide with the upcoming Wi-Fi Global Congress in San Jose from October 12th to 15th. The mission of the Connected City Board is to promote the development of the Connected City, and also recognize and disseminate information about the best practices, challenges and opportunities in the development and execution of Connected City plans. Beyond the abovementioned cities, the WBA will also be extending invitations to other cities around the globe. The group will also include representations from major governmental and industry associations that are involved in Connected and Smart City development. "The discussions with city leaders at our recent WBA events has clearly demonstrated the need for a Connected City Board", said JR Wilson, chairman of the WBA. "To power the vision for Smart Cities, cities around the world are deploying city-wide Wi-Fi and integrating unlicensed and licensed spectrum-based services and business models for managing connectivity, Internet of Things, Big Data and converged services based opportunities for city residents, visitors and businesses. The WBA, as a global trade association, has a strong heritage in bringing together licensed and unlicensed technologies and creating best practices and de facto industry standards for a diverse ecosystem. This heritage allows WBA to create an environment for City Managers and IOs to create best practices with their counterparts and relevant industry stakeholders, and to discuss ways to optimize technology to deliver the societal benefit while leveraging public/private partnerships". Cities and associations that are interested in participating are invited to contact Ton Brand, senior director of Marketing and Industry Development ([email protected]) for more information. -ENDS- About Wi-Fi Global Congress WBA's Wi-Fi Global Congress is the world's leading Wi-Fi event. Alternating between the UK and the US, WBA's twice yearly event is the meeting place for individuals and organizations driving carrier and public Wi-Fi. More than 600 attendees join 60-high-level speakers and panelists to discuss and learn about Wi-Fi innovation including; its role in 5G, Connected Cities, M2M and IoT as well as its central role in the wireless industry including providing connectivity for high-density venues, voice and location services and other emerging areas. The Wi-Fi Global Congress also hosts the WBA Vision Forum and the Connected City Forum; both leadership summits that bring executive-level delegates together and facilitate a thought-provoking and candid dialogue that considers the opportunities and challenges for delivering transformational services. In addition, WBA Accelerator sessions incorporate dedicated sessions that allow startups and SMEs to pitch their businesses and products to a panel of investors and industry specialists. About the Wireless Broadband Alliance Founded in 2003, the aim of the Wireless Broadband Alliance (WBA) is to secure an outstanding user experience through the global deployment of next generation Wi-Fi. In order to make this a reality, the WBA is currently championing various initiatives in the Wi-Fi ecosystem including Next Generation Hotspot (NGH) trials, Carrier Wi-Fi and Converged Services, 5G, Connected Cities and the Internet of Things. Today, membership includes major fixed operators such as BT, Comcast (News - Alert) and Time Warner Cable; seven of the top 10 mobile operator groups (by revenue) and leading technology companies such as Cisco, Microsoft, Huawei Technologies, Google and Intel (News - Alert). WBA member operators collectively serve more than 1 billion subscribers and operate more than 10 million hotspots globally. The WBA Board includes AT&T, Boingo Wireless, BT, Cisco Systems, Comcast, iPass, KT Corporation, Liberty Global (News - Alert), NTT DOCOMO, Orange and Ruckus Wireless. For more information, please visit www.wballiance.com or follow the WBA on Twitter (News - Alert): @wballiance Follow Wireless Broadband Alliance at: Twitter | Facebook | LinkedIn | Google Plus
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