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London gets 'largest ever' indoor Wi-Fi site
The British Library claims to have built the largest indoor wireless LAN in the capital
The British Library finally launched its wireless network on Tuesday, which it claims is the largest enclosed Wi-Fi hot spot in the UK capital.
The network covers eleven reading rooms, the Library auditorium, a cafe and restaurant, and also an outdoor Piazza. It will be available to around 3,000 visitors per day.
Broadcom has built a huge Wi-Fi zone outdoors in Central London, but the British Library believes its network is the largest indoor site, rivalling locations such as Heathrow Airport in terms of coverage.
The British Library network, built by wireless operator The Cloud, was originally meant to be opened in September by the then e-commerce minister Stephen Timms. This was postponed after a government reshuffle saw Timms moved to the Treasury, to be replaced by Mike O'Brien.
The crunch test will be whether visitors are prepared to pay £4.50 per hour for Wi-Fi access.