Local telecom provider Companhia de Telecomunicações de Macau (CTM) plans to install 3,000 hotspots by the end of this year, according to comments provided by CTM’s Vice-President of Network Service, Declan Leong.
Speaking on the sidelines of an event organised in Taipa Village yesterday to mark the launch of 48 new CTM Wi-Fi hotspots in the area, Mr. Leong said that in order for the company to continue to expand its coverage, speed, and the number of hotspots, they “also need to get approval and agreement from shop-owners to allow us to install the equipment inside their shops.”
According to information provided by the company, there are currently 2,500 CTM Wi-Fi hotspots located around the city, including tourist attractions, hotels, commercial centres, and restaurants.
The VP, who claimed that CTM’s outdoor coverage is “nearly a hundred per cent,” also said that the company’s 4G coverage has been operating on “full since day one.”
“We had full coverage outdoors, and also in the majority of private, indoor environments, we have very good coverage,” he claimed.
Mr. Leong added that there are current plans for expansion, now that new casino complexes will also take on the service.
With regard to compensating CTM customers affected during the interruption of Internet services in April, announced by the company as being discounted from customers’ bills for the month of June, Mr. Leong confirmed that more information “will be released pretty soon, according to what we have announced.”
New Wi-Fi hotspots
During the launch ceremony, Ms. Ebel Cham, Vice-President of Commercial of CTM, said that the new services being provided in Taipa “can accommodate the current use of over 5,000 smart devices.”
Ms. Cham added that the CTM Wi-Fi services now also cover “all public buses” circulating in Macau. She claimed that the company seeks to “stimulate e-commerce activities,” in addition to “promoting the image of Macau as a tourism city.”
Other participants in the ceremony included the Director of Macao Economic Services, Mr. Tai Kin Ip, the Director of the Macao Post and Telecommunications Bureau (CTT), Ms. Derby Lau, and the CEO of CTM, Mr. Vandy Poon.
