Vancouver, BC & Regina, Sask - Nov. 6th, 2003 - Hospitality Network, a Canadian company that specializes in the operation and management of patient television and telephone rental services will soon be offering WiFi Internet access to it's line up of patient centred services.

By rounding out their service offerings with wireless Internet access, Hospitality Network will allow its customers to stay connected during the process of their recovery. Email, instant messengers, and web surfing are all available to patients in their beds, without the hassle of having to worry about any wires.

HN-branded Wi-Fi (802.11b) solutions, are powered by FatPort. FatPort is the largest national wireless Internet service provider (WISP) and suppier of Wi-Fi (802.11b) turnkey solutions in Canada.

"By becoming a 'Virtual Hotspot Operator', we are the latest addition to the 'Powered by FatPort' family," states Al Simpson, President and CEO of Hospitality Network. "FatPort is providing us with a fully managed, HN-branded network that will allow anyone with a wireless-enabled laptop or PDA inside a hospital to access the Internet. Furthermore, hospital employees will be able to access the internal networks securely and efficiently, using the same infrastructure that is being installed."

"Hospitality Network is the perfect example of who our Virtual Hotspot Operator program is designed for," states VP of Business Development, Michael Kuhlmann. "With a leading market share in the hospital vertical, wireless Internet access further completes the existing solution offering, which includes both television and telephone access in hospitals across Canada today."

In addition to offering the network for public use, nurses and physicians will be able to make use of the wireless network in a secure manner, allowing hospitals to explore new ways of improving patient care and providing staff with the added convenience of accessing the Internet when required.

Hospitality Network plans to trial the FatPort wireless Internet access in a number of hospital sites in the upcoming months. "We plan to provide pay per use Internet service, targeted at patients and visitors, and IT use by hospital employees" says Paul King, HN's Director of Technology. "We also plan to package the rental of the FatPort wireless Internet access with the rental of a laptop computer, for those patients who do not bring their own laptop or PDA from home. Including the equipment as part of the rental service is an integral part of our "managed solution" offerings." Based on the success of these trials, Hospitality Network will extend this wireless Internet solution to other healthcare facilities across Canada.

More info on Wi-Fi.FatPort Hospitality Network