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Following is a question by the Hon Sin Chung-kai and a written reply by the Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development, Mr Frederick Ma, in the Legislative Council today (April 16):
Question:
The Government has made available facilities in public streets and government properties to authorised operators for the installation of Wi-Fi antennas. However, I learnt that recently, an operator planned to install Wi-Fi equipment on lamp posts for conducting tests, but the power company concerned indicated that it could not install a separate electricity meter for the operator, and the Highways Department (HyD) also indicated that sharing its power supply with the operator was infeasible. As a result, the operator was unable to conduct the relevant tests. In this regard, will the Government inform this Council:
(a) of the government departments, other than HyD, which have received applications from operators for the installation of Wi-Fi equipment, and the facilities identified for installing Wi-Fi equipment in those applications;
(b) whether it knows the technical problems encountered by operators in carrying out plans to install Wi-Fi equipment on various types of government properties and facilities; and
(c) of the technical details of power supply problem involved in the installation of Wi-Fi equipment on lamp posts under HyD; how the Office of the Telecommunications Authority will coordinate the efforts of various parties to resolve the power supply problem for Wi-Fi equipment?
Reply:
Madam President,
To promote the development of Hong Kong as a leading wireless city, the Office of the Telecommunications Authority (OFTA) revised in March 2007 the "Guidance Note for Submission of Application for Installing Micro-cell Base Station on Highway Facilities or on Unleased and Unallocated Government Land" to facilitate operators to install Wi-Fi equipment on facilities in public streets (such as lamp posts). The Guidance Note sets out in detail the relevant application methods, procedures and requirements. OFTA is also responsible for coordinating with relevant departments to process applications from operators.
My reply to the question is as follows:
(a) Apart from using lamp posts under the management of the Highways Department to install Wi-Fi equipment, applications from operators have been received by the Housing Department for installing Wi-Fi equipment at public housing estates under its management. The applications have been approved and currently there are some 900 public Wi-Fi hotspots set up at the lobbies on the ground floor of public housing estates. Besides, applications from operators for installing Wi-Fi equipment at public payphone kiosks have been received by the Lands Department. Following the approval of the applications, some 900 Wi-Fi hotspots have been set up at public payphone kiosks.
(b) To provide free Wi-Fi service at Government venues for the public, we have launched the Government Wi-Fi Programme in phases to roll out free Wi-Fi wireless broadband Internet services at some 350 Government venues with high public patronage. The operator concerned has not indicated any significant technical problems encountered when installing Wi-Fi equipment at the Government venues.
Regarding the installation of Wi-Fi equipment on lamp posts, operators have to submit a specific technical proposal to the Highways Department and the Transport Department in order to ensure that the Wi-Fi installations to be mounted on the lamp posts will not adversely affect the structure of the lamp posts, the operation of the street lamps, road users and the environment. Currently, since the electrical installations of lamp posts are not designed to supply electricity on a 24-hour basis, operators have to submit proposals on the arrangement for electricity supply.
(c) As the electrical installations of lamp posts are not designed to supply electricity on a 24-hour basis, operators have to arrange for separate electricity supply for the Wi-Fi installations on lamp posts. OFTA, together with the Highways Department, has held meetings with the operators interested in installing Wi-Fi equipment on lamp posts to discuss the issues to be noted when installing such device, including the issue of electricity supply. Arrangements have also been made for individual operators to visit the street lamp maintenance centre of the Highways Department to learn more about the structure and internal wiring of lamp posts, with a view to assisting them in developing feasible options for supplying electricity to the Wi-Fi equipment on lamp posts. After deliberation, the operators are now considering various options, including (1) to supply direct current power to the Wi-Fi equipment on the lamp posts from the operators' existing facilities in the vicinity; (2) to transmit power to the installations along with the Wi-Fi data link through the same cable (i.e. Power over Ethernet); and (3) to apply to the power companies direct for electricity supply. In this connection, if the operators need to conduct tests for their Wi-Fi equipment, the Highways Department will make available lamp posts and/or controller boxes at suitable locations to facilitate their testing with temporary overhead wires.
OFTA will continue to coordinate with relevant departments to actively discuss electricity supply arrangements with operators so as to facilitate the provision and expansion of wireless services and network coverage in Hong Kong by the industry.
Ends/Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Issued at HKT 14:26
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