Telenet stops hotspot service Wi-Free

Telenet stops the WiFi service Wi-Free. From November 1, the ‘outdated service’ will no longer be usable. According to Telenet, the service costs too much. The provider says that from now on users will have to access the internet via the mobile network.

A moderator of the Telenet forum confirms that the provider will stop Wi-Free. Wi-Free has existed since 2012 and makes it possible for the provider’s customers to surf via public Telenet hotspots and via hotspots of other Telenet customers. The company says that service will end on November 1 this year. Customers will be notified before the end of September.

According to Telenet, a large number of customers use the hotspot functionality unconsciously. “In the past, they have turned on Wi-Free via My Telenet and automatically connect to it near a Home or Hotspot.” According to the provider, costs will also be added. Customers are increasingly using mobile networks, ‘reducing the need for WiFi when traveling’. That is why Telenet says that it ‘can no longer justify the high maintenance costs’. Finally, a factor is that recently delivered and future modems no longer transmit a Wi-Free signal at all, so the function on those modems no longer works at all.