IMRA Newsletter
Jerusalem first Israeli City to go live with free Wireless Internet Network
Press Release
October 17 2004
The Unwire Jerusalem Launch Event
The event, with the participation of Ivri Lieder, Maya Bouskila and 'Sweet peanut at the circus' band will take place Monday November 1 (17 Heshvan) between 18:00 - 23:00
Installation of the first stage of the wireless networking infrastructure in Jerusalem's city center has just been completed. To mark its completion, there will be a launch event organized by the Jerusalem Business Development Corporation, with participation and support from Intel, Compumat, the Jerusalem Municipality, Cisco, 012 and Check Point. The event will take place on Monday November 1 (17 Heshvan) between 17:30 - 23:00, in Safra Square.
Jerusalem, the First Israeli City to Go Live with Free Wireless Internet Network, will join other major cities around the world providing a combination of entertainment and business service, conveniently, easily and at high speed (54 megabytes per second). Every resident and visitor to Unwire Jerusalem wi-fi zones will be able to surf the internet without the need of a cable connection, and enjoy free internet services by means of a laptop computer, hand-held computer or external wireless card connecting an existing computer. In the first stage of the project, which took around 3 months, a wireless infrastructure was laid and "hot spots" were installed in central areas in the city, with the assistance and support of the project sponsors and with the help of volunteers from Compumat and Intel as well as the JBDC.
The networked sites are: Ben Yehuda pedestrian mall and side streets, the Rivlin - Nachlat Shiva mall, Shlomzion Hamalka St., and Safra Square. Use of the wireless network and the internet connection will be free to all users for the first year.
The event will start with a press conference in the Municipality at 15:30, in the presence of Jerusalem Mayor Uri Lupolianski, VP and CIO, Intel Corporation, Stacey Smith, CEO Intel Israel and VP Intel Corporation, Alex Kornhauser, JBDC Chairman Jacob Ner-David, CEO Cisco Systems Israel, Bina Razinovski, one of the founders and VP, Check Point, Marius Nacht and CEO 012 , Stela Hendler.
The launch event for the public will take place between 18:00 - 23:00 in Safra Square, Jerusalem. The event will be produced by Carmi Wurtman from Blue Sun Music and City Hall. The artists Ivri Lieder, Maya Bouskila and 'Sweet peanut at the circus' band will be performing on a huge stage in front of City Hall, accompanied by large-screen video art. The event will be introduced by Army Radio personality Liron Tani.
The event will include a number of stands with laptop computers that will be available to the public, and information stands for various providers, the companies participating in and sponsoring the project, and food and drink. The event will be in the open air or in a marquee, depending on the weather, and security guards will be in attendance.
The event will be broadcast live on the Jerusalem Municipality website: www.Jerusalem.muni.il
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Intel was founded in Santa Clara, California, in 1986 by Gordon More and Robert Nevis.
In 1971 Intel presented the first miniature processor, and thus created the computer revolution which changed the world. Intel today employs 78,000 people throughout the world, and provides the computer industry with communication products and software, motherboards and, of course, micro-processors.
Intel has been operating in Israel since 1974, and this year marks its thirtieth anniversary in Israel. The company is mainly engaged in the development and manufacture of network and communication products and micro-processors. The company has four development centers (Haifa, Yakum, Jerusalem and Petach Tikva), and two production plants (Kiryat Gat and Jerusalem), and directly employs over 5,400 people, in addition to several thousand external employees.
www.intel.co.il
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Compumat Computers was founded in 1996 by Matti Herbert and is located in Jerusalem and New York. The company provides IT solutions and integration for systems in medium sized organizations and businesses.
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Unwire Jerusalem is a project of the Jerusalem Business Development Corporation, a non-profit entity set up by local businesspeople to work on projects that help change the image and reality of Jerusalem's business climate. The JBDC is an independent non-political organization that works closely with the Municipality as well as other strategic partners, such as the Jerusalem Development Authority and Start-Up Jerusalem. The JBDC was founded by Jacob Ner-David, a Jerusalem based serial entrepreneur and currently managing partner of the Jerusalem Future Fund.
The Unwire Jerusalem project has three main co-founders: the JBDC; Compumat (led by Mati Herbst), an provider of outsourced IT solutions to mid-sized corporations in Israel and the United States maintaining offices in Jerusalem and New York; and Intel, through their Jerusalem Fab8 management, represented by Shai Kavas, who is responsible globally for WiFi within Intel facilities on an operational level.
The co-founders have been joined by strategic sponsors including Golden Lines, Cisco, Checkpoint, and Jerusalem Ventures Partners, as well as the Jerusalem Municipality.
Unwire Jerusalem in Phase 1 provides free WiFi Internet access, for basic web surfing and email, in downtown Jerusalem, including the Ben-Yehuda pedestrian mall (Midrahov), Nahalat Shiva, and Kikiar Safra. Phase 2 will include coverage of Emek Refaim, extending cloud of phase 1, and the central bus station. Phase 3, which will not occur until seconf half of 2005, will include e-government and additional services. The Jerusalem Business Development Co. is a not-for-profit organization founded in order to help the economic renewal of Jerusalem.
www.jerusalembiz.com
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Blue Sun Music
2Bvibes productions merged with Damdam Records in 2004 to create a new company offering production services, artist representation as well a record label.
2Bvibes produced over 100 events in the last three years including annual "Festival B'shekel", Festival Shai L'Israel, and University Student days and has a lot of experience in working on community events with local municipalitie